Week 4: Patriots vs. Bills

Going into week 4 of the NFL season, the Patriots are in an unfamiliar position of being under the .500 mark. The team stands at 1-2 and is looking for a strong performance in order to regain their usual spot atop the AFC East standings. The Pats next opponent is a Buffalo Bills team who is surprisingly in first place in the AFC East with a 2-1 record. The Bills have defeated the Chiefs and Browns after being defeated in week 1 by the NY Jets. But this Bills isn't a team the Patriots can take lightly, especially on offense. The Buffalo defensive line is one of the most talented in the NFL. This off-season they added Mario Williams, formerly of the Houston Texans, and Mark Anderson, from the 2011 Patriots. These two have made the Bills pass-rush one of the best in the league and something that should worry Patriots fans. So far this season, the Pats offensive line has allowed Tom Brady to be sacked 7 times and hit many more times. 

As far as Tom Brady and Co. on offense, I think if the offensive line can protect Brady, we will see the continued progression of Stevan Ridley and Wes Welker. Last week Welker finally received adequate playing time and he took full advantage of it with 8 receptions for 142 yards. I expect that Welker will have another big game since Hernandez is stiil out with injury which makes Rob Gronkowski stay back to protect Brady. Especially with the defensive line Buffalo possesses, the Pats will need all the blocking they can get so I think the Pats will utilize Gronk more for his blocking abilities. Although Gronk has been blocking more in the past few games, I wouldn't be surprised if Brady targets him a few times in the red zone this weekend since the Pats have had trouble scoring inside the 20 the past few weeks. In terms of rushing the ball, Buffalo ranks 14th in the NFL allowing an average of 100.3 yards per game. I think Ridley, who had 13 rushes for 37 yards against Baltimore, should see an increase in carries this week as the Patriots hope to continue the progression of their new balanced offensive approach. 

On the defensive side of the ball, the Patriots need to watch out for wideout Stevie Johnson, and both running backs Fred Jackson and CJ Spiller. Spiller is questionable for the game with a shoulder injury participated in practice today but only in a limited capacity. Jackson, who is returning after suffering a sprained knee in week 1 against the Jets is expected to start in Spiller's place. The Bills rank 3rd in the NFL in rushing offense as they average 178 yards a game. The Pats defense, who is supposedly good against the rush will definitely be tested this weekend. Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick will probably look to target wideout Stevie Johnson every chance he can, so the Pats should make an effort to cover him as good as they can. A few weeks back when Larry Fitzgerald came to town, the Pats were able to neutralize him the whole game so let's hope they can do the same to Johnson who made the Pro-bowl in 2011.

I expect this game to be very tough as both teams know each other very, very well. I expect the Patriots though to come out and give an effort that's good enough to win since we haven't seen that type of effort in a few weeks. I predict Brady to have a huge game along with Welker and Ridley. 

Prediction: Patriots 24 - Bills 14