What Patriots fans should watch for in Week 18 with game times set

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Phil Perry shares his Patriots Stock Watch following the team’s must-win victory over the Miami Dolphins. The stocks of Kyle Dugger and Christian Barmore are on the upswing, while the punt and linebacker groups are down after poor performances in the win.

The stage is officially set for the final week of the regular season.

The NFL announced game times for the Week 18 slate Monday, and the New England Patriots' road game against the Buffalo Bills is slated for 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, Jan. 8.

Here's a look at the full NFL schedule:

The 8-8 Patriots currently own the final Wild Card spot in the AFC as the No. 7 seed, but holding onto that spot will be a challenge. Here's what needs to happen for New England to make the playoffs:

  • Patriots beat Bills OR ...
  • Patriots lose to Bills, Jets beat Dolphins, Jaguars beat Titans AND Browns beat Steelers.

The Titans and Jaguars play Saturday night at 8:15 p.m ET, so if Tennessee wins, the Patriots will know they need to beat Buffalo to reach the postseason.

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Dolphins-Jets and Browns-Steelers are both set for 1 p.m. ET on Sunday. So if Jacksonville wins Saturday night and the Patriots get down early to the Bills, fans will have to channel-surf to hope the Jets and Browns pull off upsets.

Patriots fans should also keep an eye on Saturday's Chiefs-Raiders game; if the Bills beat the Bengals in the Week 17 finale on Monday night and Las Vegas upsets Kansas City, then Buffalo will have clinched the No. 1 seed and would have nothing to play for Sunday against New England.

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