One of the biggest beneficiaries of Week 11’s action was a team that didn’t even play. Despite being on the bye week, the New England Patriots had just about everything go right in Week 11. The Patriots, currently 7-3, do not control their own playoff destiny, so they’ll need some help if they are to receive homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. Fortunately, Week 11 went a long way in securing that help.
New England Patriots Win A Friendly Bye Week
In an odd scheduling quirk, every single team in the AFC East spent Week 11 on their couches. This is obviously good news for the Patriots, as no team in the AFC East had a chance to close the divisional gap. While it’s highly unlikely the Patriots lose the division, it’s always an important milestone. It can be dangerous to look ahead before you officially clinch the division and punch your ticket to the playoffs.
That being said, let’s look ahead at positional seeding. Entering Week 11, the Patriots were behind the Kansas City Chiefs (9-1) and Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2-1) in terms of seeding. Additionally, the Los Angeles Chargers (7-2) had a better record but were behind the Patriots due to being second in their division.
While New England is still behind Kansas City and Pittsburgh, their odds for earning a bye drastically improved. Kansas City dropped a thriller to the Los Angeles Rams in an instant-classic, lowering their record to 9-2 and putting them just one game ahead of the Patriots. New England owns the head-to-head tiebreaker, so the Patriots will get the better seed if Kansas City and the Patriots finish with the same record.
However, that will only be the case if the Chiefs actually win their division. The Chargers are right on their tail, and the Patriots don’t have the head-to-head tiebreaker with LA. If the Chargers win the AFC West with the same record as the Patriots, seeding would come down to tiebreakers.
Fortunately, the Chargers lost too. The best possible scenario for New England is the Chiefs win the AFC West with an identical (or worse) record than the Patriots. Week 11 was a positive step in that direction.
The Steelers
The one team ruining the Patriots perfect bye week is the Pittsburgh Steelers. It looked like Pittsburgh was destined to lose this one before magically pulling off a thrilling 20-16 victory. Instead of dropping below the Patriots, Pittsburgh continued to hold on to the second-best seed in the AFC.
Fortunately, the Patriots control their own destiny on this one. Even if the rest of the NFL doesn’t help the Patriots, New England can choose their own fate here. The Patriots travel to Pittsburgh in Week 15 in what will certainly be a high-stakes game. If New England wins this game without dropping any other matchups, they’ll automatically earn the number two-seed. Obviously, the Patriots would prefer the Steelers lose, but if one team had to win, New England should be happy it was the Steelers.
Last Word on the Favorable Bye Week
While New England used the bye week to rest up and prepare for the final stretch, the rest of the NFL did everything they could to help the Patriots out. The AFC East, while basically clinched, was on a bye, so nobody could close the gap on New England’s lead.
Additionally, the Chiefs and Chargers both lost. While Kansas City is still ahead of New England in the overall seeding, Kansas City just needs to lose one more game before matching the Patriots record. If that happens, the Patriots will have the head-to-head tiebreaker thanks to their Week Six win. The Chargers losing allowed the Chiefs to keep the division lead, which is a good thing in terms of the tiebreaker.
While Pittsburgh ultimately prevailed, New England still controls their own destiny with the Steelers. Pittsburgh is only up a half-game on New England with a Week 15 matchup looming. If the Patriots take care of business, they’ll usurp Pittsburgh for the second seed in the playoffs.
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