The Patriots are inching closer to the top.
New England not only maintained its lead in the AFC East after its Week 7 victory over the Titans, but Mike Vrabel’s team seems poised to enter Week 8 as one of two teams in the conference with five or more wins. Only the Colts have a better record than the Patriots while the rival Bills were on their bye following consecutive losses.
With that said, where do the Patriots rank in the AFC hierarchy with one Sunday left before the calendar flips to November? Patriots insider Phil Perry weighed in on that topic during Patriots Postgame Live after New England’s 31-13 victory at Nissan Stadium.
“I think it is the Kansas City Chiefs right now,” Perry responded citing the top team in the conference.
Andy Reid’s group has won four of its last five games and claimed a 31-0 bludgeoning of the Raiders on Sunday.
“I think the Chiefs have found it in the last month and they just got Rashee Rice back, who’s supposed to be their best receiver. Patrick Mahomes looks like prime Patrick Mahomes right now. So, that would be the team,” Perry said. “Just based on their history and based on the way they’re playing right now, I would say the Chiefs you’d have to put at the top of the heap in the AFC.
“But I’m putting the Patriots right behind them,” Perry continued. “I’m not putting the Colts there. I’m not putting the Chargers there. I’m certainly not putting the Jacksonville Jaguars there after what we saw today and not the Buffalo Bills. I would say the Patriots right now, as we sit here today, are the second-best team.”
Fellow Patriots insider Tom E. Curran opted not to take part in the fun citing the season hasn’t even hit the midway point yet.
“I don’t have to and I don’t want to,” Curran said humorously.
Curran did, however, acknowledge the Patriots were worthy of jumping up power rankings and playoff chatter.
“This is a team that certainly deserves to be in the top-10 of everyone’s conversation,” Curran said. “They’re not just a playoff hopeful. They’re not just a likely playoff participant. You can start to reconfigure your expectations to say, ‘How will they match up against the teams that have playoff experience?'”
New England, like the rest of the league, still has a long way to go.
But with second-year quarterback Drake Maye setting franchise records and playing as well as anybody in the league, and with a favorable schedule littered with cellar-dwellers, there’s a real possibility the Patriots aren’t just vying for a playoff spot but the top playoff spot.
Phil Perry, Tom E. Curran, and Michael Holley share their instant analysis and reaction to the Patriots win over the Titans. They break down Drake Maye’s impressive performance, and where the Patriots stand in the AFC.
