The New England Patriots need to win on Sunday against the New York Jets in order to ensure homefield advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. If the Patriots can do their job, they’ll be in great position to make another postseason run at a Super Bowl berth.
But there are other important games taking place at 1:00 PM ET. Here’s the Patriots rooting guide.
1:00 PM ET Patriots rooting guide
Browns at Steelers (-7): Pittsburgh is resting their starters in the season finale and the Patriots would love it if the Steelers lost, handing homefield advantage to New England regardless of how the Patriots fared against the Jets.
Bears at Vikings (-12.5): The Patriots want the Vikings to lose to put their first round bye in jeopardy.
Texans at Colts (-5.5): The Colts could be a prime landing spot for Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. A win would also help secure Bill O’Brien’s job as the head coach of the Texans for at least another season. The outcome of this game doesn’t affect New England, but it could affect a lot of coaches and players with Patriots connections.
Packers at Lions (-7): Detroit is expected to fire head coach Jim Caldwell after this game and Patriots defensive coordinator Matt Patricia is expected to be the favorite for the next leader of the team. This game doesn’t really matter for the Patriots, but it impacts the future of a Patriots coach.
Washington (-3) at Giants: This game doesn’t matter to the Patriots.
Cowboys (-3) at Eagles: This game also doesn’t matter.
Game details
Date: Sunday, December 31st, 2017
Location: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts
Kickoff: 1:00 PM ET
Line: Patriots -15.5
O/U: 45.0
SB Nation Affiliates: GangGreenNation.com
TV: CBS
Use this as the open thread for discussion.