The Skinny:
The Patriots showed again that the reports of their demise have been greatly exaggerated. Tom Brady threw for 361 yards and four touchdowns to prove they are still the team to beat in the division with a 37-22 impressive win over the Bills and ruining the Pegula Day celebration at Ralph Wilson Stadium. The vaunted Buffalo defense collapsed in the second half allowing scoring drives on every New England possession after halftime. The Patriots ran up 396 yards in total offense. They took a 13-7 lead into the locker room at the intermission as they turned three Buffalo turnovers into points in the first half before the offense really clicked into high gear in the second half. Brady hit Brian Tymes from 43 yards out and Brandon LaFell caught scoring passes of 56 and 18 yards. Kyle Orton threw touchdown passes to Robert Woods and Chris Hogan as he went 24 of 38 for 299 yards including a fumble and an interception. Fred Jackson also had a touchdown run in the loss.
The Turning Point:
The Back To Back Fumbles: The turning point is not one play it was a sequence at the end of the first half that gave the Patriots two late field goals to grab the lead before halftime. First it was Orton's fumble on a strip sack by Chandler Jones and then C.J. Spiller turned the ball over with :14 to go before the half.
The Big Drive:
The Patriots used that momentum before the half to get a quick touchdown out of the locker room to start the third quarter. It was a six play, 80 yard drive that ended on a 43 yard bomb from Brady to Brian Tyms between Stephon Gilmore and Corey Graham to give the Patriots a 20-7 lead and take the crowd out of the game. The big play on the drive was a 17 yard pass to Brandon LaFell to convert a 3rd and 9 pass. Aaron Dobson had a nine catch and Stephen Ridley had a 10 yard catch early in the drive.
Stat I Did Like:
Third Down Offense: 8 of 15 on third downs was a bright spot.
Stat I Didn't Like:
Giveaways: Three second quarter turnovers led to the first 13 points of the game for the Patriots.
Pre Game Ceremony Highlights: - Fans were given One Buffalo T-Shirts upon entering the stadium and a huge Buffalo flipboard reveal happened during a pregame ceremony where the Pegulas were introduced as the new owners of the team. They came out dressed for a football game in jerseys and jeans. The family dog was with them and wearing a jersey as well. The fans chanted "Terry, Terry," for a long time before he was allowed to speak. - A video was played that started the pregame ceremony explaining the One Buffalo theme. It was narrated by Chris Berman. - Pegula said he doesn't normally accept being second but doesn't mind it when coming 2nd to Ralph Wilson as the owner of the team. He then made a few comments and told the fans to put all the emotions of the past week into the football team. - Johnny Rzeznik of the Goo Goo Dolls returned to his hometown to sing the National Anthem. - The entire Sabres team was at the game in a show of support. - Patriots owner Robert Kraft gave Terry and Kim Pegula a gameball and other gifts before the game to honor their first game as NFL owners. Brandon Spikes came out of the tunnel before the game and gave the Pegulas a gameball as well as the team gathered around the Pegulas at midfield and the new owner led the team pregame huddle. The Pegulas stayed on the field for the beginning of the game.
Key Matchup Results:
The winners of the battles highlighted in our preview article: WR Sammy Watkins vs. CB Darrelle Revis: Winner: Revis. Watkins had a 20 yard catch that setup the Bills 2nd touchdown but he was taken out of the game other than that with only one other catch in the final minutes. RB C.J. Spiller vs. LB Jerod Mayo: Winner: Mayo. Mayo left the game early with an injury but Spiller did absolutely nothing in this game except give the Patriots three points with a fumble. DT Marcell Dareus vs. C Bryan Stork: Winner: Dareus. Stork did not play because of an injury and Dareus did a decent job clogging the middle. LB Brandon Spikes vs. QB Tom Brady: Winner: Brady. He just took the game to the vaunted Bills defense in the 2nd half. Spikes was off the field much of the game thanks to the nickel and dime defenses being on the field most of the game.
Keys To The Game Results:
How the keys highlighted in our preview article turned out: 1. Feed Off The Crowd: Failure! The Bills fell behind in the second quarter and never led. The 12th man caused many procedure penalties but the Bills didn't use them to their full advantage. 2. Pressure Brady: Failure! At times they got pressure on him and then they had success defensively but they went through several stretches where he had all day to throw. 3. Commit To The Run: Failure! Yes but it may have been to their detriment. They had a good balance despite being behind but didn't have much success on the ground.
My Take:
It may be a new era with a new owner but until they can find a way to beat the Patriots it is the same old Bills. Until they can knock off the top dog in the division a changing of the guard is just a pipe dream. A disappointing end to a great week of celebrations off the field. The team has a bright future off the field with the Pegulas taking over but they have no magic wand to erase 14 years of losing after another deflating loss to the big bullies from Boston.
What's Ahead:
The Bills remain at home and will try to go to 3-0 against the NFC when they welcome the Minnesota Vikings and rookie QB Teddy Bridgewater into town.
Gameballs
Scott Chandler - Had a career high with 105 receiving yards early in the third quarter. He converted five first downs and had a beautiful one handed grab as he made plays down the middle of the field and down the sidelines.
Nigel Bradham - Was in on 11 tackles with several tackles for loss or at the line of scrimmage.
Goats
Duke Williams - Was called for two pass interference penalties, one of them was very blatant in the end zone. He was beaten time and time again by Rob Gronkowski
C.J. Spiller - Didn't do anything on the ground except turn the ball over on his best run and give the Pats a free three points before halftime. Finished with 19 yards on six carries.
Jim Schwartz - After getting carried off the field in a win over the Lions he made no adjustments after halftime and the Patriots dominated the Bills defense giving up points on very possession in the second half.
Player Of The Week
Scott Chandler - Had a fantastic day in a losing effort.
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Positional Breakdown and Grades
