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The Patriots are back in primetime this week.<\/p>\n
Originally scheduled for a 1 p.m. kickoff, the Patriots\u2019 Week 16 matchup with the Ravens was flexed into the 8:20 p.m. \u201cSunday Night Football\u201d window last week.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what you play for. That\u2019s what we\u2019re trying to play for, for many years down the road,\u201d quarterback Drake Maye said Wednesday. \u201cTrying to be the team that people want to see at night. People want to see when the only game on is us. That\u2019s what you want this environment to be. That\u2019s what you want the New England Patriots to be. Playing in night games that matter, home playoff games, and that\u2019s what we\u2019re building towards and working towards. That\u2019s one of the goals. So, we\u2019re just going to keep trying to get there, do whatever we can to get there, and it starts in practice out here today, tomorrow and each and every day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Here are 10 things we\u2019re watching on Sunday night:<\/p>\n
\u2022 The top concern this week is the Patriots\u2019 run defense. Since Milton Williams went down with an ankle injury in Week 11, the Patriots\u2019 run defense has been among the worst in the NFL, ranking 30th in rush EPA (expected points added) per play and 31st in rush success rate. Those issues were compounded last week when linebacker Robert Spillane was active in an emergency role but didn\u2019t take the field.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Now the Patriots must play the Ravens, who rank third in the NFL with 2,047 rushing yards and first with 5.2 yards per carry. Running back Derrick Henry is having another strong season with 1,125 rushing yards and 4.8 yards per carry. His backup, speedy Keaton Mitchell, is averaging 7.6 yards per carry. And quarterback Lamar Jackson hasn\u2019t been quite as productive as in years past, but he\u2019s still rushing for 5.5 yards per carry.<\/p>\n
\u2022 How do the Patriots combat that? It\u2019s very unlikely that the Patriots\u2019 run defense will suddenly be fixed this week. So, the Patriots\u2019 offense will need to get out to a fast start. That\u2019s been the trend in recent weeks. Then they just have to hope that their defense can hold on in the second half.<\/p>\n
\u2022 That brings us to our next concern. The Patriots\u2019 offense has struggled to maintain its production in the second half of games since the beginning of November. They\u2019ve only put together one extended touchdown-scoring drive from Week 9 on, and that came against the Jets. They have just three other touchdowns in the second half of games in that span, and all three were 50-plus-yard runs from running back TreVeyon Henderson. And the Patriots can\u2019t just depend on those.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The Patriots were still able to win, despite their lack of production and efficiency in the second half, up until Sunday\u2019s loss to the Bills. They might be able to beat the Jets and Dolphins in Weeks 17 and 18 without much second-half offensive production. But the Ravens are a different story, and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels can\u2019t take his foot off the gas pedal in the second half this week.<\/p>\n
\u2022 It\u2019s asking a lot out of him, but it would certainly help the Patriots if Henderson can continue his trend of explosive plays. Henderson has become one of the most dangerous running backs in the NFL since the beginning of November, and he\u2019s now the offensive rookie of the year favorite.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Maye can help his MVP candidacy with a big win on Sunday night in front of a national audience. He doesn\u2019t rank quite as highly across the board in passing stats after the last few weeks, but he\u2019s still undoubtedly playing like one of the best quarterbacks in football. He\u2019s currently second in MVP odds behind Rams QB Matthew Stafford and just ahead of Bills QB Josh Allen.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Wide receiver Stefon Diggs has been quiet for the last three weeks and hasn\u2019t gone for over 30 yards in that span of time. Last week against the Bills, Diggs played just half of the Patriots\u2019 52 offensive snaps. He\u2019s Maye\u2019s best target, and the Patriots need to figure out a way to get him involved.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The Patriots\u2019 defense has just three takeaways in their last six games. Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis, who were expected to be one of the top cornerback duos in the league this season, both have yet to register a pick. If the Patriots\u2019 defense is going to be leaky anyway, then they at least need to find a way to get aggressive and force some turnovers.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The Ravens are favored by three points over the Patriots, who can clinch a playoff spot with a win or tie. They might still clinch a playoff spot with a Colts loss or tie, or Texans loss or tie, but this feels like a Ravens 24-21 win.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
10 things we\u2019re watching in the Patriots\u2019 Sunday night matchup with the Ravens.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":40187,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[295,77,1046,531,1166,74,370,227,2052,225,1045,2051,226,2053,2055,2054,532],"class_list":["post-40186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-new-england-patriots","tag-2025-nfl-draft","tag-drake-maye","tag-eliot-wolf","tag-mike-vrabel","tag-new-england","tag-new-england-patriots","tag-nfl-draft","tag-nfl-news","tag-nfl-patriots","tag-patriots","tag-patriots-2025","tag-patriots-game","tag-patriots-news","tag-patriots-schedule","tag-patriots-stats","tag-pats","tag-robert-kraft"],"yoast_head":"\n