The Patriots lost back-to-back games to the Colts and Bills heading into Week 17, but they got back on track in convincing fashion against the Jaguars on Sunday.
New England took an early lead on a Damien Harris touchdown and led 28-3 at halftime on their way to a 50-10 win that guaranteed them a playoff spot. Wide receiver Jakobi Meyers credited the performance to the team having a “look in the mirror” moment in the days leading up to the game.
During a Monday morning appearance on WEEI, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said he noticed a difference in the team’s preparation last week and thinks the moment that Meyers mentioned had something to do with how Sunday played out.
“This was our best week in a little while here,” Belichick said. “Not really sure why that was, but maybe that was part of it, what Jakobi said, we reached the point where we kind of had to face the music here. Our captains and some of our veteran leaders on our team I thought did a real good job this week of setting an example and really challenging themselves, challenging the team. We got a great response, so try and keep that going.”
The results of Week 18 will determine whether the Patriots win the AFC East and where they’ll be seeded if they can’t jump back in front of the Bills, so that should serve as motivation for the team to remain as focused as they were heading into the matchup with Jacksonville.
