FOXBOROUGH – There’s a reason why the Buffalo Bills have won the AFC East every season since 2020. There’s a reason why they’re considered among the favorites in the conference.
The Patriots found that out the hard way on Sunday.
Early on, this matchup was everything Patriots fans hoped for as Drake Maye’s unit and the defense were dominating Josh Allen and the Bills. The Patriots fired out of the gates and outscored the Bills 21-0 over the first three series. Vrabel’s team went into halftime feeling good with a 24-7 lead.
However, that feeling didn’t last long as Vrabel’s team unraveled in the second half.
The Bills came out of halftime and dominated the Patriots in an ugly third quarter. The Patriots lost in all three phases as Buffalo scored 14 points to bring the lead down to 24-21.
After their first drive in the fourth quarter, the Bills had their first lead of the game. Even after the Patriots regained the lead, they couldn’t hang onto it.
If the Patriots are going to unseat the Bills, they need to prove they can hang with the perennial playoff contenders. With the AFC East title on the line, they weren’t able to on Sunday in this disappointing 35-31 loss.
The Patriots fall to 11-3 with three games left in the regular season. Here’s what went down:
Patriots offense starts fast
The Patriots’ offense started fast on Sunday and, unlike in past games, had no problem in the red zone during their first series.
Maye scored an 8-yard touchdown run at 10:21 of the first quarter to give the Patriots an early 7-0 lead. This score capped off a very efficient 8-play, 73-yard game-opening drive. The offense was 2-2 on third down, keeping the chains moving.
The big play of this series came on third-and-7 when Maye connected with Kayshon Boutte for a 30-yard gain at the 25-yard line. The replay showed the ball hit the ground, but the Bills didn’t challenge the ruling. Rhamondre Stevenson then ran for 8 yards on third-and-1 to set up a first-and-goal. Maye scored on the next play.
Defense also starts fast
The Patriots’ defense started fast as well, forcing the Bills to two three-and-outs to start this game. Buffalo didn’t have a first down in the first quarter.
Ray Davis returned his first kickoff 45 yards to set up the Bills at midfield for their first drive. However, the Patriots held Josh Allen’s group to a three-and-out. It looked like Allen hit Brandin Cooks for a big gain, but officials were quick to reverse the call on the field, ruling it incomplete. Cooks bobbled the pass as he went out of bounds.
Allen went 0-2 in his first series. The quarterback attempted to hit Dalton Kincaid on third down, but the pass was off the mark as the tight end was covered by Christian Gonzalez.
The Bills went three-and-out in their second drive as well. This saw Buffalo get flagged for a false start on third-and-4. Then, on third-and-9, Jack Gibbens sacked Allen to force another punt.
Maye scores, again
The Patriots’ third drive of the game started with Marcus Jones muffing and then recovering the Bills’ punt. It ended with another Maye rushing touchdown and a 14-0 lead.
The offense started this drive at midfield. On first down, it looked like the Patriots quarterback would be sacked. Instead, Maye escaped and ran 17 yards. Then, Josh McDaniels called a trick play where Maye tossed the ball to Stevenson, who threw it back to Maye, and the quarterback hit Hollins for a 14-yard gain.
After another first down, the Patriots were set up with a first-and-goal from the 6-yard line. After losing a yard on the first play, Maye kept the ball on second down, running in untouched for a 7-yard touchdown with 25 seconds left in the first quarter.
TreVeyon Henderson joins the fun
Maye wasn’t the only Patriots player having fun on the ground. In the team’s fourth drive, TreVeyon Henderson also got in on the action to extend the Patriots’ lead to 21-0.
McDaniels leaned heavily on the Patriots’ run game in the first half. This drive saw the offense run the ball five times in the first six plays. Faced with a second-and-15, Maye picked up the first down by hitting Hollins for an 18-yard gain.
On the next snap, Henderson took the handoff and ran for a 52-yard touchdown at 5:53 of the second quarter. Henderson was so fast that the rookie ran untouched on the highlight touchdown.
Special teams blunder leads to score
A Patriots special teams blunder gave the Bills good field position, and Buffalo took advantage of it.
Following Henderson’s touchdown, Davis gained 38 yards on the kickoff return. The Bills gained an additional 15 yards due to a Brenden Schooler facemask penalty. That gave Buffalo’s offense the ball at the 42-yard line.
After James Cook gained a first down, Allen hit Dawson Knox for 19 yards on third-and-5. That set Buffalo up with a first-and-goal from the 7-yard line. Two plays later, Allen hit Cook for a 5-yard touchdown at 1:56 of the second quarter.
The Patriots, however, answered and extended their lead to 24-7 as Andy Borregales hit a 36-yard field goal before the half.
Special teams hurts Patriots, again
In the first half, the Patriots allowed kickoff returns of 45, 23, and 38. To start the second half, they allowed a 58-yard return by Davis to set the Bills up at the 44-yard line.
The team’s special teams blunder, once again, led to another Buffalo score. Allen hit Knox for a 4-yard touchdown at 11:24 of the third quarter to bring the Patriots’ lead to 24-14.
After the return, Cook gained 11 yards on the third. On third-and-3, Allen ran for a 20-yard gain to set up a first-and-goal from the 6-yard line. Two plays later, the Bills were in the end zone.
Patriots lost momentum
Buffalo gained momentum for the first time in this game.
Following the touchdown, the Bills’ defense held the Patriots to their first three-and-out on the next series when Maye was sacked on third down. Next, Buffalo scored again.
Buffalo didn’t need a great kickoff return in this drive. Instead, Allen and his offense dominated the Patriots’ defense. Buffalo didn’t see a third down until they got to the 13-yard line. Although Allen threw the ball away on third-and-5, the drive continued as Patriots safety Craig Woodson was flagged for defensive holding.
The penalty set up a first-and-goal from the 8-yard line. Three plays later, Cook scored a 3-yard touchdown, and the Patriots’ lead was down to 24-21 at 3:49 of the third quarter.
Patriots become undone
The Patriots unraveled in the third quarter.
Following the Bills’ touchdown, Kyle Williams returned the next kickoff 60 yards, but it was called back due to a Marte Mapu holding penalty. The offense gained two first downs, but became undone once they crossed midfield.
On third-and-10, left tackle Vederian Lowe was flagged for a false start. On third-and-15, Michael Onwenu was called for a holding penalty. Then, on third-and-25, Maye was intercepted by Tre’Davious White on a deep ball to Hollins at 1:39 of the third quarter.
Patriots’ defense fails on third down
Following the turnover, the Bills started at the 9-yard line. They proceeded to march all the way downfield to take the lead away from the Patriots.
Vrabel’s defense struggled in this series on third and fourth down. On the first third down, Allen hit Kincaid for a 24-yard gain. On third-and-1, Allen kept the ball to move the chains again.
Although the Patriots stopped the Bills on the next third down, Allen hit Khalil Shakir for a 37-yard gain on fourth-and-3. That set up a first-and-goal. Even though Buffalo was pushed back 10 yards due to a holding call, Allen beat the Patriots on third-and-14, hitting Knox for a 14-yard touchdown to give the Bills a 28-24 lead with 10:03 left on the clock.
Henderson shows off home run speed
The Bills’ lead didn’t last long.
On the very next Patriots offensive play, Vrabel’s team received a home run by their rookie running back.
At 9:49 of the fourth quarter, Henderson took a handoff from Maye and ran to the right. With a big pile of players in front of him, the rookie cut back and ran left and continued to run 65 yards down the field for his second touchdown of the game.
Fourteen seconds after the Bills took the lead, the Patriots led 31-28.
Patriots defense gets cooked
The Patriots needed their defense to step up.
That didn’t happen much in the second half, and it didn’t happen after Henderson’s touchdown run. Instead, Allen and the Bills ran all over the Patriots to retake a 35-31 lead with 6:48 remaining.
The Patriots came close to stopping the Bills, but Carlton Davis was flagged for a 15-yard defensive pass interference penalty on third-and-4. After that, the Patriots’ defense didn’t look competitive. The unit gave up a 12-yard pass, a 9-yard run, and then an 11-yard touchdown run by Cook.
Patriots comeback effort falls short
The Patriots didn’t have anything left in the tank after that.
After the Bills retook the lead, the Patriots offense then went three-and-out with Hunter Henry dropping a potential third-down conversion.
The Bills punted for the first time in the second half with 2:54 left on the clock. That defensive stop gave Maye and the offense the ball back on the 17-yard line with 2:43 remaining, down 35-31.
Maye’s unit, however, gained 5 yards and turned the ball over on downs at the 22-yard line with 1:54 left on the clock.
Story by Mark Daniels, masslive.com