New England Patriots: Dion Lewis named AFC Offensive Player of the Week

In Week 16, the New England Patriots were able to defeat the Buffalo Bills. In the win, running back Dion Lewis shined.

Coming into Week 16, the New England Patriots were banged up heading into a big game with the Buffalo Bills. For the Patriots, this game was a must-win to keep the inside track to both home-field and the No.1 seed in the AFC.

Despite being short-handed, the Patriots were able to come out with an impressive win. Now, they are just one win away from the No.1 seed in the AFC once again this season. In the win, there weren’t too many players that were more important than running back Dion Lewis.

With both Rex Burkhead and James White sidelined with injuries, Lewis really picked up the slack. Since the middle of the season, Lewis has been the featured back for the Patriots, and he has really thrived in that role.

In the win against the Bills, Lewis totaled 129 rushing yards on 24 carries with one rushing touchdown. The impressive 5.4 yards per carry average helped the Patriots control the game on the ground, making it much easier for the rest of the team.

While Lewis certainly shined on the ground, he also helped the offense through the air. Lewis was able to step in as the receiver at of the backfield nicely as well, as he totaled 24 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown.

For his superb performance in Week 16, Lewis was named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week. This is the second straight week that a member of the Patriots has been named the Offensive Player of the Week, as Rob Gronkowski was named in Week 15 for his great game against the Steelers.

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With just one more game to go in the regular season, the Patriots will be attempting to avoid any sort of strange letdown against the Jets and clinch the No.1 overall seed.