Patriots Prove They're Ready for the Postseason Grind With Gutsy Comeback Win

Behind MVP candidate Drake Maye, New England showed plenty of toughness with a road comeback in Baltimore to keep pace at the top of the AFC.

Drake Maye threw for a career-high 380 passing yards in Sunday's 28–24 win over the Ravens. / James Lang-Imagn Images

In a way, the Patriots had a final dress rehearsal for the postseason during Sunday night’s matchup against the Ravens, a team that prefers to muddy games with a physical play style on both sides of the ball. 

The AFC postseason is currently filled with teams that pride themselves on punching hard—you know, the kind of smashmouth football Mike Vrabel oversaw for many years as the coach in Tennessee. But that toughness element hasn’t become a strength yet for his new team in New England partly because the defense is still a work in progress and Derrick Henry is no longer on Vrabel’s side.

The ground game is still lagging behind prime Henry. But Varbel’s team did, however, improve in the toughness department, because these suddenly-good-again Patriots managed to punch back after withstanding plenty of punishment from Henry on Sunday night. 

New England is ready for the bright lights of the postseason after displaying resilience in its come-from-behind 28–24 victory over Baltimore, punching its ticket into the AFC playoffs in a few weeks. The Patriots (12–3) could capture the AFC East title without needing the Bills to lose once more, just by beating the lowly Jets and Dolphins in the final two regular season games. New England is also tied with Denver (12–3) for the best record in the AFC. 

We learned plenty about the Patriots on Sunday night, but we already knew they can handle business against the losing teams, which is why they’re in the position to control their own destiny when it comes to wrapping up the AFC East. The questions heading into Sunday Night Football were more about the Patriots possibly not being ready to contend in the playoffs because they blew a 21–0 lead against Buffalo last week and have benefited from a feeble schedule.

Vrabel likely thanked Henry on the field for throwing everything at his defense, helping them overcome adversity one week after the heartbreaker against the Bills. Henry rushed for 128 yards, but he was contained after crossing the end zone to give Baltimore a 24–13 advantage with 12:50 left in regulation. 

New England now knows it can win ugly games, which could be required in a postseason that will likely include the Broncos, Texans, Chargers and Steelers—all teams that also prefer games with physical play styles.

As for their high-scoring rivals in Buffalo, maybe the Patriots are better prepared for a third meeting with the Bills because they are capable of dictating games on their terms, especially after what they displayed in Baltimore. As New England found out last week, it’s better to not get into a track meet with Josh Allen’s Bills. But that’s what makes the Patriots dangerous despite still being a work in progress. They’re capable of hanging with the best offenses and overcoming 11-point deficits, like they did Sunday night, because Vrabel has a superstar quarterback, something he didn’t have in Tennessee for all those years.  

Drake Maye started the rally with a sensational 37-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Williams (then finding Rhamondre Stevenson for a two-point conversion) to trim the deficit to three points with 9:01 left in regulation. From there, New England’s offense put together a gritty nine-play, 89-yard go-ahead touchdown drive that consisted of clutch plays from Stefon Diggs, who gives this team plenty of toughness. Maye finished 31-of-44 for 380 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Diggs provided nine catches for 138 yards.  

So, yeah, these Patriots don’t have the look of Vrabel’s old Titans teams, but perhaps that’s for the better. They know how to punch back and can light up the scoreboard in a hurry with Maye leading the charge. Also, defensive tackle Milton Williams could soon be activated from injured reserve. This defense has missed him greatly in the past month and they were on the verge of losing to Tyler Huntley, who was forced into the game after Lamar Jackson exited in the first half with a back injury. 

If New England’s rushing attack can find more consistency from Stevenson and rookie sensation TreVeyon Henderson, who left with a head injury on Sunday, that could be the missing ingredient for this team making the most of being a year ahead after what was supposed to be a rebuilding season.  

They can work on the rushing attack against the Jets and Dolphins. But this team is ready for the AFC playoffs after the resilience it showed in Baltimore.

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