The New England Patriots entered the 2025 NFL season as potential playoff contenders in the AFC with new head coach Mike Vrabel leading the way.
Now, through 10 weeks of the 2025 season, the Patriots are Super Bowl contenders and in the mix for the top spot in the AFC.
The Patriots knocked off the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 10, moving them to 8-2 in the 2025 season, tied with the Denver Broncos and Indianapolis Colts for the best record in the AFC. New England is also building a lead in the AFC East division, as the Buffalo Bills (6-3) lost to the Miami Dolphins in Week 10.
Vrabel has turned around a team that had a top-five pick in the 2025 NFL Draft in just one season, and he’s done it with young quarterback Drake Maye blossoming into one of the NFL’s newest stars.
As the Patriots gear up for the final stretch of the regular season, fans should be taking them seriously as Super Bowl contenders out of the AFC. Here’s why:
Drake Maye is the real deal
Simply put, Maye has been electric in his second NFL season.
The No. 3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft has thrown for 2,555 yards, 19 touchdowns and just five interceptions while completing 71.7 percent of his passes in 10 games.
Last season, Maye threw for just 2,276 yards in 13 games (12 starts) for a New England team that won just three of the 12 games that he started. Now, he’s an MVP candidate and quickly becoming one of the best passers in the NFL.
Maye has thrown multiple touchdowns in each of his last five games, and he’s not just a threat through the air. The former University of North Carolina star has 66 carries for 283 yards and a pair of scores on the ground this season as well.
He may not use his legs to the extent that players like Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson do, but Maye can make plays outside of the pocket, which has helped make the Patriots’ offense one of the better groups in the league.
This season, New England ranks fifth in yards per play, eighth in points per game and 11th in yards per game. Even though the Patriots are 21st in the league in yards per carry, they have still built an elite offense behind Maye’s dual-threat ability.
To win in the playoffs, having an elite quarterback is almost always necessary, as Nick Foles-type runs don’t happen very often.
The Patriots have an elite quarterback in Maye that can go up against Patrick Mahomes, Allen, Jackson and some of the other elite passers in the AFC.
New England is battle-tested already
The Patriots have faced a couple of contenders so far in the 2025 season, most recently taking on the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay in Week 10.
Not only did New England beat the Buccaneers and quarterback Baker Mayfield, but it led by two scores late in the fourth quarter before allowing a garbage-time touchdown. New England has now won seven games in a row, and it has an important divisional win under its belt as well.
Earlier this season, Maye and the Patriots upset Allen and the Bills in Buffalo, which has helped them open up a lead in the AFC East. New England has two more wins than the Bills, and it currently holds the tiebreaker over them.
The two teams will match up one more time in the regular season, and depending on how the coming weeks unfold, the Patriots could essentially lock up the division with a win in that matchup.
If New England wins the AFC East – and potentially ends up as the No. 1 seed in the AFC – it won’t have to go on the road much (or at all) in the playoffs. But a road playoff game maybe wouldn’t be the worst thing, as the team has answered the bell on the road twice this season against top opponents and has really come into its own after a 1-2 start.
They have the easiest remaining schedule in the NFL
The Patriots’ schedule also sets up well for them to finish with the best record in the AFC, which would undoubtedly improve their Super Bowl chances.
New England still has its bye week coming up this season, and it faces the easiest remaining strength of schedule with a .338 opponent winning percentage to close out the season, per Tankathon.
Maye and company have two games left against the New York Jets in addition to matchups with the Dolphins, Cincinnati Bengals, New York Giants, Baltimore Ravens and Bills. Of those teams, only Buffalo has a winning record through the first 10 weeks of the 2025 season.
Now, Baltimore may end up being a tough matchup, as the Ravens have won three games in a row and have Jackson back in action after he missed time earlier this season with an injury.
Still, New England should be able to handle the Jets (two wins this season), Dolphins (three wins this season), Giants (two wins this season) and Bengals (three wins this season).
None of those teams are likely going to be in the mix for a playoff spot by the end of the regular season.
Even if New England were to lose to both Buffalo and Baltimore, one could expect it to finish the campaign with a 13-4 record. That may be enough for the top spot in the AFC, and it certainly could be enough to win the AFC East division.
The path for the squad is there, and it has the makings of a Super Bowl contender with the second half of the NFL season now in full swing.
