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Bills Lose Tough One In New England 20-13
Great Defensive Effort Not Enough Against Unbeaten Pats.
by Steve Saslow
The Skinny:
The Bills came up with a solid defensive effort pressuring Tom Brady most of the night but it wasn't enough as they went down to defeat to the undefeated Patriots 20-13 in their horror house knows as the Razor. The two teams traded field goals and it stayed that way until the final minutes of the first half when LeSean McCoy couldn't haul in a pass in the end zone that would have given them a lead. Dan Carpenter missed a 48 yard field goal setting up the Patriots first scoring drive that ended in the first of two touchdowns for RB James White on a 20 yard catch and run. The Bills took their first possession of the second half and drove to their only touchdown as McCoy capped the 56 yard drive with a 27 yard touchdown run to tie it at 10. The Patriots responded with a touchdown drive of their own as White ran it in from 5 yards out. Leodis McKelvin fumbled a punt that setup a Stephen Gostkowski field goal to give the Patriots a 10 point lead. The Bills drove to a late field goal and got the ball back but ran out of time.
The Turning Point:
Deja vu for McKelvin: He was uncomfortable fielding fair catches all day so when he went to return a punt you held your breath. He fumbled one away with the Bills trailing 17-10. The result was a 35 yard field goal that gave the Patriots a 10 point lead at the end of the third quarter which was insurmountable the way the Bills offense was playing.
The Big Drive:
Pats 2nd TD: It was a 64 yard drive in 6 plays and took only 2:10 but the third quarter drive gave the Patriots the lead back and they wouldn't relinquish it. Danny Amendola had a big catch and run thanks to the missed tackle by Duke Williams for 41 yards out to setup the second touchdown of the game from James White on a 5 yard run.
Stat I Did Like:
Points Given Up: They held the Patriots to a season low 20 points.
Stat I Didn't Like:
Points Scored: 13 points will never beat a Tom Brady led team.
Scene Setters:
- The Bills played on Monday Night Football for the first time since 2009. They did play on Monday night last year but it wasn't an official MNF game since it was the snovember game in Detroit. They have not won an official Monday Night Football game since 1999.
- This marked the first back to back primetime games the team has played since 1993.
- A week after wearing red on red for the color rush game they wore white on white uniforms tonight.
- Brady used Rex Ryan as an audible at the line.
Key Matchup Results:
The winners of the battles highlighted in our preview article:
LT Cordy Glenn vs. DE Chandler Jones: Winner: Glenn. He kept Jones at bay most of the game although he had a tackle for loss on Taylor on a third down run.
WR Sammy Watkins vs. CB Malcolm Butler: Winner: Butler. Watkins was barely targeted but when he was Butler was with him.
DEs Mario Williams and Jerry Hughes vs. Patriots Tackles: Winner: Hughes. He was dominant in this game and led the pressure parade against Brady.
CB Stephon Gilmore vs. TE Rob Gronkowski: Winner: Gilmore. It wasn't really him but the Bills kept rotating players on Gronk and they had the most success they ever have had against him.
Keys To The Game Results:
How the keys highlighted in our preview article turned out:
1. Win Turnover Battle: Failure! Each team had one turnover but McKelvin's fumble was the one that hurt the most in a close game.
2. Pressure Brady: Success! They blitzed early and often and hit Brady time and time again but he isn't the greatest QB that ever played for nothing. He was able to get the win despite getting hit 10 times.
3. Establish The Run: Success! They had a big touchdown run by McCoy and kept running the ball with both McCoy and Karlos Williams in the backfield at the same time. They never gave up but had little success besides the one score.
My Take:
Rex Ryan said he had a plan against Brady. Gilmore said they had a plan for Gronkowski. Both were right as they hit Brady early and often while keeping Gronk at bay but as usual the Patriots found a way to win a game at the Razor. The Bills fought hard and had perhaps their best defensive effort of the season but the offense let them down in a big way. The Bills can't wallow with this one, they need to take solace that they gave New England everything they had and use it to gain confidence for what's ahead. Two huge games against teams they are battling with for a playoff spot. If they can win the next two, this loss will be forgotten quickly.
What's Ahead:
The season is on the line the next two weeks. The Bills head to Kansas City to wrap up a three game road trip against a Chiefs team that is flying high with a four game winning streak and tied with the Bills in the wildcard race.
Gameballs
Jerry Hughes - was all over the field, hitting Brady and even finally drew a holding penalty.
Chris Hogan - was the only receiver winning his matchups in this game. He had 6 catches for 95 yards
LeSean McCoy - had 82 yards on 20 carries and the touchdown and added 41 yards receiving on six catches.
Goats
Leodis McKelvin - fumbled a punt that led to a Patriots field goal and then muffed a punt in the final minutes but recovered.
Tyrod Taylor - struggled with his accuracy all game long and could do nothing with his legs. His worst game of the year.
Sammy Watkins - besides one great one handed grab he was a non factor once again.
Player Of The Week
LeSean McCoy - His 121 yards from scrimmage is his third in a row with over 100. First time that has happened for the Bills since 2012.
 Positional Breakdown and Grades
NFL.com Gamebook
Patriots Game Preview
Gameday Homepage
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