Patriots fall to No. 14 in ESPN power rankings after Packers rout, with Lions next in Munich
A 45-27 home loss to Green Bay drops the 5-4 Patriots three spots in ESPN's rankings ahead of a Munich meeting with the 6-2 Lions.
The Patriots paid for Sunday's 45-27 home loss to Green Bay in ESPN's Week 10 power rankings. New England fell from No. 11 to No. 14 and now sits behind both the Packers (No. 11) and the Detroit Lions (No. 10), who are next on the schedule. The 45 points were the most the Patriots have allowed this season, and Green Bay's receivers put up big numbers against the defense. ESPN noted that Christian Watson and Matthew Golden now rank third and fourth in the league in receiving yards.
ESPN also asked its team reporters to name each club's most important remaining game. For New England, Mike Reiss went past the Lions and picked the Week 13 home game against Buffalo. He said the Detroit game was tempting because of how badly the defense played against Green Bay. But at 3-0 in the AFC East, the Patriots' hold on the division matters more, and Reiss noted they have not won back-to-back AFC East titles since 2017-18. Detroit's reporter, Eric Woodyard, went the other way and called this weekend's game against New England the Lions' most important game of the second half.
The game will be played in Munich. Patriots.com lists kickoff for Sunday, Nov. 15, at 9:30 a.m. ET at FC Bayern Munich Arena on Fox. Detroit is the designated home team, its first time in that role at an international game, and Amon-Ra St. Brown, whose mother is German, is getting a homecoming.
What it means for Munich
New England is 5-4 with an uneven record. The Patriots have scored 211 points and allowed 207, so they are only plus-4 for the season. They are 3-1 in New England and 2-3 on the road, and they went 3-2 over their last five games, winning at Buffalo and Miami and losing at Chicago and at home to Green Bay. Their two worst losses, 35-6 at Jacksonville and Sunday's 45-27 defeat, both followed stretches where the team looked steady. Detroit comes in at 6-2 after a 19-9 win over Miami.
The board reflects that gap, though only modestly. Detroit is favored at -138 on Novig, with New England at +133 there. The best price on the Patriots among the 12 venues is +140 at BetRivers. On the spread, Novig has the Lions favored by 2.5 points and the Patriots at +111 to cover. Pinnacle is the only venue showing the full field goal, with New England +3 at -112. Novig sets the total at 51.5, with the over at -100 and the under at -113. BetMGM has the lowest number, 51, with the over at -110, and Hard Rock Bet has the under at 51.5 for -110. Sportsbook holds run from 3.0% to 5.6% on the moneyline, so the venues differ more on margin than on which team they favor.
A total in the low 50s suggests the market expects more of what Green Bay did to the Patriots on Sunday than of the 20-3 win over Pittsburgh. For a team that is unbeaten in its division but still trying to show it can hold up against the NFC's better teams, the trip to Munich will be a test before Buffalo comes to town in Week 13.
The full price board is on the game page, and season coverage is on the Patriots team page.