Now the Patriots Have to Win

This past Sunday night the New England Patriots pulled off a big upset with the 23-20 win against the Buffalo Bills. It's without a doubt their biggest win in the post Tom Brady era but this can't be it for coach Vrabel's squad. The plucky underdogs now have to be gone and New England's expectations change. They are no longer a trendy playoff pick but, in a weakened AFC, the Patriots have to deliver on expectations.

Despite liking Drake Maye I was firmly in the camp that it was a mistake for general manager Eliot Wolf to trade down the third overall pick and work on building up a roster devoid of talent. One of the biggest assets for a team is having the guy under center while he is on his rookie contract and it looked like New England was going to spend those cheap years trying to rush building up the roster to capitalize on their new franchise signal caller. Credit to the boss, they quickly pivoted on the coach and have drastically improved in just one season.

Getting the quarterback position right is one of the toughest jobs in sports and it sure looks like Wolf made the right pick. Congratulations are in order but the things are different going into this week after that huge win at Buffalo. Knocking off the last undefeated team that seemed like they'd waltz into the one seed in the AFC means for the first time in awhile there are now expectations for the Patriots. This can't just be a nice win, it has to be a launching point.

In the current AFC playoff standings New England sits as the last team in with a whole lot of ugh behind them. Before the season started the Patriots were a trendy playoff pick and them getting in would be considered a huge success in year two of Drake Maye. That picture likely would have looked like finishing second in the AFC East and cashing in on their weak schedule. And that looked a little dicey after losing to the Raiders at home in week one, who have gone on to look AWFUL, and gave away a game to the Steelers. The team wouldn't be a contender but would be building to something, but after knocking off Buffalo the picture has changed.

Sitting at 3-2 and in the playoff picture the Patriots have the Saints, Titans and Browns for their next three games. They also have the Jets twice, the Bengals, the Giants and the Dolphins again. Beating Buffalo changes the perception from those being possibly winnable to better deliver. That's eight of the Patriots' 12 remaining games that also includes the Falcons, Bills, Bucs and Ravens. Now, making the playoffs wouldn't be a nice development, it's the expectation.

Mike Vrabel is a professional coach with plenty of experience and I trust in him leading the team forward. I'm sure he was telling his team they could win games but now it looks like the truth. How does a young team, particularly on offense, handle the growth of expectations? It's no longer about winning some games, for New England it should be expected they win games. Can they deliver?