Let’s get this out of the way right now: The New England Patriots are going to play in the Super Bowl in Glendale, Arizona, on Feb. 1.

Wait, what?

Yeah, you read that right. I think the Patriots will win their sixth AFC championship in the Bill Belichick/Tom Brady era this year. Beyond that? I’ll get back to you in late January.

A lot will happen before we get to that point. And here’s what I think will happen over the course of New England’s 16 regular-season games.

n Sept. 7: New England 25, Miami 14. Make it 11 season-opening wins in a row for the Pats and 200 career regular-season wins for Belichick. Gronk returns, does Gronk stuff like catching a TD pass and spiking the ball so hard it leaves a crater in the end zone that results in a delay-of-game penalty. Bill says, “We’ve got to be smarter.”

n Sept. 14: New England 31, Minnesota 10. Old friend Matt Cassel looks back fondly on his days with the Patriots, when all he had to do was practice against their defense and hold a clipboard on the sidelines. Ninkovich, Revis, Hightower, Big Vince and Chandler Jones play a fantasy football game against him: multiple sacks, interceptions, TDs.

n Sept. 21: New England 35, Oakland 13. Remember when the Raiders were one of the most feared teams in all of sports? Didn’t think so, it was that long ago. Meanwhile, the Pats finally get to show the home crowd what they’re about. Brady does a nice imitation of Daryle “The Mad Bomber” Lamonica; ditto for Aaron Dobson and Cliff Branch. (If you don’t know who those guys are, Google them.)

n Sept. 29: Kansas City 24, New England 22. Monday Night Football. When I was a kid I loved that game. The board game, the one with the plays on little plastic records. Best football game ever. This one will be pretty good, too, but the Pats always have trouble at Arrowhead and it’s no different here.

n Oct. 5: New England 24, Cincinnati 16. Sunday Night Football. Love watching it. Patriots still have sour taste from last year’s loss in Cincy, where they scored only six points and the game ended in a monsoon. My long-range forecast calls for rain and lightning strikes from Brady over the Bengals’ befuddled defenders.

n Oct. 12: New England 41, Buffalo 10: Everyone knows Bill Belichick is a longtime friend of Jon Bon Jovi. So he’s a little peeved at how his buddy was treated in the bidding process to buy the Bills and it shows. It’s a perfect game plan and the folks in Canton want to put it on display at the Hall of Fame.

n Oct. 16: New England 25, N.Y. Jets 13. Thursday Night Football. Not a fan of it. All eyes on Revis Island, as Darrelle plays his first game against his former team but the Jets don’t even look his way. “Why would we?” asks Rex after. “We know what he can do.” No matter, Brandon Browner & Co. pick off plenty of passes.

n Oct. 26: New England 27, Chicago 14. As is their custom, Patriots cheerleaders wear “costumes” during the first half of a pre-Halloween game, distracting Da Bears. Patriots play with blinders on their helmets, put up big early numbers and cruise to the win. “Everything we do,” says Bill, “is for the good of the team.”

n Nov. 2: New England 38, Denver 34. You can’t hype up Tom Brady vs. Peyton Manning enough. Greatest QB matchup we’ll ever see. Future Hall of Famers. Every move, counter-move of the offseason is dissected in the days leading up to game. It lives up to pregame hype, but the game will be decided by an unlikely hero. I don’t know who just yet but trust me, you won’t believe who makes the winning play.

n Nov. 9: Bye week, Patriots rest. So do I.

n Nov. 16: New England 35, Indianapolis 23. Coach Bill is 10-4 with New England after the bye week. Make it 11-4 after this one. Colts may have Luck on their side, but it’s all skill in this one. Pats are just starting to ramp up their offense. Defense causes bad Luck for Colts.

n Nov. 23: New England 40, Detroit 17. A pre-Thanksgiving feast. The Patriots look so good that even Belichick couldn’t find anything to grouse about. Well, maybe. There’s that delay-of- game penalty for another Gronk spike that bounces up, hits the crossbar and knocks the goal posts off kilter – a quasi-post-TD-dunk that requires a penalty. “We’ve got to be smarter,” says Bill.

n Nov. 30: Green Bay 38, New England 35. A Super Bowl preview? Maybe. Just maybe. (Not that I’m sayin.’) Snows the whole game. Patriots are moving in for a possible winning/tying score when the refs rule they were two inches shy of first down on a late Brady completion. “Where’s that snowplow guy when you really need him,” says every fan in New England.

n Dec. 7: New England 35, San Diego 21. Sunday Night Football. Chargers are going to be a lot better than folks think. But the Patriots regroup in a game played in ideal weather. Field is fast, Patriots play fast. Countdown to another AFC East title.

n Dec. 14: Miami 22, New England 21. Pats suffer a how-could-they-lose-that-one game every year. This is it. Miami needs a win for the playoffs and prepares for cold weather by practicing in Orono for the week leading into the game. Miami Coach Joe Philbin wears a T-shirt on the sidelines. “Compared to where we just were” he says, “this feels like Miami.”

n Dec. 21: New England 27, N.Y. Jets 18. In 2001, Belichick buried the football from a bad September loss to Miami, spurring the Pats to their Super Bowl title. This year the ground is too frozen, so he puts the ball in a freezer and has Gronk spike it and shatter it. Pats respond with workmanlike effort to beat the Jets again to clinch another AFC East title.

n Dec. 28: New England 35, Buffalo 13. With the playoffs looming, the Pats starters sit out most of this one. Pats fans get to see more of rookie QB Jimmy Garoppolo in one regular-season game than they did of Ryan Mallett in three years.

Mike Lowe can be reached at 791-6422 or at:

mlowe@pressherald.com

Twitter: MikeLowePPH