The New England Patriots did not play this week as they were on their bye week, but there was plenty of action in the AFC that could have an impact on their playoff picture.
New England entered its bye week with a record of 11-2, sitting atop the AFC standings as the No. 1 seed. That changed while the Patriots enjoyed the week off.
Patriots battle for No. 1 seed
The Denver Broncos handled the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, 24-17, in a game that was bad news for the Patriots.
Because New England lost to the Raiders in Week 1, Denver now owns any tiebreaker for the No. 1 seed if the Patriots and Broncos end the season with the same record.
Denver has a difficult stretch to close out the season. The Broncos play the Packers, Jaguars, Chiefs and Chargers to end the year. In order to secure

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