What must Allen and Bills do to end Patriots' 10-game win streak?

NFL 2025 season: Week 15

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There are four weeks left in the NFL's regular season and I feel like every year we're saying this, but I don't think the league's ever been this contested.

There's been so many games where you cannot blink or take anything for granted. Some play-off spots won't be decided until week 18, so for so many teams, that final game will be incredibly meaningful.

The AFC East title could go down to the wire, but the Buffalo Bills will need to stop the New England Patriots' 10-game win streak when the divisional rivals meet at Foxborough this Sunday.

The Bills improved their record to 9-4 with a 39-34 win over the Bengals last Sunday, and it was just Josh Allen doing Josh Allen things again, especially in that fourth quarter. He just puts on his cape and make things happen. That's what makes the Bills so dangerous. He was last season's Most Valuable Player and he's a guy who can change the game and rally the troops around him.

Buffalo had a rough spell but have won their past two. At this time of year, you've been able to have a true self-scout, so things are coming together for them, and last Sunday's win was huge. The Bills were on the edge of the AFC play-off rankings and now they've solidified themselves. If they win at the Patriots, who are 11-2, the Bills will be just one win back with three games left.

New England's schedule looks easier than Buffalo's though. The Patriots finish with Baltimore, the Jets and the Dolphins. The Bills go against the Browns, the Eagles and the Jets.

There's a high probability Buffalo won't win the AFC East for the first time in six years, and few expected New England to win the division after back-to-back four-win seasons.

In the past, there was an expectation with the Patriots because they had greatness. They had Tom Brady and had been winning for so long. Now there's straight excitement about current quarterback Drake Maye and what this team can do. They could clinch the AFC East on Sunday, which is huge for them.

Sometimes it's better when you're that team with no expectations, but the Patriots have Mike Vrabel as head coach. He won three Super Bowls with them as a player and he's brought in the right people. Josh McDaniels won six Super Bowls on the Patriots' coaching staff but wasn't successful as head coach of the Raiders. Vrabel pairing him as offensive coordinator with Maye has been so good though. McDaniels understands what it takes to win in the AFC East, to win in the cold and how to attack those teams.

New England had one of the easiest schedules this season, but you still have to win those games. Vrabel's been using the word 'champions' and I think all the guys are starting to believe in that championship mentality. I love how he also says 'no naps', like, you can't sleep on anybody and you've got to keep doing the right things. I think he's a great leader who's learned how to inspire from being in this situation as a player.

The Patriots were the ones that broke the Bills' undefeated start in week five and when you do that on the road, your team's going to walk away and think 'alright, we actually might have something here'. Then all these wins they've had is building more and more confidence.

The Patriots aren't outstanding in any one category, offensively or defensively, but Maye has been brilliant, especially as a second-year quarterback. He can run the ball and be a big threat with his legs, and his decision making has gotten so much better. He gets to the top of his drop and he's already kind of made his decision on where he wants to throw the ball, because he's reading the field so quickly.

Maye's got the NFL's best pass completion percentage, only Matthew Stafford has a higher passer rating, and only Dak Prescott has more pass yards. Maye's thrown 23 touchdown passes versus six interceptions. In every game, he's had 200+ pass yards and that goes to show that, for the most part, he's made the right decisions. He's protecting the football, and he's using different weapons to throw to.

Early in the season, Stefon Diggs was pretty much the star of the show. That gave Maye confidence and now he's using a slew of different receivers. They were kind of identifying their roles and now they're elevating each other. Maye has also been doing it without Will Campbell on the offensive line the past few weeks.

He is very much in the MVP conversation, but Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford has just been phenomenal. It's his 17th year in the league and this is probably his best season. He leads the league with 35 touchdowns, with just four interceptions.

It'll be interesting to see how Maye does this week against Buffalo and then Baltimore. There's the irony of playing the past two MVPs - Allen and Lamar Jackson - and some people might say that could determine whether Maye becomes this season's MVP.

Allen's still breaking records and it's hard to watch that game on Sunday and not think 'wow, this guy is so different'. I mean, which other quarterback has a 40-yard touchdown run in the snow? But I don't know if they'd give him a back-to-back MVP. Last year made sense because of how he took care of the ball but this year he hasn't been as perfect.

Buffalo have a rivalry with the Patriots and, after losing to them in October, I think the Bills understand the importance of Sunday's game and what it can mean to go into Foxborough and get the win. But this is going to be a challenge for their defence, for sure.

With the different offensive weapons the Patriots have through the air, I think the Bills' defence has to step up and force turnovers. You know it's going to be a Stefon Diggs game when his former team Buffalo is involved, so I think that Maye-Diggs connection is where the outcome lies.

Phoebe Schecter was speaking to BBC Sport's Ben Collins.