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AFC East Buzz: Patriots, Jets storylines headline Week 4 plus Dolphins vs Bills showdown

By Tarringo Basile-Vaughan

ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 15: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills looks to pass against the Miami Dolphins during the third quarter of the game in the AFC Wild Card playoff game at Highmark Stadium on January 15, 2023 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images)
ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK - JANUARY 15: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills looks to pass against the Miami Dolphins during the third quarter of the game in the AFC Wild Card playoff game at Highmark Stadium on January 15, 2023 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images) /
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Oh, there’s a big showdown in the AFC East in Week 4 as the high-powered Miami Dolphins offense take on Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills. With all eyes on this battle, the New England Patriots hope to pull an upset special in Dallas and the New York Jets have a Sunday Night date with the Kansas City Chiefs…and Taylor Swift.  Let’s break it down and explore division news this week.

After securing their first victory against their AFC East foe the Jets in Week 3, the Patriots hope to ride some momentum into Dallas to take on a Cowboys team coming off an embarrassing loss to the Arizona Cardinals.

Obviously, the big storyline in this one is the return of Ezekiel Elliott to Dallas.  You know Zeke would like nothing better than to stick it to his former team which could have the makings of an upset which would score a big win for the Patriots.  But the offense has to come up big and limit mistakes versus an aggressive Cowboys defense coming off an embarrassing performance against Cardinals.

AFC East coach talk: Patriots head coach Bill Belichick talks Micah Parsons

While Bill Belichick has his hands full trying to  devise a defensive plan to limit Dak Prescott and the Cowboys’ offense, any chance the Patriots have in this one will be the play of Mac Jones and the offense against that Dallas defense led by the extraordinary Micah Parsons.

Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Belichick talked about the challenge of containing a player like Parsons.

"“They intentionally move him around, absolutely,” Belichick said about where Parsons lines up on the field. “Yeah, they intentionally move him around. They play him on the end of the line in different combinations, to the field, to the boundary, to the tight end, to the left, to the right, to the open side, I mean, whatever the formula is. So, you know what you’re getting there. They do play him off the ball in some pass rush situations, and they play him a little bit at linebacker – not much, but a little bit. But, most of the time, he’s on the end of the line of scrimmage. I mean, that’s most of it. But, it’s not all of it, and you do have to be aware of him, because wherever they put him, there’s usually some action going on there.”"

No matter where Parsons line up, the Patriots offensive line will have to show up in this one and play their best game of the season.

As far as Elliott goes, the Patriots running back is coming off his best performance of the young season, rushing for 70 yards against the Jets.  Along with Rhamondre Stevenson, expect a heavy dose of running plays drawn up by Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien to keep that aggressive defense off balance and set up some play action for Mac Jones.

On the defensive side, this will be another big challenge for Patriots rookie cornerback Christian Gonzalez who will play a big role in limiting CeeDee Lamb.

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