ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – The Patriots showed fight.
Jerod Mayo’s team went into Highmark Stadium with low expectations on Sunday. There weren’t many who expected these underdogs to put up much of a fight against the AFC East-leading Buffalo Bills.
Coming off an embarrassing loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the temperature rose with Mayo and his coaching staff.
In the first half, the Patriots surpassed expectations and looked like a different team. They started fast. Drake Maye looked phenomenal. The offense was aggressive. There was a trick play on special teams. Even the defense forced the Bills to punt multiple times.
Mayo’s staff pulled out all the stops on Sunday to give the Patriots a fighting chance against one of the NFL’s best teams.
After the first half, however, the Patriots fell into their usual routine. On offense, there were multiple game-changing turnovers. On defense, there were issues with defending the run. Before you knew it, the Patriots first-half lead was gone.
The Patriots showed heart on this chilly evening in New York. In the end, that wasn’t enough as they lost 24-21 to the Bills. Mayo’s team falls to 3-12 with two more games left in the season.
Here’s what happened:
Patriots started fast
The Patriots finally got off to a fast start.
On Sunday, Drake Maye led the offense to a game-opening touchdown drive. The rookie quarterback moved the chains by hitting Hunter Henry in a tight window for an 8-yard gain on third-and-8. Next, Rhamondre Stevenson drew a defensive pass interference penalty that pushed the Patriots up 14 yards. Then on third-and-4, Maye threw a beautiful 28-yard touchdown pass to Kayshon Boutte to give the Patriots a 7-0 lead at 12:01 of the first quarter.
It somehow got better for the offense. On their second drive, Maye orchestrated a 16-play, 91-yard touchdown drive to give the Patriots a 14-0 lead,
Stevenson got things going with a 14-yard run. Maye then moved the chains with three first-down throws and with his legs on a 10-yard run play. A Bills encouragement penalty gave the Patriots a first-and-goal from the 8. Although the Patriots moved backward with a holding penalty, Stevenson finished this drive with a 14-yard touchdown run at 14:16 of the second quarter.
Following a Bills touchdown, the Patriots were quick to three-and-out on their third down.
The Patriots started their fourth drive at the 1-yard line after Marte Mapu took an interception out of the end zone and got instantly tackled. To stay on the field, the Patriots got aggressive. After failing to pick up the first down on third-and-1, the Patriots ran a fake punt with a direct snap to Dell Pettus. The undrafted rookie safety picked up two yards to move the chains. Unfortunately, the Patriots punted four snaps later following the trick play.
Turnovers doom the Patriots
The Patriots dominated the time of possession, 20:20 to 9:40, in the first half but clung on to a 14-7 lead.
In the second half, disaster struck. Three Patriots turnovers turned the tide of this game.
After the Bills tied the game, on their first drive of the third quarter, Stevenson fumbled the ball on the second snap of the Patriots first second-half drive.
It was a killer turnover for the Patriots. Greg Rousseau forced the fumble and Dorian Williams recovered at the 42-yard line. The Bills turned that into a Tyler Bass 50-yard field goal to take a 17-14 lead at 6:02 of the third quarter.
It appeared as though the Patriots offense got its act together. On the next drive, the unit was moving quickly and after multiple first down throws by Maye, found themselves at the 16-yard line. Once again, disaster struck.
At 1:58 of the third quarter, Maye was intercepted in the end zone by Bills cornerback Cam Lewis. The quarterback was trying to hit Hooper in the corner of the end zone but the eight end, who fell, wasn’t there.
When Buffalo took over, they fumbled the ball twice on the next drive, but Bills players recovered both fumbles. The defense still forced a punt to give the offense a chance.
Instead of coming back, it got worse as the Patriots helped the Bills extend their lead. At 10:10 of the fourth quarter, Maye threw a backward pass to Stevenson but the ball bounced off his hands and into the end zone. Since it was a backward pass, the ball was live and Bills cornerback Taron Johnson recovered the fumble for a touchdown. That error gave the Buffalo a 24-14 lead.
The offense moved the ball on the next drive but this series came to an end after a delay of game penalty on third-and-1 followed by an incomplete pass. Despite being near midfield, the staff opted to punt on fourth-and-6.
The Patriots weren’t done, scoring a touchdown.
A 26-yard pass to Austin Hooper, who also drew a personal foul penalty, gave the Patriots a first-and-goal from the 8. Two more penalties on the Bills, put the Patriots at the 1-yard line. On third down, the Bills drew their third pass interference penalty of the series to give the Patriots another first-and-goal.
It took the Patriots nine plays, taking 1:13 off the clock, to hit pay dirt after being inside the 4-yard line
With 1:13 left, Maye hit Henry for a 9-yard touchdown and trailed, 24-21.
The Bills recovered the onside kick and ran out the clock.
Patriots defense surpassed expectations
The Patriots defense also got off to a fast start, forcing the Bills to punt on their first series. Buffalo picked up one first down but then were stymied thanks to Daniel Ekaule (run stuff on first down), Jeremiah Pharms (quarterback hit on second down), and Alex Austin (pass breakup on third down)
The defense played better than anticipated but issues with the run game persisted.
After a second Patriots touchdown, the Bills were quick to respond. At 11:56 of the second quarter, the Patriots run defense broke down. That’s when James Cook ran for a 46-yard touchdown to cut the Patriots lead to 14-7.
At 8:12 of the second quarter, Marte Mapu intercepted Josh Allen in the end zone. That was the good news. The bad was that Mapu attempted to run the ball out of the end zone only to get tackled at the 1-yard line.
The defensive unit forced another punt before the half and the Patriots went into the locker room with a 14-7 lead.
That lead didn’t last long. Cook started the second half off with a 25-yard run play. Next, Allen hit Keion Coleman for a gain of 17. Before you knew it, the Bills had a first-and-goal from the 7. Three plays later, at 9:41 of the third, Allen hit Cook for a 4-yard game-tying touchdown on third-and-goal.
The defense forced two punts in the fourth quarter giving the offense a chance to stay in this game.
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