Draft Order Rooting Guide: Patriots 'Win' With Loss To Jets

The New England Patriots have a 15-game winning streak over the New York Jets, but a loss Sunday would serve as potentially a nice parting gift from Bill Belichick.

Bill Belichick on the New England Patriots' sideline for the final time? A loss in January at snowy Gillette Stadium actually benefitting the team?

It will be a surreal setting Sunday in Foxboro as the Pats close out a disastrous season by hosting the New York Jets. We don't know who will be coaching the team next season, but we are certain that a loss and fall to 4-13 would improve their draft choice in 2024.

The Patriots could pick anywhere from No. 2 to No. 7 depending on how Week 18 plays out, but a loss to the Jets assures them a Top 3 selection. After that, they'll have to turn to the rest of the league for help getting the second pick.

The Patriots are tied with the Washington Commanders and Arizona Cardinals for the second-worst record in the league. The Commanders hold a slight edge in the strength of schedule tiebreaker over the Patriots (.515 vs. .518), but that could very easily change in the final week. Meanwhile, the Cardinals are guaranteed to pick third among that trio with a strength of schedule of .562.

Should both New England and Washington both lose in Week 18 to finish at 4-13, there are five games that will decide which one will get the second overall pick. Those games are as follows:

• Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens (Saturday, 4:30 p.m. ET)
• Houston Texans at Indianapolis Colts (Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET)
• Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints (Sunday, 1 p.m. ET)
• Chicago Bears at Green Bay Packers (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET)
• Denver Broncos at Las Vegas Raiders (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET)

Of those five games, the most important one for draft positioning is Falcons-Saints. New England has only played New Orleans while Washington has only played Atlanta, so a Falcons win would do wonders for the Patriots' odds of landing the second pick.

As for the other games, the Patriots should be rooting for the Ravens, Texans, Bears and Broncos to win.

New England has played Pittsburgh and Indianapolis while Washington has not, so those two teams losing would lower the Patriots' strength of schedule. On the other hand, Washington has played Chicago while New England has not, so a Bears win to boost the Commanders' strength of schedule is ideal. While both teams have played Denver, only New England has played Las Vegas, and thus a Broncos win would be more beneficial for the Patriots.

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If the Patriots were to beat the Jets, though, it could hurt their draft status substantially. Not only would they fall behind the Commanders and Cardinals, but likely the New York Giants as well due to tiebreakers. So while it would be nice to end a miserable season on a high note, it would likely be a bittersweet victory.

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