The New England Patriots on Sunday came within one win, or one Buffalo Bills loss, from clinching the AFC East for the first time since 2019 when they rolled over the hapless New York Jets in East Rutherford, New Jersey, by a score of 42-10 â a game in which the Patriots, behind quarterback and MVP candidate Drake Maye, scored touchdowns on their first six drives of the game.
With a playoff spot clinched but the postseason picture still very much in a state of flux, the Patriots also got some good news on Sunday about an important player who was placed on the injured reserve list before the Jets game. The move came when 32-year-old Mack Hollins, signed as a free agent in the offseason on a two-year, $8.4 million contract, was ruled out with what the team described as an abdominal injury.
Prior to Sunday, Hollins had played 68 percent of the Patriotsâ offensive snaps this season and played in Week 16 until the final offensive play of New England’s 28-24 win over the Baltimore Ravens. When or how he suffered the injury to his abdomen remained unclear, as did what exactly the injury entails.
Hollins ‘Heart and Soul’ of Patriots
Hollins has caught 46 passes out of 65 targets for 550 yards this season. But the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles fourth-round draft pick’s value to the Patriots cannot be measured by numbers.
“In many ways, the veteran wide receiver became the heart and soul of the team this season, so to lose him now, just ahead of the postseason, is a significant loss for the Patriots,” wrote Fansided Patriots writer Justin Trombino on Sunday. Since returning from the bye week, Hollins has been one of Drake Mayeâs top options, collecting 11 receptions on 17 targets for 110 yards over the last two weeks.
By placing Hollins on injured reserve, the Patriots ensured under NFL rules that he would not be eligible to return until he has missed four games. That means if the Patriots manage to get the AFC’s top seed â still a possibility â they would get a first-round bye and Hollins would be forced to sit until, or if, the Patriots were to advance all the way to the Super Bowl.
Or would it?
Receiver Potentially Available Earlier Than Believed
According to Patriots.com writer Evan Lazar, Hollins will be eligible to return earlier than the Super Bowl even if the Patriots earn the bye week during Wild Card Weekend.
“Got some clarification on Mack Hollins’s IR stint. If the Patriots get a first-round bye, the bye week would count toward his four-game minimum absence. The rule is different for the playoffs,” Lazar wrote on Sunday. “Hollins could return for the AFC Championship Game, with or without the bye.”
Playoff Picture Remains Murky
But who will the Patriots face in the playoffs?
As the situation stands as of Sunday, New England would take the No. 2 seed in the AFC. That means that, as it stands, they would host the Los Angeles Chargers on Wild Card Weekend.
But all that could change in a hurry.
A Denver Broncos loss to the Chargers in Week 18, plus a Patriots win over the Miami Dolphins at home, gives New England the top seed in the AFC and a first-round bye.
But a Patriots loss against the Dolphins, combined with a Jacksonville Jaguars win over the 3-13 Tennessee Titans, bumps New England down to the No. 3 seed. That means their likely opponent in the Wild Card game would be the Houston Texans.
A Bills loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday could switch their position with Houston and set Buffalo up to be New England’s first-round foe.
The only thing certain about the Patriots playoff picture as of Week 17 is the uncertainty.
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