The New England Patriots are finally back in the NFL playoffs, and they will enter the tournament on Sunday night. Hosting the Los Angeles Chargers at Gillette Stadium, the AFC East champions will try to win a fourth game in a row and 15th overall this season.

To do so, the Patriots have to bring their A-game in all three phases; despite an inferior record, L.A. is a formidable opponent capable of making life hard on any team. Needless to say that it takes an all-out effort from every player on the game day roster for that to happen. We will, however, take a close eye on the following six pivotal Patriots on Sunday night.

QB Drake Maye

The Patriots’ starting quarterback played at an MVP-caliber level in the regular season, but the challenge will be a different one on Sunday. Not only is the pressure higher in the win-or-go-home setting that is the NFL playoffs, he also will go up against arguably the toughest defense he has faced so far: L.A. is among the best teams in football defending the pass and particularly the vertical game.

During the regular season, the Chargers allowed only 40.7% of passes beyond 10 air yards to be completed, the third-lowest rate in the NFL. In addition, they picked off 14 downfield throws, ranking second in the NFL in that particular category. Long story short, Maye needs to be at his best, and show why he has been worthy of all the MVP talk.

“There’s obviously a little bit of mixed emotions,” Maye said this week. “I think the biggest thing is I’m excited, excited to get an opportunity to play home playoff games. That’s what we starred at the beginning of the season of things we want to do here and goals we want to accomplish, and we’ve got our chance and opportunity right here. So, take advantage of playing in front of a crowd that’s been great all year, a crowd that I expect to be loud, and a night game against an opponent that has had some playoff experience and has a great offense and a great defense. So, we’ve got our hands full, but I’m looking forward to playing in front of this crowd.”

LT Will Campbell

New England’s left tackle played a solid game in his comeback from injured reserve last Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, but as with his quarterback and the offense as a whole the challenge will be a tougher one this week. That is especially true because Campbell and fellow OT Morgan Moses will be going up against a disruptive edge rushing group headed by Pro Bowler Tuli Tuipulotu as well as Khalil Mack and Odafe Oweh.

Together, the three have registered a combined 26 sacks during the regular season. And there is no telling who will line up where: the three are switching sides on the regular, meaning that Campbell could very well end up facing all three.

DT Milton Williams

The Patriots defensive line has faced its challenges this season, but the same is true for its counterpart this week: the Chargers O-line has struggled with consistency both in terms of available personnel and overall performance on the field. From a New England perspective, this offers opportunity for its best players to step up.

Near the top of that list are defensive tackles Milton Williams and Christian Barmore, who were reunited last week with the former coming off injured reserve. Williams was comparatively quiet in Week 18 against Miami, but his presence has a positive effect on the entire group around him. On the flip side, Los Angeles’ offensive line could be in for a rough day if the high-prized free agency signing returns to his peak shape come Sunday.

If Williams does so, both quarterback Justin Herbert and the team’s running game could run into issues. If not, meanwhile, the Patriots will need somebody else to step up, and that is not a given considering the inconsistent play along the D-line in recent weeks.

LB Robert Spillane

The Patriots’ defensive leader missed the previous four games with an ankle injury, but he will make his comeback on Sunday night. And when he does, the entire unit will benefit: not only is Spillane a premier run defender who has the reactionary skills, vision and instincts to make his presence felt at the second level, he also is a key communicator at the second level.

Against an offense led by a Pro Bowl quarterback, having him in the mix could prove to be a low-key difference for New England. That doesn’t mean his replacement, Jack Gibbens, was bad by any means — he was not — but that Spillane is playing close to 100% of snaps each week for a reason.

CB Carlton Davis III

The Patriots entered the playoffs with plenty of momentum on their side, but that was not true for the entire roster. Cornerback Carlton Davis had a rough outing versus the Dolphins in Week 18 — the type he needs to put in the back of his mind fast with Chargers perimeter receivers Quentin Johnson and Keenan Allen waiting. He seems to have been doing just that, though.

“The regular season doesn’t even matter anymore,” Davis said on Friday. “That’s the past. Like, it’s something we can’t even hang our hats on because it’s one-and-done now, right? Not right now. So, whatever we did was good, but right now, this is where the real season begins and where we all want to be at. And this is the reason why we work so hard during the regular season.”

CB Marcus Jones

The last time the Patriots went up against the Chargers, in Week 17 during the 2024 season, they allowed Chargers slot receiver Ladd McConkey to dominate. The then-rookie caught eight passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns. In order to prevent one of Justin Herbert’s favorite targets to have a similar impact, New England will rely quite a bit on one of its best players this season, its own slot weapon, Marcus Jones.

Jones was not available during Los Angeles’ 40-7 win in Foxborough last December, but he projects as a crucial player come Sunday. Luckily for the Patriots, he has played the best defensive football of his career this season — all while McConkey has not been quite as hot as he was in 2024: he averaged only 1.2 yards per route run from the slot in the regular season, down from 2.4 last year.

“Of course, it’s playoffs, but at the end of the day, our main thing is to get a W,” said Jones earlier this week. “We’re making sure to dial into the right things that we need to dial into, study the right things, and just keeping it consistent.”