New England (8-4) at Buffalo (7-4)
5:15 p.m. Monday, ESPN
Line: Buffalo -2½; total 40½ Patriots player to watch: QB Mac Jones. He enters Monday leading rookie quarterbacks with 2,850 passing yards and 16 touchdowns.
He’s also completed 70 percent of his attempts in eight of his first 12 starts. He can tie Dallas QB Dak Prescott’s record of nine such games this week. With a victory he’ll also join Prescott (2016) and Ben Roethlisberger (2004 with Pittsburgh) as the only rookie quarterbacks to win each of his first six road games.
Bills player to watch: CB Dane Jackson. The second-year player prepares to make his third career start in replacing Tre’davious White, who sustained a season-ending injury to his left knee against New Orleans. White traditionally covers opponents’ top receiving threats.
Key matchup: Patriots CB J.C. Jackson vs. Bills QB Josh Allen.
Jackson ranks second in the NFL with seven interceptions, with four coming in his past four games.
Allen, meantime, has thrown seven interceptions in his past four outings. Allen’s 10 interceptions this season already match his total from last year.
Key injuries: Patriots S Kyle Dugger, who leads the team with 75 tackles, was added to the reserve/covid-19 list Dec. 1 and could be unavailable. LB Jamie Collins could be active for the first time in three games. He returned to practice Wednesday after spending the past three weeks on injured reserve with an ankle issue. … For the Bills, DT Star Lotulelei and RT Spencer Brown returned to practice this week after being cleared from the reserve/ COVID-19 list. G Jon Feliciano is also eligible to return after missing four games with a calf injury.
Series notes: The Bills last year swept the season-series against the Patriots for the first time since 1999. From 2000 to 2019, New England had a 35-5 record against Buffalo.