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Since 2001, Tom Brady and the Patriots have gone 11-1 in the Divisional Round coming. It’s bizarro world for Buffalo in this Week 8 matchup as the Bills (5-2 SU, 3-4 ATS) host longtime rival New England as home favorites. The Bills have lost seven games in a row to the Patriots (2-4 SU, 2-4 ATS) and have a stunning 4-35 record against the Pats dating back to December 2000. But times have changed in the AFC East and the Bills. The New England Patriots really are embracing this “us against the world” mentality ahead their AFC Championship Game matchup with the Kansas City Chiefs. It started after Sunday’s.
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Bet Against Us.
Most weeks, that slogan would be appropriate for the New England Patriots' opponents. This week, however, it's what wide receiver Julian Edelman is rolling with as the Patriots enter the AFC Championship Game as underdogs against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Edelman and the Patriots are consensus 3-point underdogs against the top-seeded Chiefs -- the first time that New England, with quarterback Tom Brady, has been an underdog since Week 2 of the 2015 season against the Buffalo Bills.
The last time the Patriots were underdogs entering a playoff game was January 2014, when they went to Denver and lost to Peyton Manning and the Broncos.
The Patriots have apparently noticed the anomaly. And they're jumping on the opportunity to use it to their advantage.
Edelman posted a hype video Wednesday on his Twitter account with the accompanying hashtag #BETAGAINSTUS. He followed with a link selling T-shirts that say 'Bet Against Us' in a silhouette of the Patriots logo.
Edelman was unavailable for comment Wednesday during an open locker room.
Calling the Patriots underdogs almost seems like an oxymoron considering their overwhelming success in recent years. This is their eighth straight AFC Championship Game appearance, and they are looking to reach their third straight Super Bowl and fourth in five years.
Brady was asked Wednesday about what it feels like to be underdogs several days after saying 'everybody thinks we suck and can't win any games' following a 41-28 divisional-round demolition of the Los Angeles Chargers.
He began with a shoulder shrug and a smile.
'Doesn't change much for us,' Brady said. 'It shows you, kind of, what people would think of what our chances are. That is about it.
'No more added comments,' he added with a big smile.
Does it at least provide added motivation for a team so used to being the hunted?
'If you're not motivated this week, you've got major problems,' Brady said. 'This is the week where you shouldn't have to put everything extra in. This is what it's all about. You sign up any chance you get to play in an AFC Championship Game. I don't care where, when, time, cold, weather, rain, blood. Don't matter.'
The latter part of the response mirrored the message of coach Bill Belichick earlier in the day.
Chiefs edge rusher Justin Houston laughed at the notion of the Patriots sucking or being looked at as underdogs.
'Yes, I think [Brady's] just trying to get himself and everybody else over there fired up,' Houston told reporters Wednesday. 'Everybody knows it's the Patriots. It's their eighth year of winning, making it to the AFC Championship. I think it's for himself and the Patriots.'
Regardless, it's not going to earn them any extra points Sunday or special treatment this week. It's business as usual in Foxborough.
'Bill doesn't treat us any different if we're underdogs or favorites or any of that,' Patriots safety Devin McCourty said. 'It's all about just being ready to go out there and win a football game.'
Only this time if they win it can be viewed as an upset. But as Edelman's T-shirts note, doubt them at your own peril.
© Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY SportsAfter losing future Hall of Famer Tom Brady in free agency, the New England Patriots are heading into the 2020 season with some major questions at the most important position in the game. Adding Cam Newton on a one-year deal could be the answer to some of them — at the very least he offers a veteran presence and raises the current group’s floor — but the former Carolina Panthers quarterback is far from a certain bet to work out either.
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Newton ended both the 2018 and 2019 season on the sidelines due to injury, and has never been able to quite reach the same level of play that he showed during his 2015 MVP campaign. That said, his ceiling in New England’s offensive system remains intriguing and one of his former companions feels strongly about his chances to still be a viable and healthy starting quarterback in the NFL: former Panthers head coach Ron Rivera.
“He’s headed in the right direction. I mean, he’s probably about as healthy as it gets from what I’ve seen on video. I think he’s ready to bust out,” Rivera said during an appearance on the McNeil & Parkins Show on 670 The Score on Monday when speaking about Newton’s physical state. “I would never bet against the young man, that’s for sure.”
Rivera certainly knows a thing or two about the newest Patriots quarterback. The two joined the organization in the same year, with Rivera taking over as head coach and Newton getting drafted first overall to serve as Carolina’s new starting quarterback. Over their nine seasons together, the team won three division titles and reached the Super Bowl once — all while Newton played in 125 regular season games and seven playoff contests.
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Despite the change of scenery, however, Rivera still is confident in his former pupil’s abilities.
“Don’t bet against him. I really wouldn’t,” he said. “First of all, you got to know who he is and understand what all he’s gone through. He’s a guy that’s always tried to do things, I think, because he’s felt the pressure. He felt the pressure of being the number one overall pick. He felt the pressure of having won the Heisman Trophy and being the number one overall pick. He felt the pressure of being a black quarterback, with all the stuff that’s been heaped on him.”
Under Rivera’s tutelage, Newton grew to become one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in NFL history. The coach and his new team, the Washington Redskins, opted against bringing the 31-year-old on board after his release from the Panthers earlier this year, but he still believes in the former Pro Bowler who will now compete for a starting job in New England against second-year man Jarrett Stidham and veteran Brian Hoyer.
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“He’s really had to find his way through it,” said Rivera, “and he’s done a great job with it.”