New England Patriots: Pats Are the No. 1 Seed in the AFC, but Will It Matter?

In what can only be described as an amusing game yesterday, the Tom Brady-led New England Patriots overcame a 21-0 deficit early in the game against Buffalo and came back to win 49-21, clinching the No. 1 seed in the AFC and earning a bye in the first round of the playoffs.

Before I continue, let me be clear—I am a die-hard New England Patriots fan, but I'm writing this from a non-biased point of view.

All season long, New England has had one major issue—defense.

The unit has had its ups and downs; the issue seems to be that during the first half it is sleepwalking, but then at halftime Bill Belichick throws cold water on the players' faces and they get back into the game wide awake.

The Patriots' last three games have all gone the same way: They get rocked for the first 30 minutes then play like a Super Bowl-winning team for the next 30 minutes.

During the first half of the season the defense was even worse and the team had to rely solely on Tom Brady and his merry bunch of wide receivers.

The defense did start to improve in areas, but now with a week of rest and an upcoming opponent that has a better record than the three teams New England played during this odd pattern of play, how will New England hold up?

Back in the day when New England was untouchable in the playoffs, they had a phenomenal defense and offense. The days of their defense being unstoppable are long gone.

Do you think New England can keep up this style of defense and make it to the Super Bowl?

Will they be knocked out right away?

What are your thoughts?