National Post (National Edition)
Bills, Patriots take seats at opposite ends of table
First place fresh feeling again for Buffalo
There they are again, at opposite ends of the see-saw. The Buffalo Bills and New England Patriots.
On Saturday, the Bills improved to 11-3 and captured their first AFC East crown in 25 years with a resounding, all-powerful thrashing of the host Denver Broncos, 48-19.
On Sunday, the Patriots slumped to 6-8 and were officially eliminated from the 2020 post-season with another shockingly toothless defeat this season, 22-12 at Miami.
Bills riding up high, Patriots thumping to ground. Or vice versa.
For more than three decades that's usually been the case, strangely.
Unlike, say, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens — who most years this century have annually battled tooth-and-nail atop the AFC North — the Bills and Patriots have been locked in a one-but-not-theother dynamic since both finally rose to become viable on-field threats in the NFL in the mid to late 1980s.
When one is up, the other usually is down. Like a teeter-totter.
Both seats seldom have hovered in horizontal balance by season's end, with either both really good, both really bad, or both facing one another in level mediocrity.
For instance, from 198895 the Bills won the division six times, and in those seasons the Patriots finished third, fourth, fifth (it was a five-team division through 2001), fourth, fourth and fourth. Buffalo ruled, the Patriots were fools.
From 1996-2000 the Bills were transitioning away from formidability, and the Patriots were ascending toward it. The Pats won the division twice, and in those years Buffalo finished second and fourth. The two teams even made the playoffs simultaneously in 1998, as division runners-up.
Once Bill Belichick's New England dynasty kicked in 2001, the see-saw rusted into that new position — and didn't move for the next 19 years.
It's not just that the Patriots won the division all but twice through 2019, it's that the Bills most years didn't come within telescope distance of them. Year by year from 2001-19 the two teams finished: 1st-5th, 2-4, 1-3, 1-3, 1-3, 1-3, 1-2, 2-4, 1-4, 1-4, 1-4, 1-4, 1-4, 1-2, 1-3, 1-3, 1-2, 1-3, 1-2.
The four times the Bills finished second to New England they trailed in wins by nine (2007), three (2014), four (2017) and two (last year).
Given this history, it not only seems entirely fitting but ordained that in the year the Bills finally broke through and won the AFC East again, it coincided with the year the Patriots' mystique completely evaporated.
'TIS THE SEASON
NFL schedule makers once again this year have moved around games in the penultimate week of the regular season, depending on where Christmas Day is located.
In 2020 it's this Friday. So, no Thursday night game this week — that's Christmas Eve — but there's one afternoon tilt on Christmas: the Minnesota Vikings at the New Orleans Saints (4:30 p.m. EST).
That's followed on Saturday — Boxing Day — with a newly scheduled triple-header featuring Tampa Bay at Detroit (1 p.m. EST), San Francisco at Arizona (4:30 p.m. EST) and Miami at Las Vegas (8:15 p.m. EST).
Nearly 11 hours of football. What else is there to do this year on Boxing Day? Buy extra popcorn.
The Week 16 schedule concludes as normal, with 10 games across the two Sunday afternoon time slots, followed by a delicious Sunday night matchup pitting Tennessee at Green Bay. Possible Super Bowl preview? Don't be surprised.
The Monday nighter pits Buffalo at New England, where every Bills fan on the planet hopes Sean McDermott's charges rub it in on Belichick's undermanned, reeling squad.
The regular season concludes with all Week 17 games played on Sunday, Jan. 3 — with only the Sunday-nighter to be announced. Best candidates for that at this point appear to be Pittsburgh at Cleveland, or Arizona at Los Angeles Rams.
Then, so long as the pandemic doesn't muck things up, the playoffs will go as follows: six wild-card games on the Jan. 9-10 weekend, four division games on Jan. 16-17, conference championships on Sunday, Jan. 24 and Super Bowl LV in Tampa on Feb. 7.
Fingers crossed.
ROETHLISBERGER
IS IN FOR 2021
Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger, 38, intends to play in 2021, ESPN reported … Jalen Hurts “obviously” remains Philadelphia's starting QB this week versus Dallas, head coach Doug Pederson announced … Rookie Kansas City RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire reportedly has a high ankle sprain only, nothing worse. But he is not expected to return until the Chiefs' first playoff game at the earliest. Le'Veon Bell will get the extra touches he's whinging about … New England CB Stephon Gilmore has a partially torn quad but no structural damage, per NFL Network, and will have surgery. His season is over … Cleveland T/G Chris Hubbard (knee) is out this week … Denver head coach Vic Fangio said he's “not optimistic” OLB Von Miller (ankle tendon dislocation) will be back this season, but said he would find out from doctors if he's at least ready to practise.