Pats Pulpit
Happy holidays! The New England Patriots already made themselves an early Christmas present last Sunday, when they clinched a playoff spot thanks to their 28-24 win in Baltimore. This week, they have their sights set on the next challenge: beating the New York Jets to keep their one-game advantage in the AFC East heading into the regular season finale.
That game is only one of 16 to be played this weekend, however, and several of those other contests either directly or indirectly impact the Patriots in some shape or form as well. Let’s take a look at those games and find out who to root for between Thursday and Sunday.
Dallas Cowboys (6-8-1) at Washington Commanders (4-11): Go good game! This game has no real impact on the Patriots. | Netflix
Detroit Lions (8-7) at Minnesota Vikings (7-8): Go good game! Another game that matters next to nothing for New England. | Netflix
Denver Broncos (12-3) at Kansas City Chiefs (6-9): Go Chiefs! This is a big one, even though a Chiefs win with their third-string quarterback is highly unlikely. Still, if they manage to pull off the upset, it would help the Patriots in the race for the No. 1 playoff seed in the AFC. | Amazon
Houston Texans (10-5) at Los Angeles Chargers (11-4): Go Texans! In theory, the Chargers could still overtake the Broncos in the AFC West and end up claiming the No. 1 seed in the AFC for themselves. A Texans win would prevent that from happening.| NFL Network
Baltimore Ravens (7-8) at Green Bay Packers (9-5-1): Go Ravens! The Patriots would benefit from the Steelers failing to make the playoffs, thanks to the draft pick they received in the Kyle Dugger trade. For that to happen, the Ravens must leap-frog them in the final standings. | Peacock
Seattle Seahawks (12-3) at Carolina Panthers (8-7): Go good game! This game matters not for New England. | CBS
Arizona Cardinals (3-12) at Cincinnati Bengals (5-10): Go Bengals! This has nothing to do with the Patriots and everything with the Jets competing for the top picks in the 2026 draft. The more of the other bottom-feeders this season lose, the better. | FOX
Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6) at Cleveland Browns (3-12): Go Browns! As mentioned in the Saturday portion of this week’s rooting guide, the Steelers ending up on the outside looking in in the AFC playoffs would help the Patriots’ draft portfolio: the sixth-round pick they received from the Kyle Dugger trade would be better positioned in that case. | CBS
Jacksonville Jaguars (11-4) at Indianapolis Colts (8-7): Go Colts! The Jaguars can still play spoilers in the AFC playoff race, and overtake the Patriots. Indianapolis winning would help with that. | FOX
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8) at Miami Dolphins (6-9): Go Dolphins! Miami won’t...
