Patriots' Rooting Guide for 2025 NFL Draft Implications of Week 17

The New England Patriots are two losses away from securing a top-three pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

Drake Maye and Co. come into Week 17 with the No. 2 overall pick in the projected order ahead of the other five 3-12 teams.

The No. 2 pick should be the goal because the New York Giants do not look like they will win another game.

Of course, the Patriots will still root for the Giants to pick up an unlikely win, including in Sunday's matchup with the Indianapolis Colts.

The Giants and Cleveland Browns have the potential to play spoiler in the AFC wild-card race, which would be beneficial to the Patriots to gain as much of an advantage as possible if they finish 3-14.

Giants over Colts

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ATLANTA, GA DECEMBER 22: New York quarterback Drew Lock (2) rolls out of the pocket during the NFL game between the New York Giants and the Atlanta Falcons on December 22nd, 2024 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Rooting for the Giants to win a game seems like an impossible task, just ask Giants fans.

If the Patriots want to land the No. 1 overall pick, they need the Giants to find a way to beat either the Indianapolis Colts or Philadelphia Eagles in the next two weeks.

The Week 17 clash with the Colts presents a decent opportunity to at least play spoiler for the Giants. The Colts have to win out and have help to clinch an AFC wild-card spot.

The Giants, in theory, could get up for the game and try to keep the Colts out of the postseason.

That's at least how the Patriots have to approach the game because if you go off statistics alone, the Giants face an uphill climb on Sunday.

Jaguars over Titans

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 22: Wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. #7 of the Jacksonville Jaguars gets set during an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders, at Allegiant Stadium on December 22, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)

The Jacksonville Jaguars are the biggest threat to the Patriots losing a top-two pick going into Week 17.

Jacksonville is the only other 3-12 team with a strength of schedule under .500. New England's SOS is .461 and Jacksonville owns a .477 SOS.

The strength of schedule tiebreaker is applied if teams have the same record in the draft order, so to be safe, the Patriots would want the Jaguars to win the battle of 3-12 teams against the Tennessee Titans.

Jacksonville won the first matchup against the Titans in Week 14. Two of the Jags' three victories have come in AFC South play.

Tennessee comes into Sunday with a 1-6 record in its last seven games. Its defense has been its downfall during that stretch, as it allowed at least 23 points in five of those six losses.

Jacksonville only scored 10 points on the Titans defense, but it did put up 291 total yards.

The Patriots would love for the Jags to produce a similar, or better, offensive performance to down the Titans and remove themselves from the three-win ranks.

Raiders over Saints

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - DECEMBER 22: Linebacker Robert Spillane #41 of the Las Vegas Raiders gets set during an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, at Allegiant Stadium on December 22, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)

The Las Vegas Raiders have a more realistic path to victory than the Cleveland Browns in Week 17.

New England would love for both the Raiders and Browns to pick up their fourth wins this weekend to clear away any potential tiebreakers for the No. 2 overall pick.

Las Vegas takes on a New Orleans Saints offense that failed to move the ball with success in a shutout loss to the Green Bay Packers on Monday night.

The Raiders are coming off a win over the Jags and they could be motivated to finish the season strong.

New Orleans might lack motivation, or just basic skill to move the ball down the field, due to the amount of injuries it has on offense.

Spencer Rattler isn't working with much, while Aidan O'Connell at least has Jakobi Meyers and Brock Bowers to throw to inside the Raiders offense.