Patriots' Road to Super Bowl Gets Easier After Clinching 1st-Round Bye

The New England Patriots escaped from New York and Rex Ryan's Jets with an ugly 17-16 victory, but they are coming home with something beautiful: a first-round bye in the playoffs (with a pretty little bow on top).

They might not be done receiving gifts in Week 16. A win by the Cincinnati Bengals over the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football would give the Patriots home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. A win by New England or a loss by Denver in Week 17 would also do the trick.

While playing at home is incredibly important—especially against the Broncos—the benefit of a first-round bye cannot be understated. With some help from Field Yates of ESPN.com and Pro Football Reference, you can see that New England is 11-4 in the regular season and 7-1 in the playoffs under head coach Bill Belichick when having an extra week to prepare. It is easy to see why: rest and planning time.

New England had a whopping 12 players listed as questionable on the final injury report of Week 16. Five of those—Dan Connolly, Julian Edelman, Kyle Arrington, LeGarrette Blount and Chris White—didn't suit up against the Jets. An extra week of rest for those players will be invaluable in preparing them for the playoff run.

Planning for the game is a little harder. Whether you are the No. 1 or No. 2 seed, you have three possible opponents that you need to prepare for. Before Monday night's game, four teams have clinched playoff spots in the AFC.

In addition to the Patriots, the Broncos, Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers have all clinched spots. The San Diego Chargers and Cincinnati Bengals are currently in the driver's seat for the final two spots. The Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs also have some scenarios where they can sneak into the tournament.

With the current seedings and playoff teams, the road to a Super Bowl berth for New England looks to be clear of too many obstacles. The Patriots have already dispatched four of the five current playoff teams, with the Steelers being the lone holdout.

Of the teams on the outside looking in, the Chiefs famously humiliated New England in Week 4, while the Patriots have yet to face the Texans and Ravens this year. Each of those three present tough (but not insurmountable) situations for Belichick.

Having spent time as offensive coordinator prior to Josh McDaniels retaking the position, Texans head coach Bill O'Brien knows the Patriots inside and out. Couple that with J.J. Watt on defense, and you have a tough row to hoe. However, Houston's lack of a quarterback—it started Case Keenum against Baltimore—will likely come back to bite the team.

The Ravens have given Tom Brady fits during the playoffs over the last half-decade, twice eliminating them from the playoffs. The duo of Elvis Dumervil and Terrell Suggs would give the uneven Patriots offensive line all it could handle.

If the Patriots do make it out of the AFC unscathed—hardly a fait accompli—their reward will likely be either the Green Bay Packers or Seattle Seahawks. Both teams are playing at a high level despite some blips here and there. The Packers and Aaron Rodgers snuck by New England at home, while Brady will be looking for revenge after the Seahawks and Richard Sherman won their last contest in 2012.

Belichick's goal of changing his boat's name to "VI Rings" this offseason certainly won't be easy, but clinching the first-round bye puts the Patriots on the right track.