The Patriots are listed as underdogs in every game in the 2024 season
According to initial predictions after the NFL schedule release, New England holds its lowest projected win total since 1991.
Oddsmakers have a pretty pessimistic view of the Patriots entering the 2024 season.
Following the NFL’s schedule release for the 2024 season, New England is listed as an underdog in every single regular-season game on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Patriots are just one of two teams to hold that honor, with the Panthers also being listed as an underdog in each matchup during the 2024 season.
The Patriots are the largest underdog in Week 1, with the Bengals being favored by 8.5 points for the regular-season opening matchup. While the Bengals are large favorites, they’ve lost three of their four Week 1 games with Joe Burrow at quarterback. However, the Patriots have lost their last three Week 1 games.
The largest point spread for a Patriots game this season is in Week 4, where they’re 11.5-point underdogs for their matchup at the 49ers. There are a handful of games (Week 2 vs. Seahawks, Week 9 @ Titans, Week 13 vs. Colts, Week 17 Chargers) where the Patriots are 2.5-point underdogs, which is the closest they are to being favored in any single matchup early this season.
Here’s a game-by-game breakdown of the initial point spread for each Patriots game in 2024.
Week 1: +8.5 at Bengals
Week 2: +2.5 vs. Seahawks
Week 3: +7.5 at Jets (Thursday Night Football)
Week 4: +11.5 at 49ers
Week 5: +4 vs. Dolphins
Week 6: +4 vs. Texans
Week 7: +6 vs. Jaguars (game in London)
Week 8: +3.5 vs. Jets
Week 9: +2.5 at Titans
Week 10: +5.5 at Bears
Week 11: +4 vs. Rams
Week 12: +6.5 at Dolphins
Week 13: +2.5 vs. Colts
Week 14: Bye
Week 15: +3.5 at Cardinals
Week 16: +7.5 at Bills
Week 17: +2.5 vs. Chargers
Week 18: +3.5 vs. Bills
Of course, all of those point spreads can and likely will change throughout the year based on injuries and results during the season.
In addition to not being favored to win any game in 2024, the Patriots’ win total is set at 4.5 on DraftKings Sportsbook. That’s their lowest projected win total to enter a season since 1991, when it was four, according to sports betting analyst Ben Fawkes.
Oddsmakers’ pessimistic view of the Patriots entering the 2024 season is certainly warranted. They’re coming off their worst season in over three decades, going 4-13 to finish tied for the second-worst record in the NFL.
New England made an organizational revamp as a result, parting ways with head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Mac Jones. But the Patriots replaced Belichick with rookie coach Jerod Mayo while they signed Jacoby Brissett and drafted Drake Maye to replace Jones.
Even though some might see the upside in Mayo and Maye, the duo enter the 2024 season as relative unknowns. Additionally, the team didn’t make any notable splashes in free agency, mostly retaining their own players. New England also still has questions at wide receiver and offensive tackle.
The lack of making a splashy move following a lackluster season caused the Patriots to only have one primetime game on their schedule for the 2024 season. They’re also working with a pair of disadvantages, holding the eighth-toughest strength of schedule in the league based on the opponents’ combined winning percentage in 2023 (.512). The Patriots will also travel the fourth-most amount of miles of any NFL team in 2024 (25,071), according to Bookies.com’s Bill Speros.
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