The Bills will face the Patriots this week for the NFL’s Amazon Prime broadcast Thursday Night Football game.
Buffalo has performed well against New England in recent years, going 2-0 at Gillette Stadium and 3-1 overall in games that saw Bills Quarterback Josh Allen throw at least two touchdown passes with 9 total TDs in each of his past three games at Gillette Stadium, with only one interception.
Still, he knows as well as anybody that nothing’s guaranteed from one season to the next, after falling to two division opponents on the road already this season in the Dolphins and Jets.
“We understand as a team that what we did last year has no effect, and is not going to help us in any way in this next coming game,” Allen said during his media availability this week about facing the Patriots. “They’re a team that is playing at a high level right now. We’ve got to be ready for whatever they can throw at us. We’ve got to be ready to go win over there in a division game and a hostile environment.”
Bills defensive coordinator and assistant head coach Leslie Frazier echoed a similar sentiment to Allen’s.
“We really have to play extremely well as we go on the road against New England and try to find a way to get a win,” said Frazier per Patriots.com. “And that will set us up for the next game and the next game, but it starts with this game next week and really being able to put together a good game plan and being able to go out and execute at a high level. Anytime you’re playing against an AFC opponent, in particular one in your division, it just raises your awareness of what you have to get done.”
Surely having two division losses to their record this season may also provide that motivation to find a way to get a win, especially with rematches at home with the Jets and Dolphins next up on the schedule.
The good news is that Buffalo players are excited for the away game matchup against the Pats.
“Obviously, big divisional rival game this week,” Safety Jordan Poyer said to the press about the matchup. “We’re excited to play on the road in New England. This is what NFL football is about.”
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