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The complaints about the New England Patriots playing a soft schedule won't lessen this week when critics see who the Patriots face on Thursday night. 

The Patriots are 8-2 and are big favorites to beat the 2-7 New York Jets. The Patriots have played the easiest schedule in the NFL this season via DVOA, though they have passed two huge road tests by beating the Bills and Buccaneers. 

Realistically, this week shouldn't be a big test. The Jets have won two in a row after an 0-7 start, but also recently traded away defensive stars Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner before the deadline. Justin Fields has 54 or fewer passing yards in four of his eight starts this season. The Jets are a bad football team, but at least they aren't winless anymore. 

The Patriots have come along fast in Mike Vrabel's first season as head coach. Drake Maye is a legit MVP candidate in his second season. An infusion of talent through free agency and the draft has paid off. They have won seven in a row. And for those who continue to assume it's the product of a soft schedule, consider this: The Patriots have the second-easiest remaining schedule in the NFL, via DVOA. 

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Who needs it more?

Jets fans have probably moved onto hoping the team loses to improve its draft position and maybe select a quarterback of the future, though Aaron Glenn probably doesn't agree with that assessment. Either way, it's pretty obvious that the Patriots need the win more. The Buffalo Bills aren't intimidating this season but they're still lingering in the AFC East. The Patriots can probably win he division simply by winning all the games they should win that remain on the schedule, including this one. 

Key player: Patriots RB TreVeyon Henderson

Henderson, a second-round rookie, had a good preseason but then a slow start to the season. He made some rookie mistakes and found playing time hard to come by. But with Rhamondre Stevenson out with injury, Henderson has taken advantage of his opportunity. Last week the explosive rookie had 147 rushing yards on 14 carries, and his two long touchdown runs were a big difference in a win over Tampa Bay. Stevenson will miss Thursday's game, which gives Henderson yet another chance to solidify a large role over the remainder of the season. 

Betting market watch, by Ben Fawkes

On paper, this is a complete mismatch between a 2-7 Jets team and an 8-2 (!) Patriots team on a seven-game winning streak. We've seen the same thing in the betting market, with this game opening New England -10.5 and steaming as high as 13.5 at some books before there was buyback on the Jets. With Garrett Wilson out for New York, this seems like a blowout waiting to happen — but crazier things have happened on Thursday Night Football.

Check out more of Ben’s work at the Yahoo Sports betting hub.

Fantasy football storylines, by Scott Pianowski

Although the Patriots are 13-point favorites over the Jets on Thursday night, we know sometimes these divisional games can be surprisingly competitive. Here are three fantasy angles to watch for as the teams meet in Foxboro.

Can TreVeyon Henderson keep the momentum going? Henderson posted a solid RB20 showing two weeks back, then exploded for an RB4 finish in Tampa Bay last week, scoring on two long touchdown runs. The Jets rushing defense has adequate grades, though it obviously traded star lineman Quinnen Willams two weeks ago.

Will Breece Hall find any running room? The Patriots haven’t allowed a running back past 53 yards rushing all year, and only five backs have scored double-digit fantasy points against New England. Hall averages a solid 4.8 yards per carry and the New York offense is down top receiver Garrett Wilson.

What’s the second pitch in the New England passing game? Stefon Diggs continues to spread his wings and is the first read for MVP candidate Drake Maye, but there’s room for more against a struggling New York pass defense. With Kayshon Boutte out another week, perhaps Mack Hollins or Kyle Williams will come through as a Week 11 sleeper.

Check out more of Scott’s work at the Yahoo Sports fantasy hub.

In August, the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams probably didn't think they'd have an MVP candidate this season. 

The Rams were worried about Matthew Stafford's back for most of the month. Seattle obviously liked Sam Darnold, considering they traded Geno Smith to make room for Darnold, but there had to be questions about whether he could replicate what he did last season with the Minnesota Vikings. 

Not only are Stafford and Darnold each in the top six of the NFL MVP odds heading into Week 11, but their teams are Super Bowl contenders. 

The Seahawks and Rams are both 7-2 and among the best teams in the NFL. They're similar teams, with quarterbacks on a hot streak, star receivers (Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Puka Nacua) having fantastic seasons and defenses that rank among the best in the NFL. In DVOA this week, Seattle held the No. 1 spot and the Rams were No. 2. This is a fantastic showdown between two elite teams. 

It's not a big surprise that the line is Rams -3 at BetMGM for a tight matchup. Anything less for the Rams and they'd get a lot of betting action, and if the spread was over a field goal the Seahawks would get most of the bets. It's a tough game to pick because both teams are elite, but Seahawks +3 is the pick. They are capable of the upset, even on the road, and the three points is nice to have in a great matchup. The good news is these two teams meet again in Week 16.  

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Here are the picks for the Week 11 NFL games, with all odds from BetMGM: 

Jets (+13) over Patriots

There are some great matchups in Week 11. This is not one of them. It's not fun to take the Jets, but it's a lot of points. The quicker we get through this Thursday night game, the better. 

Dolphins (-2.5) over Commanders

Well, this isn't one of the good matchups either. What a treat for the good people of Madrid, Spain! It's hard to be playing out the string by mid-November but that's the position both of these teams are in. Miami has at least shown some signs of life lately, unlike the Commanders. 

Texans (-6.5) over Titans

The Titans have lost eight games. All of them have been by seven or more points. The absolute fluke of a win completely preempted conversations like "Are the 2025 Titans the worst team in NFL history?" Just remember, there's no bigger difference in sports than between the winless NFL teams through history and the one-loss teams. Nobody remembers the one-loss teams. The Texans aren't great, but it has to be 50/50 that they shut out the Titans, which is pretty remarkable. 

Vikings (-3) over Bears

A team that has won six of seven is a full field goal underdog against a 4-5 team. That seems fishy, but the Bears are this year's team that everyone knows is getting very lucky to keep winning. They're 25th in DVOA. They have a negative yards per play differential, via OddsShark. They have a negative point differential. At some point regression is hitting the Bears. 

Bengals (+5.5) over Steelers

It's easy to understand why the Bengals are getting so many points. Their defense is miserable. Joe Flacco is on a hot streak but he's probably going to have a downturn, and he's dealing with a shoulder injury. But still, do you trust the Steelers laying 5.5 points? If you watched Sunday night's game against the Chargers, the answer has to be no. 

Panthers (+3.5) over Falcons

The Panthers aren't good. They let us know that last week with a home loss to the Saints. But it's also tough to back a Falcons team coming straight from Berlin and off them blowing a winnable game to the Colts. Maybe Carolina will be refocused after a horrendous loss. 

Buccaneers (+5.5) over Bills

The Bills are confounding. They should be better than a team that has been blasted by the Falcons and Dolphins already. The Buccaneers haven't been perfect either. The Bills might rebound from the Dolphins loss and blow out Tampa Bay, but it seems like the line is a bit high.

Giants (+7) over Packers

Teams often experience a bump in their first game after firing their coach. Teams often rally around a backup quarterback for one game. The Giants get both. Brian Daboll is gone, and Jameis Winston gets a start. If you've ever backed Winston, you know what to expect. There will be some remarkable plays downfield, and some remarkable mistakes too. Buckle in. The Packers might be looking to take out their frustration after two straight losses, but Green Bay might not be the kind of team that can impose its will on anyone. 

Chargers (-3) over Jaguars

It's always tricky for a West Coast team playing an early game on the East Coast. But the Jaguars haven't been good since that win over the Chiefs. They're 1-3 since then and the only win came in overtime against the Raiders because a 2-point conversion pass was knocked down at the line. The Chargers have offensive line issues, but their defense has been excellent lately. Do you trust Trevor Lawrence to beat a hot defense? You shouldn't. 

49ers (-2.5) over Cardinals

This is a strange line. The 49ers' defense isn't good after some major injuries, but they still are a 6-4 team. The Cardinals have lost six of seven, just got blasted by the Seahawks and this week will be without Marvin Harrison Jr., who had appendicitis. This is exactly when a team that should never be getting less than a field goal springs an upset, because that's what happens in the NFL, but we'll fall for the bait anyway. 

Ravens (-7.5) over Browns

The Browns should be the type of team that covers more often than you'd think, with their upper echelon defense and reputation as a terrible team. Yet, they're 3-6 against the spread. The Ravens are getting hot, and they've already beat the Browns 41-17 back in Week 2. 

Broncos (+4) over Chiefs

The Broncos aren't bad. They might be bad on offense, but the defense is among the two or three best in the NFL. Andy Reid is great off of a bye, but Sean Payton has had a few extra days too. And don't forget that Denver outplayed Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium last season but got a last-second field goal blocked because the 2024 Chiefs caught every single break in close games. Maybe the Chiefs win in a monumental AFC West showdown, but it should be close either way. 

Eagles (-2.5) over Lions

Another great matchup. And it might be the Lions' last call to make a charge for the No. 1 seed in the NFC. The Eagles are very good but it's hard to deny the offense still hasn't taken off. They're 7-2 regardless. We overreact to everything negative surrounding the Eagles, but this still might be the best team in football and it's hard to go against them laying less than a field goal at home. 

Cowboys (-3.5) over Raiders

A good week of matchups is bookended by two horrible prime-time games. Let's be very clear: The Cowboys aren't good. But they are better than the Raiders, who are 1-7 since Week 1 with the only win coming against the Titans. We deserve better than this for a Monday night game. 

Last week: 6-8

Season to date: 81-68-2

The Giants are adding a familiar face to their wide receiver room, reuniting with Isaiah Hodgins, reports Dan Duggan of The Athletic. 

Hodgins was signed off the Steelers' practice squad. 

Already without Malik Nabers for the season, the Giants lost Darius Slayton to a hamstring injury during their Week 10 loss to the Bears.

Slayton has not returned to practice.

New York has also been without pass-catching tight end Daniel Bellinger, who practiced in a limited capacity on Wednesday. 

Hodgins, 27, will give Big Blue another option to throw to in what is expected to be Jameis Winston's first start of the season (the expectation is that Jaxson Dart will not be cleared from concussion protocol in time to face the Packers on Sunday).

During his first stint with the Giants from 2022 to 2024, Hodgins hauled in 60 catches for 634 yards across 28 games (14 starts).