The Buffalo Bills defeated the New England Patriots by a score of 33-21 on Sunday. Buffalo split the 2021 series with their AFC East rival after losing the first game this season in Orchard Park earlier this month. Josh Allen and the Bills got off to the start that you need to get off to against the Patriots, which involved not settling for a FG on 4th and goal. I don’t think you beat the Patriots by kicking field goals, it all starts with a fast start and explosive plays. The Bills did not punt once in Foxborough on Sunday, and the Bills became the first ever team to go without a punt against Belichick in 474 games, including playoff games.
Buffalo saw explosive plays from quarterback Josh Allen, Isaiah McKenzie, Stefon Diggs, and Dawson Knox that set up each scoring drives. Micah Hyde intercepted Patriots quarterback Mac Jones two times, and Ed Oliver sacked Jones once. Josh Allen was 30/47 for 314 yards and three touchdowns on the day. Devin Singletary led the Bills in rushing for 39 yards and one touchdown. Isaiah McKenzie led the Bills in receiving 11 receptions, 125 yards, and one touchdown.
The recipe for the Bills to officially win the AFC East is to win out. They have two more games on the regular season schedule, and they are in Orchard Park. Buffalo will return to Highmark Stadium to take on the Atlanta Falcons next week. I think that it could be a trap game, and the Falcons do have weapons. Falcons rookie Kyle Pitts has the stats of a top receiver, and he has not played like a rookie.
The Bills just need to take it one game at a time and keep the celebration from Foxborough short. It has been a crazy season where the Bills have lost games that they should have won, and we know that they are better than that. What does help is that the win at Gillette was a confidence boost, and they should not take the next two games lightly.
If the Bills were to need help, the Patriots will travel to Jacksonville next Sunday and then the next week, and they will stay in Florida to take a trip down 95 to play the Dolphins. The Patriots have been known to get surprised down in Miami, and the Dolphins have been playing a lot better recently. I doubt that the Patriots will lose in Jacksonville, but if the Patriots were to lose any of these games, it would most likely be to the Dolphins.
Let’s just hope that the Bills win out first, but it would be nice to see the Patriots lose to one of these teams. If both the Bills and Patriots win out, then we could see a third game between the Bills and Patriots in the AFC Wild Card. I do think that we have seen enough of the Patriots this season, but let’s hope that we do not see them again.
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