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It was a rough week for the AFC East as three teams exit Week 7 with losses. Even the New England Patriots had a hard time securing their win, doing so only on the last play of the game while defending the yard in front of their end zone. This week on the AFC East roundup we’ll be looking ahead to the Week 8 match-ups that will bring the league to the halfway point of the season.
Buffalo Bills/New England Patriots
The Bills (2-5) and Patriots (5-2) are grouped together because they’re set for a Monday Night Football showdown in Buffalo next week. To say this game is predicted to be a blowout is an understatement. (Monday’s very early line has the Bills as 13-point home dogs.) The Bills are coming off an awful loss to the Colts where it appeared the team lacked effort and did not deserve to be on the field. The Patriots are now playing up to their potential after starting the season slow. If the Bills can somehow pull out the victory it gives the team something to grow on at the mid-point of the season. On the flip side, if the Patriots come away with the victory, they remain neck-and-neck with the Kansas City Chiefs for potential home-field advantage throughout the post-season (and possess the tiebreaker having already beat the Chief this season).
Miami (4-3) has a short week—they play in the Thursday night game against the red-hot Houston Texans. Ryan Tannehill will miss his third straight game. After starting off the season 3-0, the team has lost three out of their last four and are in danger of losing their momentum for the rest of the season. For a defense that started off great at the onset of the season, they have allowed at least 27 points per game in the last four.
The Jets continue their roller-coaster season with a game against the Chicago Bears on Sunday. The team has been streaky in 2018—sitting at 3-4—but you can see their potential. First-round pick Sam Darnold has shown a lot of potential to build upon and, at times, the defense has shown why it has been in the top half of the league the last couple of seasons. If the team can pull out a victory against Chicago it’s possible they can build a nice winning streak with games against the Dolphins and Bills coming up.