The defending National Football League (NFL) Super Bowl champions New England Patriots will be putting their winning streak on the line when they host the Buffalo Bills for Monday Night Football.
Both teams are leading the American Football Conference (AFC) East with the Patriots having an unblemished 9–0 record to take the top spot, while the Bills follow with a 5–4 record.
New England will have the mental advantage heading to Monday's matchup as along with the streak, it also have defeated the Bills when the two teams first met this season back in Week 2 (Sept. 20), 40–32.
Pats franchise quarterback Tom Brady had a splendid showing in that game, completing 38 of 59 passes for 466 yards and three touchdowns, although he was sacked twice.
Brady outperformed Buffalo quarterback Tyrod Taylor who then had 23 completions for 242 yards and three touchdowns, but also threw three interceptions and was given a hard time by New England's defense as he was sacked eight times.
It was a close game, but now, the Patriots will have to survive the Bills without running back Dion Lewis and wide receiver Julian Edelman.
Lewis and Edelman played huge when they first faced Buffalo and were efficient contributors on offense which led to the victory.
But Lewis suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in their Week 9 matchup against the Washington Redskins and will be out for the remainder of the season.
Meanwhile, Edelman injured his foot in their following game against the New York Giants and went through surgery which will likely make him return in the postseason.
The absence of the two will give the Bills an advantage lineup-wise, but they will have to step up with their defense if they want to stop Brady and the winning streak, to continue their own streak and extend it to three games.
The game between the Patriots and Bills will take place at the Gillette Stadium on Nov. 23 at 8:30 p.m. EST.
