NFL Playoff Picture: New England Patriots Clinch Home Field Advantage

AFC East title, first-round bye, home field advantage. All three were clinched by the New England Patriots with just one win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

To this group, though, they'd probably tell you that it was just that: "just one win."

This group is the perfect example of a "team," with all the parts working with surgical precision.

More importantly, it's the perfect example of a Bill Belichick team, with its eyes on the ultimate goal, but never losing their focus on the task immediately before it.

Of course, its surgeon general is Tom Brady, who today broke Bernie Kosar's record of 308 consecutive passes without an interception, and has set the mark at 319 and is still going strong.

The offense has been the hallmark of the team, but the defense has improved over the course of the season.

Throw out the 28th ranking in yardage; that's not what this group is about. It preys on turnovers, forcing them seemingly at will. It ranks first in that category with 36.

It's not likely the Patriots will face a quarterback of as little reverence as Ryan Fitzpatrick in the playoffs, but their incredible performance today must give them a bit more confidence going into the postseason. They forced five turnovers on the quarterback alone, and seven total on the Bills.

They will need to continue that trend in the playoffs if they want to go far.

But with home field advantage in the bank, it seems all but a certainty.

The Patriots have clinched home field advantage twice in the past decade ('03 and '07) and have gone to the Super Bowl both times. If that's not enough, maybe Tom Brady's 27 consecutive regular season wins at Gillette Stadium will do the trick.

There's no place like home for the holidays, and though New England may have been on the road for its holiday, there's no place like home for the Patriots in the postseason. They wouldn't have it any other way.