New England Patriots 2020 schedule predictions: Picking every game

Weeks 5-8

The Broncos are on the way up, but Drew Lock isn’t quite ready yet to score a road win in New England. Bill Belichick has a way of cooking up a defensive scheme that can eat young quarterbacks alive and that is what happens here.

This game is heavily anticipated as the return of Jimmy Garoppolo to New England. Bill Belichick shipped Garoppolo out west in 2017 for a second-round pick, a price the 49ers would happily pay again since Garoppolo took them to the Super Bowl last year. Garoppolo will show his former employers what they’re missing with a game-winning drive to steal what has been a tight defensive battle.

The Pats have owned the Bills for the better part of two decades, but this game is the beginning of the changing of the guard in the AFC East. Buffalo circles the wagon and defeats New England at home, giving themselves a huge opportunity to claim their first division title since 1995.

This ends up being the game that really costs the Patriots their shot at a division title. The Jets get a breakout performance from Sam Darnold, who hits Breshad Perriman with a deep ball late in the game to give New York the lead. Jamal Adams picks off Jarrett Stidham’s last-ditch heave to the end zone to secure the Jets’ first win over the Patriots since 2015.