NFL Week 18 Schedule: Patriots Already Catching Break?

Next weekend's schedule could allow New England an advantage in its do-or-die game against the Buffalo Bills.

When the New England Patriots kick off their do-or-die game for the playoffs next Sunday in western New York, they could be facing an opponent with nothing to play for.

That potentially huge advantage arose Monday morning when the NFL announced a portion of its Week 18 schedule. At 8-8 and needing all the luck they can get, the Pats might be catching a big break.

The Patriots can secure a Wild Card berth and the AFC's 7th seed by beating the Bills, a team they have lost to the last three meetings by a combined 104-48. That tall task, however, could become more manageable.

The NFL decided to flex next weekend's game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders to Saturday afternoon, meaning by Sunday the Bills could have the AFC's No. 1 seed already locked up. In that scenario, Buffalo would have nothing to play for against New England and could potentially rest its front-line starters.

What needs to happen for that scenario to benefit the Pats:

1. Buffalo beats the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football. 

2. Chiefs lose at Raiders Saturday.

The Bills open as a 7.5-point favorite over the Pats.

If the Bills lose to the Bengals Monday night and the Chiefs beat the Raiders and familiar quarterback Jarrett Stidham Saturday, Buffalo would lose the No. 1 seed to Kansas City and its position as the No. 2 or 3 seed would be unsettled.

The AFC’s No. 2 will host the Patriots, Miami Dolphins or Pittsburgh Steelers on Wild Card weekend, while No. 3 will host the Los Angeles Chargers. The top three teams in the conference will be Kansas City, Buffalo and Cincinnati, in some order.

The Patriots, who staved off elimination with a 23-21 victory over the Miami Dolphins, could find themselves returning to Highmark Stadium for its playoff game. The Bills blew them out, 47-17, in the Wild Card game last season.

The Patriots can also can make the playoffs if they lose to Buffalo, but that would require the Dolphins to lose to the New York Jets, the Steelers to lose to the Cleveland Browns and the Jacksonville Jaguars to lose to the Tennessee Titans.

The NFL’s flex scheduling also moved Titans-Jaguars to Saturday night, meaning the Patriots could know in advance whether they’d need a win to secure a playoff spot. The Jags will be on short rest against a Titans team that played on Thursday night this week and sat many of its starters.

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