An inevitable result was finally realized Sunday afternoon for the 2023 Patriots.
Despite beating the Steelers, 21-18, on Thursday night, New England’s razor-thin odds of punching its ticket to the 2024 playoffs were snuffed out days later — with the Patriots officially eliminated from postseason contention due to the Cincinnati Bengals’ 34-14 win over the Indianapolis Colts.
The 3-10 Patriots were eliminated with four weeks remaining in the regular season. According to NFL Research, it’s the earliest a Patriots team has been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs since 2000. That was Bill Belichick’s first year at the helm of the franchise, with New England ultimately finishing with a 5-11 record that year.