In some ways, the loser of Sunday's Week 9 matchup between the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans could be the real winner long term.
That's because the losing team will strengthen its chances of earning the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The Titans enter Week 9 with a 1-6 record. If the season ended right now, they'd have the No. 2 pick in the upcoming draft. The Patriots are right behind them in the No. 3 pick slot. New England is one of six teams with a 2-6 record, but they currently own the draft tiebreaker over all of them due to having a weaker strength of schedule.