The Buffalo Bills knocked off the New England Patriots, 27-21. The win brings the Bills one step closer to a playoff berth.
The victory also put Buffalo’s poor Week 7 loss at Foxborough to rest.
However, the game didn’t start so well for the Bills.
Jalen Reagor returned the opening kickoff 98 yards to stun a packed Highmark Stadium. Reagor put a spin move around kicker Tyler Bass at midfield to ultimately break free for the score.
Buffalo’s defense made the first big play for the Bills. Rasul Douglas tipped a Bailey Zappe pass. Ed Oliver made a diving play to reel in the interception. Buffalo’s offense couldn’t do much with the turnover, only gaining four yards on the drive. Bass made a 35-yard field goal to get the Bills on the board.
Buffalo’s defense continued their pressure on Zappe and the Patriots offense. Douglas jumped a route and picked off Zappe. It was the second New England drive that Buffalo’s defense stopped on the first play of the series.
This time, the Bills offense did enough to find the end zone. The four-play, 14-yard drive ended with a one-yard rushing touchdown by Josh Allen. The push gave Buffalo their first lead of the game, 10-7.
Buffalo forced their third turnover of the half with a Christian Benford-forced fumble. Benford ripped the ball out of Patriots tight end Pharoah Brown’s hands and recovered the fumble. Even with great field position, Buffalo could not muster much on the offensive end, once again settling for a Bass field goal.
The Bills continued their dominance on defense, forcing a fourth turnover in the first half. Douglas picked off his second pass of the half. The veteran cornerback returned the interception for a touchdown, giving Buffalo a comfortable 20-7 lead.
However, the Patriots offense would finally put together a sustained drive. Methodically, Zappe led New England into Bills territory. Zappe avoided the Bills blitz on multiple plays. On the final play of the series, Zappe ducked out of the pocket and ran for a 17-yard touchdown.
It was now the Patriots’ turn to make a play of defense. Allen launched deep down the sidelines into double coverage. Alex Austin came away with the pick, and the Patriots offense was back in possession with a chance to take the lead before half time.
New England drove down into Bills territory, only to be thwarted by the Buffalo secondary. The Bills played a shell defense on third down, forcing Zappe to take a checkdown and settling for a field goal attempt. The kick drifted wide left, and the Bills entered halftime with a 20-14 lead.
Buffalo’s offense took the game by storm right out of the halftime break. Allen completed his first big pass downfield, hitting Dalton Kincaid for a 51-yard pass. Buffalo moved the ball to the one-yard line. Once again, the Bills used the “tush push” to get Allen into the end zone for his second rushing score of the day. Buffalo led 27-14 early in the third quarter.
New England kept the game within reach. The Patriots defense forced a Buffalo punt. On the ensuing drive, New England hit a couple of big plays to put them into a prime scoring situation. Jalen Reagor caught a 39-yard over-the-shoulder catch to bring them into Bills territory. Then, DeMario Douglas scurried on a 17-yard screen pass. Ezekiel Elliott bulled his way into the end zone on a six-yard dash to bring the Patriots within a score. Buffalo held the lead 27-21 with 11 minutes remaining in the game.
New England’s defense forced a Buffalo punt on the next drive. Allen fumbled while attempting to scramble for a first down. The Bills punted and pinned the Patriots inside their five-yard line.
The Bills defense, as they did all game, limited the Patriots offense. Buffalo forced a three-and-out. From there, the Bills salted the game away. Buffalo ran 11 plays and finished off the final five minutes of the game to take the victory.