The New England Patriots are AFC East champions for a 10th consecutive year and they can secure a first round bye in the playoffs by beating the New York Jets on Sunday afternoon at Gillette Stadium. 

NFL Point Spread and Betting Analysis

The Patriots became the first team in NFL history to qualify for the playoffs in 10 consecutive seasons and they won the AFC East for the 15th time in the last 16 years.

There’s been little movement on the spread since Sports Interaction posted the Pats as 13-point home favourites. The Over/Under has dropped two points from 47.5 to 45.5. The Over is 4-0 in the Jets’ last four games, while the Under is 7-1 in the Patriots’ last eight contests.

New England topped New York 27-13 as a 13-point road fave last month. The Pats are 2-0 straight up and against the spread in their last two meetings with the Jets, but Gang Green 7-3-1 ATS in the last 11 games between the two sides.

The Jets are coming off a 44-38 loss to the Green Bay Packers last weekend. It was the largest offensive outburst for the club since it put up 42 points against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 6.

The Pats took care of the Buffalo Bills last weekend but failed to cover as 13.5-point favorites. New England are defending AFC champions and are five-time Super Bowl champs. Still, SIA isn’t pushing the club to the top of futures board.

Tom Brady and Co. are fourth favourites to win the Super Bowl at +500. The New Orleans Saints (+200), Los Angeles Rams (+400) and Kansas City Chiefs (+450) are the only teams with shorter odds to lift the Lombardi Trophy.

New York Jets

Rookie quarterback Sam Darnold is coming off the best NFL start. The former big man on campus at USC tossed for three touchdowns and 341 yards on 35 pass attempts last weekend against the Packers.

It’s a positive sign as Darnold performed well the week prior in a narrow loss to the Houston Texans. Darnold has five TD passes and zero interceptions over his last two weeks. He was injured and didn’t play in the November matchup against the Pats. The Jets might put up a better fight on Sunday with their QB1 under centre.

New England Patriots

Winning the AFC East is great, but it was never really in doubt. Even in a down year for the Patriots in the Bill Belichick era, the competition in the division was lacking again.

Grabbing one of the top two seeds in the AFC playoffs is a much bigger accomplishment. The reward is a bye from the Wild Card round of the postseason – something the Pats have enjoyed for eight consecutive years.

The Pats get the bye if they beat the Jets or Houston, Baltimore and Tennessee all lose.

Jets vs. Patriots Prediction