Quick-hit thoughts around the NFL and with the Patriots:

1. The importance of the Patriots earning a first-round playoff bye -- which would happen with a win today against the Bills -- was reflected in the team downgrading six players to out last night. The team is hurt and locking up the bye would give Bill Belichick a chance to manage parts of his roster so the club is as close to full strength as possible for its first playoff game.

2. One of the lasting images from the Patriots' locker room this week was seeing multiple containers of hand sanitizer on the table that players walk by when entering. The flu hit some members of the team hard.

3. Here is one take on defensive lineman Landon Cohen, who signed with the Patriots this week, from an NFL coach familiar with him: "He is kind of an undersized d-tackle. Great kid. Good personality. High effort guy, tries hard. Not great balance, but comes off the ball hard, a high-motor type guy. He was a smaller guy drafted in the Tampa-2 style in Detroit when Rod Marinelli was there. So I'm not sure where he would fit in New England." When I hear that, I think Cohen strictly projects as an interior sub rusher for the Patriots at this point. 

7. With quarterback Tom Brady battling flu-like symptoms this week, it brought back memories of the AFC championship game after the 2004 season in Pittsburgh. The numbers didn't necessarily show it, but as Michael Silver chronicled in Sports Illustrated, it was one of the all-time great performances by Brady given the sickness he battled through.

9. Patriots receiver Brandon Tate had his two kickoff returns for touchdowns in Week 1 and 4 of the season, and the impact of those big returns is still evident with opponents kicking away from him. That was one aspect of Dan Connolly's 71-yard return last week that was easy to overlook -- the reason Connolly had the opportunity was because the Packers were playing keep-away from Tate.

10. The Patriots have just nine turnovers this season (5 interceptions; 4 fumbles) with two games remaining. The NFL record for fewest turnovers in a season is 12 by Kansas City in the strike-shortened 1982 season. The fewest turnovers in a 16-game season is 13 by the Giants and Dolphins in 2008.

BUFFALO -- Welcome to Ralph Wilson Stadium, where the Patriots visit the Bills today (CBS, 1 p.m. ET):

Weather conditions. The temperature is expected to be around 22 degrees by kickoff, with a 10 percent chance of precipitation, according to Weather.com. The chances of snow flurries increase around 3 p.m. Winds project to be around 17 miles per hour.

What's at stake. If the Patriots win, they will clinch the AFC East championship, a first-round bye in the playoffs, and home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs.

Riveron gets the call. Al Riveron has been assigned to referee today's game.

Two more players to downgrade. The Patriots will downgrade two more players 90 minutes before kickoff. They have already ruled out tight end Aaron Hernandez (hip), outside linebacker Jermaine Cunningham (calf), right guard Dan Connolly (concussion), and defensive linemen Brandon Deaderick (shoulder), Mike Wright (concussion) and Myron Pryor (back).

How snow at home affects Patriots post-game. One subplot to today's game will be if the Patriots can make it home after the game because of snow back home in New England. This could be a case where the Patriots run the hurry-up "offense" after the game in an attempt to beat the storm. Director of Football Operations Matt Caracciolo figures to be busy.

In previewing what appears to be a lopsided mismatch to some, ESPN Stats & Information focuses on a couple ways the Buffalo Bills can take advantage of the New England Patriots.

No, seriously.

The Bills did score 30 points at Gillette Stadium in Week 3, and they've gotten much better in the meantime, taking the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers into overtime.

Two matchup trends that stood out to ESPN researchers Katie Sharp and Ryan Cleary were the Patriots' defensive vulnerabilities on play-action passes and third-down conversions.

The Patriots have the NFL's worst defense against play-action passes, allowing a league-high 77.1 completion percentage and a 109.1 passer rating. Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick isn't a frequent play-action passer, but he has been effective when he has tried it.

The Patriots' third-down defense is worst in the NFL. They're allowing opponents to move the chains on 49.2 percent of their third downs. That would be one of the most ineffective third-down defenses since the NFL-AFL merger.

Furthermore, as ESPN Stats & Information points out, the Patriots send four pass-rushers on third-and-long 72.7 percent of the time. Fitzpatrick happens to be efficient there. When he throws in that situation, the Bills convert an amazing 41.9 percent for first downs.

Fitzpatrick has completed 62.8 percent of his passes on third-and-long against four pass rushers for 362 yards and three touchdowns with one interception for a 103.1 passer rating.