In Week 7, we saw a division game within the AFC East between the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots in Foxborough, while the Miami Dolphins faced off against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night. The New York Jets, coming off a statement win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 6 were on a bye week.
While the standings stayed the same in order, there is a lot to unpack within the division after Week 7. Two teams are coming off a loss, while one pulled arguably the upset of the week.
Here are the updated AFC East standings after Week 7
4.) New England Patriots (2-5) - win vs. Buffalo Bills, 29-25
The Patriots came into this game as a touchdown underdog going up against a rocky Buffalo Bills team who came off an unconvincing win last week. The New England offense took an early 10-0 lead after Josh Allen’s first pass of the game was intercepted.
Overall, they did not lose the lead until 1:58 left in the fourth quarter, but ultimately made the comeback and left the Bills with only 12 seconds left on the clock. Mac Jones looked like an All-Pro quarterback against a beaten-up Buffalo defense, going 25/30 with 272 yards and two touchdowns. He ended the game with an overall 126.7 rating, as well as averaged nine yards per pass.
The defense for New England took advantage of yet another week of a struggling Bills’ offense. They pressured Josh Allen all day long, locked down Stefon Diggs (6 catches for 58 yards and one miraculous touchdown), and ultimately were able to get six quarterback hits on Allen. Even though they allowed the Bills to get back in the game in the second half, they did just enough in the first half to force pressure on Buffalo for all four quarters.
The Patriots are back in the win column in three weeks, but will now go down to Miami for another division game in Week 8.