The New England Patriots ticked the divisional win column for the third time this season on Sunday against Miami, beating the Malik Willis-led squad to move to 5-3. The Dolphins offered tougher competition than many fans expected, but the Patriots managed a win in Miami for the second time since Tom Brady left after the 2019 season.
New England's bye week is just two games away, but the NFC North stands in their way. The Lions in Germany will be a headache on their own, but before New England can think about their matchup abroad, they'll need to take down the Green Bay Packers this weekend.
One of the league's most historic franchises, New England, will face off against Jordan Love for the first time. The ex-Utah State quarterback has been playing some very solid football as of late, but isn't without flaws.
Love has recorded 17 touchdowns while throwing 6 interceptions to this point. He finished TNF with 288 passing yards and three touchdowns, with one interception, while maintaining a strong 73.2% completion rate.
That effort was enough to take down a stingy Panthers team and advance to 5-3 on the year.
The Packers offense hasn't wowed this year, ranking 23rd in PPG, but they've had their moments. The defense, by contrast, ranks 10th. The Patriots beat them in both categories, and while the Packers are missing key players like Jayden Reed and Micah Parsons, New England has far more injuries.
It's certainly surprising the Patriots remain three-point favorites on Thursday.
The #Patriots are favored by three as of Thursday against the Packers, something I find very surprising given their injuries. Also surprising from the outside that the Packers have the 23rd-ranked offense, would have thought it was a lot better from the Watson/Golden production.
— Graham Wilker (@GrahamWilker1) November 5, 2026
The Patriots need to do their best to limit these three Packers on Sunday
WR Christian Watson
Michael Golden was a pre-draft favorite of mine back in 2025, so it's nice to see him producing. Nonetheless, he's played second fiddle to veteran Watson, who remains among the league's premier deep threats.
The 6-foot-4 veteran has been targeted 8+ times in every game this season. In his last game, he hauled in eight of his ten targets for 113 yards. Amazingly, none of his on-field plays were his biggest highlight of the night.
Christian Watson just hopped out of SHOTGUN of an AMBULANCE
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) October 30, 2026
HAVE YOU EVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE?! pic.twitter.com/WsRGnuLhCZ
Thursday marked the third time this season Watson has eclipsed the century mark. He has done so six times in his first 48 matchups. Furthermore, his 42 catches and 708 yards through eight games are already the highest totals of his career.
Watson's stellar season and stature will keep him off the radar, but with Golden and Tucker Kraft in the Packers' arsenal, covering the three will be difficult. Given his success thus far, limiting Watson, especially after a third 100-yard game on Thursday, should be Zak Kuhr's priority.
LB Isaiah McDuffie
While McDuffie may not be a name casual fans around the NFL know, Boston College fans should be familiar. During his career with the Golden Eagles from 2017 to 2020, McDuffie totaled 230 tackles, 15.5 TFLs, 8.5 sacks, and an interception.
In his sophomore season, he totaled 85 tackles but played just four games the following season while nursing a knee injury from spring ball. 2020, however, would be his best season, as he eclipsed the century mark in tackles for the first time in his career.
After a quiet first two seasons in the NFL, McDuffie totaled at least 85 tackles in 2023-2025. This season, the expectation was that he'd take a back seat on defense. The Packers added former Second-Team All-Pro Zaire Franklin in the offseason, while Edgerrin Cooper was expected to make an impact.
2024 third-round selection Ty'Ron Hopper recorded a career-high five tackles in the team's final regular-season game last season, suggesting to some fans that he may finally be ready to contribute defensively.
Instead, McDuffie retained a strong defensive role. Franklin has already missed two games, while Cooper is out for the season with a torn Achilles. Hopper has made a jump, but with both starters missing time, his development hasn't affected McDuffie's snap count.
After playing 19 defensive snaps in the first three weeks, McDuffie has averaged 48 snaps per game over his last five games, logging 68 and 73 snaps in the last two games, respectively. In his five-and-a-half-year career, he's played 65 or more snaps on just four other occasions.
Over the last two games, he's compiled 21 tackles, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. For the season, his 72.9 PFF grade ranks him 12th among 76 qualifying linebackers.
SAF Evan Williams
Xavier McKinney has gotten most of the plaudits in Green Bay's backfield thus far, and for good reason. After earning First-Team All-Pro honors in 2024, he was named Second-Team All-Pro in 2025, and this season he already has 34 tackles and a trio of interceptions.
His partner in crime, however, has been fantastic in his own right.
Williams has contributed to the Packers. He leads the team with 71 tackles and has two interceptions and two fumble recoveries through eight games.
TNF against Carolina marked his fourth game of the year with 10+ tackles, while his PFF grade ranks him first among 90 qualifying safeties. He's the only player this season to eclipse a 90.0 grade, a feat no player has accomplished in 2025.
Drake Maye won AFC Offensive Player of the Month for a reason, and he's hardly turned the ball over since the team's Week 3 disasterclass against Jacksonville. Nonetheless, Williams will be a player to watch in both the pass game and in run support: he's on pace for triple-digit tackles for the second straight season, and this season is in line to hit the 150 mark.
If he reaches 150, he would have the second-most combined tackles as a safety in a season in NFL history (Budda Baker, 2024).
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