FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Take a look at the AFC teams in the playoffs and you might notice a trend.
The New England Patriots have lost to three of the five teams in their playoff bracket. Add in last year’s loss to the Tennessee Titans, who happen to be the Patriots’ wild-card opponent this weekend, and the Patriots don’t have to look far for motivation.
The Patriots have a chance to avenge last year’s embarrassing 34-10 loss to the Titans when they meet at 8:15 p.m. Saturday. If they succeed, they move on to play the Kansas City Chiefs, who beat them 23-16 in Week 14. If all the cards align and the Patriots move on to the AFC title game, it could very well be in Baltimore to face the Ravens, who handed the Patriots a 37-20 loss in Week 9.
You might say it’s a tough road ahead for the Patriots. Others, like Patriots linebacker Kyle Van Noy, say it’s the start of a “Revenge Tour.”
“We’re one of 12 teams in the playoffs. We have a chance to go on a revenge tour,” Van Noy said. “And what better way to start off with Tennessee, who we lost to last year? A big motivation. We weren’t happy about our performance.
“They’re coming into our house, and what better way to get it started for the playoffs Saturday at 8:15 p.m. at Gillette. I know it’s going to be rocking. I’m excited for our players to perform in a way and play Patriot football on Saturday. I’m excited.”
Defensively, the Patriots have been using any bit of motivation they can grasp over the last few years. If there was a year that showed this Patriots team could persevere, it was last season. After a devastating loss to Miami (sound familiar?) in Week 14, the Patriots went on to lose to Pittsburgh the following week. The 2018 Patriots finished 11-5 (the franchise’s worst record since 2009) and lost the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
As we all know, the Patriots rebounded and went on to win their sixth Super Bowl title – led by a historic defensive effort in their 13-3 win over the Los Angeles Rams. Along the way, they went into Kansas City and delivered a wild overtime win. That run, with many of the defensive players still on the roster, can give some of these players a base to build off. Players like Van Noy know how to turn the page and regroup for the playoffs.
This time, the Patriots will have to play in the wild-card round for the first time since the 2009 season. No matter what happened Sunday in their stunning loss to the Dolphins, the Patriots need to move on, correct their mistakes and focus on a good opponent.
“You’ve got to turn the page,” Van Noy said. “We’re in the playoffs. It doesn’t matter how hot the teams are or how cold the teams are going into the playoffs. We’re just focused on us going into this game against the Titans and what a great opportunity we have.”
“We’ve got to flush it,” receiver Phillip Dorsett added. “I think everybody probably feels the same way. You’ve got to flush it. Obviously we didn’t play well (on Sunday); we know that. We lost. But we’re still 12-4. We still have a chance to play. At the end of the day, we have to move forward.”
“That’s just going to bring everybody closer together,” J.C. Jackson said of Sunday’s loss. “And (get us to) go out and play our best football moving forward.”
If the Patriots can pull this off, it’d be a great story. Beating Tennessee won’t be easy. Going into Kansas City? That’s never easy. Upsetting the No. 1 seeded Ravens? That’s probably a long shot.
“It’s the playoffs. Intensity goes way up. Sense of urgency goes way up,” Dorsett said. “We’ve just got to keep fighting. We’ve got to go out there, practice hard. We can’t really make any mistakes. There’s no room for error. We’ve got to play hard every down and see where the chips fall.”
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