New England went undefeated at home with a Week 17 win over the New York Jets in which they clinched a first-round bye, and wrapped up the regular season with an 11–5 record that was good enough to give them the AFC's second seed in the postseason.

[5] In the playoffs, the Patriots defeated the Los Angeles Chargers in the Divisional round, 41–28, to advance to the AFC Championship game for a record eighth straight season.

[8] The next day, McDaniels abruptly rejected the offer citing personal reasons, and decided to stay a part of the Patriots' organization.

[10] Draft trades Wide receiver Julian Edelman was suspended for the first four games of the 2018 season for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing substances.

Edelman, who missed the entire 2017 season due to a torn ACL suffered during the preseason, unsuccessfully appealed the suspension, and returned to the Patriots' roster for the team's Week 5 Thursday Night game vs. the Indianapolis Colts on October 4.

[102] On December 20, 2018, Wide receiver Josh Gordon was suspended indefinitely for violating the terms of his reinstatement under the league's substance abuse policy.

The Patriots started off well, reaching Jaguars territory in just four plays, but the drive stalled, and Stephen Gostkowski missed a 54-yard field goal attempt.

With great field position, the Jaguars raced 56 yards in 9 plays, scoring on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Blake Bortles to Donte Moncrief for the early lead.

The Jaguars took the ball and cashed in, marching 84 yards on just 7 plays, with Bortles hitting Keelan Cole on a 24-yard touchdown pass, extending the Jags lead to 14–0.

After stopping the Jaguars early in the second quarter, the Patriots drove 83 yards in over 8 minutes, but were forced to settle for a 29-yard field goal, trimming the deficit to 14–3.

However, the Patriots defense was gashed again, with the Jags racing 75 yards, concluding with Bortles 4-yard touchdown pass to Austin Seferian-Jenkins and a 21–3 Jaguars lead with 0:09 seconds remaining in the half.

The Jags started right where they left off, taking the opening drive of the second half all the way to the Patriots 10, but were held to a 28-yard field goal by Josh Lambo.

After another Patriots punt, Bottles hit D. J. Chark for a 13-yard gain to the Jaguars 49, but Stephon Gilmore forced him to fumble with Duron Harmon recovering at the Jags 46.

With the excellent field position, the Patriots finally reached the endzone with Brady finding Chris Hogan for a 7-yard touchdown pass to cap off the 46-yard drive, trimming the deficit to 24–10.

Bortles made his only real mistake on the next drive, throwing an interception to Kyle Van Noy at the Jags 25 early in the fourth quarter.

The Patriots marched 75 yards in 8 plays on their next drive with Brady connecting with Hogan again for a 29-yard touchdown pass, making the score 31–20; however, by now less than 4 minutes remained in the game.

After a Patriots three-and-out opened the game, the Lions marched 65 yards in 12 plays, taking over 7 minutes off the clock and facing only one 3rd down before settling for a 38-yard field goal by Matt Prater.

After another Patriots three-and-out and set up with good field position, the Lions marched 60 yards in over 5 minutes to score on a 4-yard pass from Matthew Stafford to Kenny Golladay.

The Lions continued their clock-draining game plan on their next drive, tracking 75 yards in over six minutes and converting three 3rd downs before Stafford bombed Marvin Jones Jr. for a 33-yard touchdown, pushing the score to 20–10 late in the 3rd quarter.

Two possessions later, from the Patriots' 43, Brady heaved a desperation pass that was intercepted by Darius Slay, who returned it 34 yards to the Lions' 49, but an illegal block penalty sent the ball back to the 19.

Both teams punted on their next drive, but midway through the 2nd quarter, Tannehill fumbled the snap with Kyle Van Noy recovering for the Patriots at the Dolphins 22.

On the very next play, James White scampered to the end zone on a 22-yard run, giving the Patriots a 17–0 lead which was their largest of the season to this point.

The Patriots responded by converting four 3rd downs on a 15-play, 85-yard drive, scoring with Brady's 9-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Phillip Dorsett to go up 24–0 with 0:17 seconds remaining in the first half.

The Patriots took the opening kickoff and marched 75 yards in over 6 minutes, scoring on a 1-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to Cordarrelle Patterson for the early lead.

After both teams punted on their resultant drive, the Patriots raced 68 yards to score on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Brady to James White for a 21–3 lead.

The Colts proceeded to drive 80 yards in 10 plays with Luck finding Erik Swoope for a 13-yard touchdown pass, trimming the Patriots' lead to a thin 24–17 early in the fourth quarter.

The Colts turned the ball over on downs on their next drive, but after forcing the Patriots to punt, marched 60 yards to score on Luck's 1-yard touchdown pass to Ebron.

After receiver Josh Gordon left the team and was later suspended, the Patriots relied on their run game and defense against Buffalo.

With the Houston Texans' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, the Patriots moved to the #2 seed in the AFC, and would have the chance to secure a playoff bye with a win in the following week's game.