It’s been a little bit since the Buffalo Bills were heading into an AFC East matchup. The last time they took on a division rival was back in Week 9 when they hosted the Miami Dolphins and Tyler Bass hit a game-winning 61-yard field goal to beat the Dolphins…again. Now after being on the road the last two weeks, the Bills are back in Orchard Park this Sunday to take on the struggling New England Patriots.
The Patriots haven’t won a game since November 10th and they are looking to play spoiler against the Bills, who are still in the chase for the top seed in the AFC. With the Patriots still trying to figure out if Jerod Mayo will be the head coach of the future, Bills fans should be concerned about the future that Drake Maye has.
Despite having limited talent around him, Maye looks like he has a high ceiling and could potentially be a Pro Bowl quarterback in his career. However, he will have his growing pains against Buffalo this Sunday in front of a rowdy Bills Mafia fanbase.
Heading into this game, we had the chance to talk with Sara Marshall, Site Expert for Musket Fire to gain insights on the Patriots heading into this AFC East battle.
Bills vs. Patriots Week 16 insights
1.) With the Patriots on a four-game losing streak, who needs to step up (offense and defense) in order to help pull off an upset against the Bills?
Would it be unfair to say everyone except Drake Maye and Christian Gonzalez? They have been two of the only consistently productive players so far this season, and while they're impressive in their roles, they are obviously not enough to get the job done on Sunday.
Outside of them, offensively we need to see the play calling be better this week. It has been a constant battle this year with Alex Van Pelt and he's developed a pattern that doesn't serve the team well at all; the play calling gets better late in the game and that's when we see Maye come alive. But by that time, they're already too far behind and they're not a team equipped to play the catch up game.
Defensively, we need to see more from everyone. Last week's penalties were absolute killers, taking away the only two sacks they got in the game and extending drives that would have otherwise been completed. More aggression and consistency from the entire group are needed, especially when lining up against a quarterback like Josh Allen.
2.) The Bills' defense has been heavily struggling the last two weeks, giving up 40+ points in back-to-back games. What will Drake Maye and the offense need to do to punish Buffalo's defense?
The biggest things would be to establish the run early, be effective on the ground throughout the entire game, and utilize Maye's skillset, which means allowing him to throw the ball downfield. We'll need to see the receiving corps get open and the offensive line not become a focus of offensive effort, and if that's the case, we could see a great day from them.
3.) What is a major weakness that the Patriots have that the Bills could easily attack?
The pass rush has been nearly nonexistent, which should allow Allen to exploit that with his scrambles or planned runs. The defensive line is also weak against the run game, so this could be an excellent game for James Cook to go off again.
4.) Do you believe Jerod Mayo could be one-and-done if the Patriots lose out the rest of the season?
Yes and no. I think firing him after one season would be a difficult decision for Robert Kraft to come to, considering he hand-picked Mayo to succeed Bill Belichick, and giving up on him after one year would be him admitting he failed. However, Kraft has made it very clear that he was not happy about the last four years and making the playoffs just once, so if that becomes a focus this offseason and he doesn't believe Mayo is the right guy to get the team to the postseason, then he could easily be gone.
I think moves will likely be made with the rest of the coaching staff rather than Mayo, but time will tell.
Fans can tune into CBS for a 4:25PM EST kickoff live from Orchard Park this Sunday to watch this AFC East battle.