Houston Texans vs New England Patriots
When: 8:15 PM ET, Saturday, January 14, 2017
Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

TV: 8:15 p.m. ET, CBS.
LINE: Patriots -15.5.
O/U: 44.5
PREDICTION: Patriots 30, Texans 13

Oddsmakers currently have the NEW ENGLAND listed as -15 point favorites versus the HOUSTON, while the game’s total is sitting at 44.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Bill O’Brien knows all about how tough the New England Patriots are at this, or any time, of year.

That’s why the former New England offensive coordinator and current Houston Texans coach knows what his team is up against when it visits for Saturday’s night’s AFC divisional playoff game.

“It’s a big challenge. It’s a team that has done it year in and year out,” O’Brien said earlier this week. “Last week was only this organization’s third playoff win. We’ve got a big challenge ahead of us.

“We’ve got a bunch of good guys in our locker room that are looking forward to the challenge. We know that the Patriots are a great football team. We feel like if we go up there and we practice well – we have a good week of practice – we go up there and show up and play hard for 60 minutes, you know, we’ll see what happens.”

History, and the oddsmakers, are both against the Texans, a 9-7 division champion that disposed of the Oakland Raiders in last weekend’s wild card game. Houston has never won at Foxborough, has beaten the Patriots just once, lost 27-0 in New England – with Tom Brady out, no less – in September and has lost the last two games to the Patriots by a combined score of 54-6.

The Texans come into this one as a 15 1/2-point underdog.

They’re also a warm weather team playing in the cold night air.

The Texans do bring the league’s No. 1 defense into this game, while the Patriots have allowed the fewest points.

Back in Week 3, Jacoby Brissett was the New England quarterback and J.J. Watt played his final game of the season before undergoing back surgery. The Texans fumbled away two kickoffs and saw Brissett run for a 27-yard touchdown.

Now, Brady will run the potent Patriots’ offense, which should be bolstered by the return of wideout Danny Amendola, who missed four games with a sprain ankle. He was back at full participation on Wednesday’s practice report, while Malcolm Mitchell, out last week with a knee injury, was limited.

LeGarrette Blount, who has had a strong year running the ball, missed Wednesday’s practice due to illness.

The Patriots come in 14-2 with seven straight wins and have gone 11-1 since Brady returned from his Deflategate suspension. They have spent the week doing what they always do – not saying anything even close to bad about the opposition.

“I think that they’re playing really well in all three phases,” New England’s Rob Ninkovich said. “I think that their running game is very strong, so we have a challenge. It starts today preparing for that challenge.”

Added Malcolm Butler: “Of course we won the (first) game, but teams are not peaking early in the season, so you most definitely say they got better, we got better, so time will tell.”

The Texans had eight players listed with limited participation Wednesday, six of them of defense – including Quintin Demps (hamstring, game-time decision), Jadeveon Clowney (elbow, wrist) and Brian Cushing (ankle).

Brady finished the regular season with 28 touchdown passes and just two interceptions as the Patriots set the record for fewest picks thrown (two) in a season.

The New England defense, suspect when it blanked the Texans in Week 3, has gotten better and better and even traded away Jamie Collins, who had a big game against Houston.

“It’s tough,” O’Brien said. “They’re obviously a team that lines up in different fronts. They challenge you with – not only their players, which their players are very, very good. You got (Alan) Branch and (Dont’a) Hightower and (Rob) Ninkovich and (Jabaal) Sheard and Malcolm Brown. You have a bunch of really tough, hard-nosed players that are very, very well-coached so their scheme presents a problem too.

“We’re going to have to have a great week of practice. We’re going to have to be very focused on every single play, limit mistakes, really communicate really well because they’re a tough team, run or pass, to go against.”

The Patriots have outscored their last three opponents, 92-20, over the last three games, with Brady and Co. always in high gear.

“I think it’s more about execution,” O’Brien said of the task at hand. “We’re not going to show him anything that he hasn’t already seen. He’s been doing it for years, 17 years or whatever it is.

“I mean, that’s part of what makes him who he is. He’s seen it all. He’s very well-prepared. He’s played against a lot of these players. He’s played against this scheme. We just need to kind of do what we do and execute and play every play. Be very focused on every single play, I think that’s big for us.”

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Judge Jeffrey Locke on Tuesday denied a defense request to exclude his tattoos as evidence.

Prosecutors say Hernandez got two tattoos added in 2013. One shows a six-shot revolver with five bullets in the cylinder and one empty chamber. The other shows a semi-automatic pistol and a wisp of smoke coming from a spent shell casing.

Hernandez has pleaded not guilty in the 2012 killings of two men he encountered in a Boston nightclub. His trial is scheduled to begin next month.

He is already serving a life sentence in the 2013 killing of a semi-professional football player.

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Still, for 20 players on the Patriots’ active roster Saturday will mark the first taste of the postseason of their NFL careers.

That group includes a pair of starters who have filled significant roles for New England this season in defensive end Chris Long and receiver Chris Hogan.

Long hadn’t won more than seven games in any of his eight years with the Rams from 2008 to 2015 prior to signing with New England this offseason.

Hogan, in his fourth season, spent the previous three seasons playing for AFC East rival Buffalo. The closest he came to the playoffs with the Bills was a 9-7 finish in 2014.

”I’ve never experienced it before so this is all new to me,” Hogan said. ”Just talking to some of the guys, the playoffs, you talk about preseason going into the regular season, the speed kind of picks up, and I’ve heard that from a number of guys that the playoff speed picks up a little bit more.”

Long’s playoff drought is the longest of any of the Patriots.

”I think everything happens for a reason. Sometimes you might not like it, but listen, it is what it is,” he said.

”I’ve been very lucky throughout my career in a lot of ways, so whatever brought me to this point… I’m just going to be excited to be in the moment. Everybody earns it.”

Hogan has fit right into the Patriots receiving group, making 14 starts. He’s fourth on the team with 38 catches for 680 yards and four touchdowns.

Long has appeared in 16 games this season with 35 tackles and four sacks. He’s helped fortify New England’s pass rush following the trades of Chandler Jones and Jamie Collins.

Defensive coordinator Matt Patricia said Long’s efforts haven’t gone unnoticed by the coaching staff.

”I think he has enjoyed the process and just really as far as that is concerned has been a guy that’s out there working really hard every day to get better and play hard for his teammates,” Patricia said. ”That’s all you can really ask for.”

Another Patriots offseason addition is being reacquainted with playoff football.

Tight end Martellus Bennett spent his first four NFL seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, and had a forgettable experience of the postseason in 2009 in which he was targeted just four times in two games.

He’s back seven seasons later, and is trying not to take anything for granted this time with a franchise used to making deep postseason runs.

Offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels pointed to Bennett’s unselfishness as being the thing that’s helped him integrate so well into New England’s system.

He leads the team with seven receiving touchdowns and is second in yards (701) behind only Julian Edelman (1,106).

Bennett said he thinks the 2012 season he spent with the New York Giants was beneficial to his growth as a player. It’s also helped him to appreciate the opportunity he has now.

”(The Patriots) win a lot of games. I hadn’t really won that many games in my career,” he said. ”I’ve been able to do a lot of individual things as far as numbers go, but individual goals aren’t really important. This is a lot more fun than catching 90 balls and losing 10 games.”

Does that mean he sees this as an opportunity to win an elusive Super Bowl?

”I just crave the big-game moments and playing in games that matter,” he said. ”A lot of times, you don’t really get to do things that matter and I have a chance to do that right now.”

It’s a mentality shared by the Patriots’ playoff newbies.

”These guys that have been here and have been in the playoffs before have earned it, and guys like Marty and myself and other guys, we just came in and tried to earn it with them,” Long said. ”And here we are.”

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For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL

—

Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower

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The Patriots set an NFL record this season by throwing just two interceptions . The previous record for fewest interceptions in a season since the 1970 merger was five.

It’s not that they’re avoiding throwing – New England is fourth in the league with 4,308 passing yards. The two interceptions , both by Brady, came on 550 team pass attempts, setting a new NFL single-season low rate of 0.4 percent.

The lower numbers overall highlight a trend across the league thanks to rule changes and new offensive strategies. The league-wide interception rate of 2.3 percent in 2016 was the lowest of any season in NFL history, surpassing the previous mark of 2.4 percent in 2015.

This is the first year that any team finished with an interception rate of less than 1 percent, as the Vikings finished 2016 at 0.9 percent. New England’s interception rate is three times lower than that of the next closest teams.

In 12 games, Brady set another NFL record for touchdown to interception ratio with 14 scores for each pick. He’s still hard on himself about the turnovers.

”Those two that I threw, I wish I wouldn’t have thrown those,” he said.

The next best touchdown to interception ratio this season belongs to the Cowboys’ Dak Prescott at 5.8 to 1 (23 TDs, four INTs). For perspective, Brady led the league in 2015 with a 5.1 to 1 interception rate (36 TDs, seven INTs).

Recent rule changes have specifically helped quarterbacks and receivers.

Interceptions have in turn fallen each of the last two years with more protections to prevent quarterbacks from getting hit. It’s given them more time to operate in the pocket and increased the likelihood that defenses break down. Those few extra seconds also have afforded Brady and others time to check down, throw the ball away or run rather than force a risky pass.

”You’re just trying to make good decisions back there with the ball,” Brady said. ”I think what it comes down to is you try to practice those as much as you can and you try to make those decisions on the field that are going to impact the season, and turnovers are a big part of the reason, at least for our team, why we’ve won and lost.”

Patriots coach Bill Belichick said the team has been fortunate to avoid many of tipped balls and dropped passes that often lead to turnovers.

”When you throw it a decent amount there are things that can go wrong that you have to try to avoid,” he said.

Brady is also helped by production from the running game.

LeGarrette Blount has rushed for a career-high 1,161 yards and 18 touchdowns. New England and Atlanta are the only teams in the top 10 in the league in both rushing and passing yards.

With defenses forced to respect the run, receivers are open more often for Brady.

Because of that, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said he considers the lack of interceptions to a ”team statistic.”

”It comes down to understanding how valuable taking care of the football is and being able to make great decisions under pressure in a split-second,” McDaniels said. ”I think our team values the football. We talk about how important that is to winning each week.”

That formula will be easier if the Patriots continue to jump on teams early, helping Brady relax. During its current seven-game win streak New England has won by an average of 16 points.

”It’s nice when you’re playing with leads because you don’t have to necessarily force the ball into certain areas where the coverage may be really tight,” he said. ”But it’s going to be the same formula for next Saturday night – not turning the ball over, making good decisions with it.”

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For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL

—

Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower

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It put the Giants (10-5) in a more difficult spot to end a four-season playoff drought. They still hold the top wild-card position heading into their last regular-season game at Washington.

New York can still clinch a playoff spot this weekend if Detroit, Green Bay, Tampa Bay or Atlanta loses.

New York quarterback Eli Manning was inconsistent with his throws all night. On Jenkins’ second interception, the throw was woefully short.

The Giants came up short because they fell behind early and didn’t catch up.

The return of Philadelphia (5-9) right tackle Lane Johnson from a 10-game suspension paid dividends immediately. Twice Johnson wiped out the left side of New York’s defensive line, with his block helping spring Darren Sproles for a 25-yard touchdown run for a 7-0 lead.

It was 14-0 1:28 later when Manning’s short pass to Will Tye was way too soft. Jenkins cut in front of the tight end to intercept and then romped down the right side for a 34-yard score.

Two field goals by Giants kicker Robbie Gould trimmed the deficit but Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz found the seldom-used Nelson Agholor wide open for a 40-yard touchdown and a 21-6 edge.

Manning finally found his touch on the last drive of the first half, with a 29-yard connection to Victor Cruz keying an 84-yard mark. Shepard slipped past Jenkins’ bump at the line to score from 13 yards for a 21-13 deficit.

It was all field goals in the second half – and some more imprecise throws by Manning.

The Giants had a late chance to snatch victory when they got the ball back with 1:31 left but Terrence Brooks made an interception with 5 seconds to go to seal the result.

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For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL

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New England Patriots vs. Denver Broncos
When: 4:25 PM ET, Sunday, December 18, 2016
Where: Sports Authority Field, Denver, Colorado

TV: 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS.
LINE: Patriots -3.
O/U: 43.5
PREDICTION: Broncos 23, Patriots 22

Oddsmakers currently have the Patriots listed as 3½-point favorites versus the Broncos, while the game’s total is sitting at 44.

DENVER — With their playoff fate hanging in the balance, the Denver Broncos face make-or-break games in the last three weeks of the regular season, starting Sunday against Tom Brady and the New England Patriots (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS).

The defending Super Bowl champions, the Broncos (8-5) enter the game as the sixth (and final) seed in the AFC, but the Miami Dolphins are also 8-5 and could overtake the Broncos if tiebreakers shift in their favor. Three more AFC teams have seven wins apiece.

“We’re going to have to play exceptional from here on, especially this week,” said Broncos coach Gary Kubiak, who added that he viewed New England as “the best team in football.”

The Patriots (11-2) enter the game with the best record in the AFC. They are no strangers when it comes to playing the Broncos, whom they faced 13 times in the past 12 years. Four of those meetings came in the postseason, including last season’s AFC Championship Game, which Denver took en route to its Super Bowl triumph over the Carolina Panthers.

However, Denver is treading an uncertain path in its title defense. The Broncos lost two of their past three games, and they face a brutal stretch in the final three weeks of the season.

After playing New England, the Broncos face a Christmas night meeting with the AFC West-leading Kansas City Chiefs followed by a New Year’s Day regular-season finale against the Oakland Raiders. Each of Denver’s three closing opponents has at least 10 wins.

“I don’t care who we play,” Broncos safety T.J. Ward said. “We need to win these next three games. We’ve been in some tough games and come out on top, and we’ve been on the bottom of some tough games. We’ve played two of the teams already (the Chiefs and Raiders). One game was close. One was not. Divisional games are always tough. The Patriots are almost a divisional game. … It’s another great challenge with Brady coming up.”

The Broncos’ struggles are most noticeable on the offensive side of the ball, particularly in the running game, where they are having difficulty establishing a consistent threat since the early-season injury loss of C.J. Anderson.

Trevor Siemian, in his first year as the Broncos’ starting quarterback after the retirement of Peyton Manning, is showing promise as a passer, helped by playmaking wide receivers Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders.

“You look at the production the couple of years together in Denver, I don’t know if you’ll find a pair of receivers better than them,” Patriots safety Devin McCourty said of Thomas and Sanders.

Even so, the lack of offensive balance is causing the offense to sputter — especially early. Denver has been outscored 70-23 in the first quarter this season.

With the offense having trouble moving the chains, the Broncos’ vaunted defense has been on the field for longer periods and under more sustained pressure. In Denver’s loss last week at Tennessee, the Titans ran roughshod, gaining 180 yards on the ground. Even though the Titans had a tough time moving the ball through the air, their rushing attack more than made up the difference.

The Patriots, meanwhile, are riding a wave of momentum behind the streaking Brady, who has 22 touchdown passes and just two interceptions in nine games. He missed the first four games of the season while serving a league-imposed, four-game suspension for the “Deflategate” controversy.

“He’s (effective) day in and day out,” McCourty said of Brady. “Practice can go like that when he gets going, so it’s not new to us. We see it all the time.”

McCourty won’t get any argument on Brady from the Broncos.

“He is the best quarterback in the league,” said Denver cornerback Aqib Talib, a former member of the Patriots.

There is no question the Broncos’ defense will again try to zero in on Brady, who was sacked five times and hit on numerous other occasions in Denver’s AFC title-game win last January.

The Patriots will keep a keen eye on pass-rushing linebacker Von Miller, who made life miserable for Brady in the teams’ last meeting.

“He’s a very hard guy to block,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. “He can do a lot of things. He’s explosive. He’s fast. He’s quick and he can play with power. Even when you get him blocked, he doesn’t stay blocked. He’s got the ability to separate. He’s an outstanding player.”

The Broncos are dealing with injuries among their corps of linebackers. Brandon Marshall (hamstring) missed last week’s game and remains a question mark for the Patriots game. Fellow linebacker Todd Davis missed practice time this week because of an oblique injury.

Patriots wide receiver Danny Amendola is questionable this week because of an ankle injury. Tight end Martellus Bennett also had some restrictions in practice this week because of ankle and shoulder issues, as did cornerback Malcolm Butler (hip) and safety Jordan Richards (knee).

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Baltimore Ravens vs New England Patriots
When: 8:30 PM ET, Monday, December 12, 2016
Where: Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN.
LINE: Patriots -7. O/U: 45
PREDICTION: Patriots 23, Ravens 20

Oddsmakers currently have the Patriots listed as 7-point favorites versus the Ravens, while the game’s total is sitting at 45.

ABOUT THE RAVENS (7-5): Baltimore improved to 4-1 in its last five games following its most impressive victory of the season, a 38-6 demolition of Miami last week that snapped the Dolphins’ six-game winning streak. Muddling through a season of mediocrity to that point, quarterback Joe Flacco established season highs with 381 yards passing and four touchdowns while setting a franchise record with 36 completions. Tight end Dennis Pitta had nine catches for 90 yards and two touchdowns, part of a unit that features veteran Steve Smith, speedster Mike Wallace and promising Breshad Perriman at wide receiver. The Ravens have the league’s top-ranked defense (296.1 yards per game) and rank No. 1 against the run (73.8 yards).

Baltimore Stats:
Team record: 7-5 SU,6-6 ATS
Baltimore is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
Baltimore is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Baltimore’s last 5 games

ABOUT THE PATRIOTS (10-2): New England has won three in a row, although the combined record of those opponents entering Week 13 is 8-28. Brady has 19 touchdown passes versus only one interception since returning from his four-game suspension, but he is without his No. 1 receiving target in tight end Rob Gronkowski and has 12 scoring passes versus 11 picks in 10 career games (playoffs included) versus Baltimore. Rookie Malcolm Mitchell continues to emerge as a bigger threat in the passing game with a season-high eight receptions in last week’s 26-10 win over Los Angeles while LeGarrette Blount is 43 yards shy of his second 1,000-yard season. The Patriots’ defense is tied with Baltimore with 17.3 points allowed — second in the NFL.

New England Stats:
Team record: 10-2 SU,9-3 ATS
Current Streak: won 3 straight games.
New England is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games
New England is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of New England’s last 10 games

EXTRA POINTS
1. The Patriots can secure a first-round bye with a win and losses by both Miami and Pittsburgh.
2. Ravens K Justin Tucker has converted all 28 field goal attempts, including eight of at least 50 yards.
3. With Danny Amendola (ankle) out, the Patriots signed fellow WR/PR Griff Whalen.

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New England Patriots vs. New York Jets
When: 11/27/2016 4:25 PM
Where: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

TV: 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS.
LINE: Patriots -7.5.
O/U: 47
PREDICTION: Patriots 26, Jets 20

Oddsmakers currently have the Patriots listed as 8½-point favorites versus the Jets, while the game’s total is sitting at 46.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — It seems as if everything Tom Brady does these days is some sort of milestone.

This week is certainly no exception.

After proving you can indeed go home again, Brady threw four touchdowns and no interceptions — the 21st time he has done that — in his first road game against the San Francisco 49ers, the team he loved growing up.

The win was the 199th overall in his career, tying him with Brett Favre for second place all time — just one behind the now-retired Peyton Manning. The Patriots are eight-point favorites for Brady to make it 200 this week against the 3-7 New York Jets.

He threw a touchdown pass to Malcolm Mitchell on Sunday. Mitchell became the 63rd receiver to catch a touchdown pass from Brady — now second only to Vinny Testaverde’s 70.

There’s more.

On Wednesday, he was named AFC offensive player of the week for the 27th time, tying Manning for the all-time lead there.

“Congrats to Tom. He’s a great player,” receiver Danny Amendola said. “No question, he’s our leader and we love playing for him.”

More?

Brady needs just 57 yards Sunday to become the fifth quarterback in history to throw for 60,000.

Brady has completed 70.4 percent of his passes, with 16 touchdowns and one interception, in the six games since his return from his four-game Deflategate suspension. The Patriots are 5-1 in those six games to sit at 8-2 in pursuit of their fifth Super Bowl title.

While Brady is as sure as it gets for the Patriots, the Jets come into this game as losers of six of their last seven. Last week, they tried Bryce Petty, but veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick is back at the helm this week after a bye.

“He’s healthy, he’s been our starter,” Jets coach Todd Bowles said. “I don’t see anything that could change that right now.”

With Jets fans again looking toward the future, Bowles made a statement by going back to the veteran over the youngster.

“I don’t think anything of that argument,” he said of the future. “We take it week by week. We’ll try to get four (wins). If we get four, we’ll try to get five and we’ll go from there. I don’t give away jobs. You have to take the job.”

Fitzpatrick has thrown eight touchdown passes and 13 interceptions this season.

The Patriots are more than familiar with Fitzpatrick, knowing he’s a veteran who can beat you in different ways.

“I played him before. I know this year the record hasn’t showed it, but this is a guy that last year won 10 games for them,” defensive end Chris Long said. “He is a franchise quarterback and he is a guy that can hurt you with his arm and his legs and he’s creative, he’s tough, I’ve even seen him go downfield and block on some extended run plays.

“He’s not afraid to get hit, so he’s a guy we definitely have a lot of respect for.”

Patriots coach Bill Belichick said, “He’s a dangerous player, very smart, has control of the offense, has the ability to get into plays that he likes. They use their receivers in the running game on look-passes, things like that.

“He’s tough. You see him scrambling for extra yards, diving forward, blocking on running plays if the runner reverses his field and things like that. He’s a fearless player. He’s tough, very competitive, and you’re right, he’s played very well against us whether it was in Buffalo or with the Jets, so we have a lot of respect for him.”

While the Jets are having problems all over the field, New England is trying to establish some identity on defense. They sacked Colin Kaepernick five times — all in the first half — last week, but that gave them just 21 for the season. They have turned the opposition over just seven times, with no turnovers in the last three games.

The Jets have coughed the ball up 20 times, second most in the NFL, so if the Patriots are going to get turnovers you’d figure playing two of the next six games against the Jets would be their chance.

Asked if turnovers can be just a matter of bounces, Long said, “Sometimes that’s all it is. We have to continue to work on the things we need to work on and one of those things is getting turnovers. But a lot of times the ball just darts your way or a tipped pass or a guy will have bad ball security — it’s all being opportunistic sometimes.”

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New England Patriots vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
When: 4:25 PM ET, Sunday, October 23, 2016
Where: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
TV: 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS.
LINE: Patriots -7. O/U: 47
PREDICTION: Patriots 24, Steelers 23
Oddsmakers currently have the Patriots listed as 2-point favorites versus the Steelers, while the game’s total is sitting at 46.

Backup quarterback Landry Jones, who appeared in seven games last season and struggled in a start at Kansas City, is surrounded by plenty of talent — namely star wideout Antonio Brown and do-everything running back Le’Veon Bell. Brown tied for the league lead with 136 receptions last season and has 376 catches from 2013-15, but he has failed to find the end zone in 11 games without Roethlisberger. Bell is averaging 5.5 yards per carry and has 20 receptions in his three games since returning from suspension and will likely carry a heavy workload. Pittsburgh’s defense ranks 30th against the pass (293.7 yards per game). Pittsburgh lost its last outing, a 30-15 result against the Dolphins on October 16. The Steelers failed to cover in that game as a -7.5-point favorite, while the 45 combined points took the game UNDER the total.

Team record: 4-2 SU,4-2 ATS
Pittsburgh is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games
Pittsburgh is 9-4 SU in its last 13 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Pittsburgh’s last 5 games

Sitting out the first month had no apparent negative effect on Brady, who has thrown for 782 yards with six touchdowns and zero interceptions while completing 76 percent of his passes in the first two games. Tight end Rob Gronkowski, hobbled by a hamstring injury that forced him to sit out two games, has come alive with a pair of 100-yard games since the return of Brady, including seven receptions for a career-high 162 yards and a touchdown in last week’s 35-17 win over Cincinnati. New England’s linebacker corps is riddled with injuries, although Dont’a Hightower was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week. In their last action, New England was a 35-17 winner at home against the Bengals. They covered the -7.5-point spread as favorites, while the combined score (52) was profitable news for OVER bettors.

Team record: 5-1 SU,5-1 ATS
New England is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
New England is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
New England is 3-6 ATS in its last 9 games on the road

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New England at Buffalo
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, September 20, 2015
Where: Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
TV: 1 p.m. ET, CBS.
LINE: Patriots -1. O/U: 45
PREDICTION: Patriots 21, Bills 17
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Oddsmakers currently have the Patriots listed as 1½-point favorites versus the Bills, while the game’s total is sitting at 45.

Ryan has reason to be confident after Buffalo manhandled the other AFC finalists from a season ago, the Indianapolis Colts, in a 27-14 victory in Week 1. The defense was a big part of that success, but the offense was firing on all cylinders as well behind Tyrod Taylor, who went 14-of-19 for 195 yards and a touchdown while adding 41 yards on the ground after winning the starting quarterback job in camp. “Each week is going to be a challenge, and I’m confident in my guys to go out there and take the challenge head on,” Taylor told reporters. “We’re confident as a team and we’re just going to go out there and play ball.”

The Bills were a 27-14 winner in their most recent outing at home against the Colts. They covered the +1-point spread as underdogs, while the total score (41) made winners of UNDER bettors.

Team record: 1-0 SU,1-0 ATS
Buffalo is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games
Buffalo is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Buffalo’s last 9 games
Buffalo is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home

Quarterback Tom Brady is used to hearing Ryan talk in the week leading up to games and takes the jabs in stride. “The games are won by what you do over the course of the week and how you go about your preparation so that you can be prepared for the game on Sunday,” Brady told reporters. “He’s a great coach. He’s obviously got them confident.” Brady, who said the Bills had “probably the best D-line in football,” showed no signs of any wear in his game following a summer spent defending his reputation and completed 19 passes in a row at one point en route to a 25-of-32, 288-yard, four-TD performance in the opener.

New England won its last outing, a 28-21 result against the Steelers on September 10. The Patriots earned a push in that game as a -7-point favorite, while the 49 combined points took the game UNDER the total.

Team record: 1-0 SU,0-0-1 ATS
New England is 2-3-1 ATS in its last 6 games
New England is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of New England’s last 10 games
New England is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games on the road

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