At one point in time, facing the New England Patriots was seen as something of an automatic loss before the game even began. To beat the Patriots was the equivalent to taking down Alabama for a college football team.
But times have changed, and Bill Belichick’s team no longer holds quite that same level of power, heading into its upcoming matchup against the New Orleans Saints looking to return to the right side of the win column.
The Saints look to do the same after falling 26-9 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Here’s a look into three storylines to watch: