Stretch Run

With only two games remaining in the season, the Patriots would have totry to lose in order to miss the playoffs. Although they have not clinched, the bigger uncertainty than their chances of making the playoffs in my mind is who will their first opponent be.
As it stands now, the Patriots have the worst record among Division leading teams, which would have us facing a wild card team with the best record. We are looking at potential rematches with the Jaguars and Broncos, or whoever steps up in the last two weeks. I would be hoping to see the Jaguars in this scenario, even if Denver’s Jay Cutler is an untested QB. The history with Denver could play a negative role.
I would hope to clinch by next week so by the final regular season game we could rest some starters against Tennessee, but both the Titans and next week’s Jaguars will play tough ball. Those aren’t Lions or Texans so this stretch run is no cake walk by any means. The most perfect scenario for our hopes going forward is the return of our injured playmakers such as Laurence Maroney, Rodney Harrison, Benjamin Watson, and Vince Wilfork. It is amazing how well we are playing without these players but imagine how dominant we could be with them?
Perhaps with a Christmas miracle we will have a near full strength team before making our playoff run.