The New England Patriots looked as though they’re on a shaky ground when they started the season with a 1-2 record, but they are now back to their dominant self, thanks to a four-game win streak that they plan to extend when they meet the Buffalo Bills this weekend. As for the Bills, they are simply looking to get a win to avoid getting entrenched harder in the bottom of the AFC East standings.
Going into this Monday Night Football matchup, NFL Futures price the Patriots with +500 odds to win the Super Bowl, +225 to win the AFC Championship, and -10,000 to take the AFC East. The Bills on the other hand, are long shots across the board, with +50,000 odds to win the Super Bowl, +25,000 to win the AFC and sit at the bottom of the AFC East with a price of +7,500.
He may be 41 now, but Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is still money in the pocket. In last week’s 38-31 win over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field, Brady passed for 277 yards and three touchdowns with just an interception on 25-for-36 completions. Brady did that against one of the fiercest defenses in the NFL today, so Patriots fans should feel very confident in New England’s attack rolling past Buffalo’s defense this weekend. The Patriots have owned the Bills for years, and there seems to be no definitive reason that Buffalo will turn the tables on New England at least in this weekend’s contest. The Patriots are 9-1 SU and 7-2-1 ATS in their last 10 meetings with Buffalo.
If there’s any worry for the Pats, it’s that their backfield is likely going to miss running back Sony Michel, who sustained a knee injury against the Bears and has missed all of the team’s practices this week.
Betting on the Buffalo Bills (2-5)
While the Patriots have enjoyed an over-a-decade stability at the quarterback position, the Bills can’t even find a dependable signal-caller this season. They opted to start Derek Anderson as quarterback last week, but the veteran did nothing but make his best impersonation of teammate Nathan Peterman by throwing zero interceptions and three interceptions on 20-of-31 completions. Anderson is likely going to start again with rookie Josh Allen out with an elbow issue and there’s no way the Bills are even looking at Peterman’s direction. If the Bills are going to win to upset New England, it’s because of their defense. The Bills are fourth in the league in total defense with just 320.9 total yards allowed per game. However, they need their pass rush to step up after failing to record a sack in last week’s 37-5 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on the road.
The Bills are 3-1 ATS in their last four home games.
