Patriots’ game-time decision may have quietly cost them the AFC East

The Patriots had a chance to win the AFC East against the Bills on Sunday, a feat they haven't accomplished since 2019, and based on how they had been performing, it looked like there was a good chance they could sweep their rivals to make the 2025 season even sweeter.

Coming off their bye, with a few injured players back in the lineup, brought out more optimism about accomplishing that goal, only for a last-second decision by Mike Vrabel regarding one of the Patriots' best players on defense put their chances at risk before the game even started. And we saw how bad that came back to haunt him in the second quarter.

Despite being suited up to play, Vrabel decided linebacker Robert Spillane wouldn't play in Sunday's matchup, and after the defense's impeccable first-half performance, it was clear they were missing their captain on the field.

The highest rate of missed tackles since their loss to the Steelers, allowing five Bills' drives to end in a score, and making questionable decisions that prompted some nitpicky flags, only made the situation worse, forcing Vrabel to explain his decision for Spillane's absence immediately after the game.

Mike Vrabel's last-second decision might be a moment the Patriots regret

Reporters were quick to ask the head coach about Spillane missing from the defensive lineup, and since the group was a big reason for Sunday's loss, Vrabel's answer didn't exactly clear things up.

“We felt like after going through the warmups and everything that that was what was going to be best for him today. And we need everybody, and certainly Robert. And we’ll have to try to get as healthy as we can as quickly as we can.”

While it makes sense to want your best players healthy by the time the postseason arrives, this was the biggest game of the Patriots' 2025 season, with the division on the line and them still competing for the No. 1 seed in the conference. So it seems premature to be keeping a player sidelined if they don't necessarily need to be.

If anything, Spillane could have been on a snap restriction, since he was suited up and ready to play, and that could have made a huge difference in how the defense performed.

The linebackers struggled without him on the field, specifically in the fourth quarter. Josh Allen took advantage of that, and that could become an absolute disaster over the final three games of the year.

The AFC East is still in play now that the Bills are only one game behind, and the Patriots cannot afford to lose their edge. Although they've excelled far more than anyone anticipated this year, they have new goals because of their success that they can't lose sight of now.

That means competing for the playoffs and maybe the Super Bowl, and that's not going to happen if more decisions like this are made, or performances like their second-half embarrassment continue.