A big game for the New England Patriots will take place in Week 15 of the NFL season, one of the biggest in half a decade. The good news is the game is at home, and the Patriots have a favorite for the NFL's MVP award, Drake Maye at quarterback.
The bad news is that they face the current MVP, Josh Allen, and his formidable Buffalo Bills. Astute Patriots' coach, Mike Vrabel, thinks that the Bills have evolved, and things have changed. He's trying to get his team ready for anything.
For five years, the Bills have ruled the roost in the AFC East after the all-time greatest, Tom Brady, left the scene for points south. Since then, Allen and company have dominated. You have the best quarterback, and you'll usually have the best results. Allen is proof positive of that theory.
Yet in the past two seasons, a seismic shift in the AFC East balance has taken place in the person of now-second-year quarterback Drake Maye. Maye has inserted himself into the MVP discussion, a status currently held by Allen. This game could not only decide the AFC East Champion but also impact the MVP discussion. It's a big game, indeed.
Mike Vrabel has a sound analysis of the December 2025 Bills
The Patriots went into Buffalo in October and took a somewhat surprising victory home. It was a watermark in the evolution of the 2025 Patriots from just another Patriots team to Mike Vrabel's team. Cole Shelton of NESN quoted the head coach on the big game for the Patriots and how the Bills have evolved.
"Although New England won on the road, Vrabel isn’t looking back on that game as he believes the Bills are a much different team. 'They’ve changed, they’ve continued to evolve, and they’ve continued to improve,' Vrabel said on Wednesday. 'And again, we talked about the respect that we have for them as a football team, players, and coaches.
I mean, it was 20-10 in our game, they didn’t bat an eye, and they came back and tied it in the fourth quarter. We were up two scores in the fourth quarter. We needed our best execution and kick to win it.'"
The Patriots have an experienced NFL Head Coach who has played in and coached in big games, including as the head coach of the Tennessee Titans. He's well aware that the team he faced a couple of months ago isn't the same now (and for that matter, neither is his).
And of course, any team quarterbacked by Josh Allen is a threat anytime, anywhere.
MIke Vrabel and Drake Maye are a pair that can beat a flush
Yet, Vrabel is also cognizant of the fact that the Patriots somehow have latched onto a quarterback who can not only go toe-to-toe with an MVP like Allen, but beat him. Maye is so good that it is unlikely that Vrabel would even be the Head Coach of the Patriots if he weren't at his disposal.
Maye was terrific as a rookie with a bottom-of-the-NFL accompanying cast. While his performance was panned by some, had they paid attention, they'd have noticed his terrific accuracy with a terrible offensive line and receiving corps. With no first-team snaps even in practice until Week 4 of the regular season, he still was able to make that deplorable Patriots team competitive.
Vrabel knew that, and it was part of the reason he took the job in the first place. He's also now seen that no matter where his team plays or against whom, the unflappable Maye can rise to the challenge and not only compete, but win.
It's no surprise that the amazing Allen took the young Maye under his wing at the 2024 Pro Bowl. He knew Maye was a talent to be recognized and that he'd pose a problem henceforth. He has been and will continue to be just that. But Allen is also an MVP, a running battering ram disguised as a quarterback, who also happens to complete nearly 70 percent of his passes to boot.
That's why the game on December 14 will be a defining one. It's one of the most anticipated games of the 2025 season for good reason. Josh Allen, a superstar and the NFL's 2024 MVP, is squaring off against Drake Maye, a possible 2025 MVP. In football terms, it doesn't get any better than that.