Bills lose to Patriots in battle of backups

FOXBOROUGH, MA (WHEC) – The Buffalo Bills lost to the New England Patriots 23-16 in a game that featured five different quarterbacks.

BREAKING: Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo was fired just over an hour after beating the Bills, according to multiple reports. Mayo was hired after the Patriots and legendary head coach Bill Belichick “mutually parted ways” last offseason. Mayo went 4-13 in his lone season as head coach.

With a loss, the Patriots would have had sole possession of the first overall pick, but instead now occupy the fourth overall pick.

Josh Allen started the game, but played one snap before coming off to rest for the rest of the game. Mitchell Trubisky came in for Allen and in the fourth quarter, Mike White entered the game as Buffalo’s quarterback. The Patriots started Drake Maye but went to Joe Milton after the first drive of the game.

The Patriots struck first with a 13-play, 55-yard drive capped off by Joe Milton’s first NFL touchdown.

To start the second quarter, Trubisky found Ray Davis for a two-yard passing touchdown on fourth down to tie the game. But on New England’s next drive, Milton dropped a 48-yard pass to Kayshon Boutte to give the Patriots the 14-7 lead.

Buffalo kicked a field goal with 4:39 left in the first half and trailed 14-10 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the Bills swung back to take the lead as James Cook scored a one-yard touchdown for his 16th of the season, tying OJ Simpson for the most in a single-season in Bills history.

The Patriots responded by kicking three field goals in the final 16 minutes of play to take the 23-16 win.

FINAL STATS

Bills

Mitchell Trubisky: 15/21, 101 yards, one TD

Mike White: 3/11, 28 yards

Ray Davis: 15 carries for 64 yards, two catches for one yard, one TD

Curtis Samuel: seven catches for 52 yards

Keon Coleman: two catches for 31 yards

PATRIOTS

Joe Milton: 22/29, 241 passing yards, one passing touchdown, one rushing touchdown

Antonio Gibson: 12 carries for 40 yards

Kayshon Boutte: seven catches for 117 yards, one TD

FOURTH QUARTER

-New England kneels it down to clinch the 23-16 win.

-Bills turn the ball over on downs.

-NEW ENGLAND EXTENDS LEAD TO 23-16 AFTER KICKING 50-YARD FIELD GOAL.

-The Bills follow the Patriots’ three-and-out with one of their own, punting the ball away after back-to-back incomplete passes.

-New England punts the ball after a three-and-out with 4:24 left to go.

-The Bills turned the ball over on downs after getting into New England territory. Patriots take over at their own 44-yard line with 5:16 to go.

NEW ENGLAND EXTENDS LEAD TO 20-16 WITH A FIELD GOAL. 8:53 REMAINS IN REGULATION. Joe Milton led the Patriots on an 11-play, 55-yard drive but was called for intentional grounding on 2nd & Goal from the nine-yard line. Joey Slye hit a 42-yard field goal.

-Bills punt to start the fourth quarter after a three-and-out.

THIRD QUARTER

-Buffalo ends the third quarter inside their own territory, putting Mike White in as starting quarterback.

NEW ENGLAND TAKES A 17-16 LEAD WITH 1:04 LEFT IN THE THIRD QUARTER. The Patriots march 12 plays for 54 yards and settle for a 41-yard field goal.

BUFFALO TAKES A 16-14 LEAD WITH 7:56 LEFT IN THE THIRD QUARTER. On a short field, the Bills marched down inside the one-yard line and James Cook rushed for his 16th rushing touchdown of the season, tied for the most for a single-season in Bills history.

-The Patriots took over at their own six-yard line and after a 15-yard run by Antonio Gibson, Joe Milton fumbled at the 17-yard line and the Bills recovered it.

-Buffalo received the opening kickoff of the third quarter and quickly faced a third down before Mitchell Trubisky found Keon Coleman for a 20-yard pickup that put Buffalo in New England territory. The drive stalled inside New England territory.

HALFTIME STATS

BILLS

-Mitchell Trubisky: 12/15, 68 yards, one TD

-Ray Davis: four carries for 39 yards, two catches for one yards, one TD

-James Cook: eight carries for 25 yards, surpassed the 1,000-yard mark

-Mack Hollins: three catches for 25 yards

-Curtis Samuel: four catches for 24 yards

PATRIOTS

-Joe Milton: 12/13, 139 yards, one TD

-Antonio Gibson: eight carries for eight yards

Kayshon Boutte: three catches for 75 yards, one TD

SECOND QUARTER

-Buffalo ran 10 plays for 37 yards, but never got into New England territory and punted as time expired in the first half.

-New England started its drive at the 40-yard line and quickly picked up nine yards, three yards and 14 to get inside the Bills 35-yard line. But two losses of one yard each plus a false start moved the Patriots back to 4th & 17 at the Bills 41-yard line. Instead of kicking a field goal, New England punted and the ball was downed inside Buffalo’s five.

-BILLS CUT DEFICIT, TRAIL 14-10 WITH 4:39 LEFT IN SECOND QUARTER. The Bills took over at their own 30-yard line and got into Patriots territory with a 23-yard blast from Ray Davis. After a holding penalty on the next play, however, the drive stalled and Tyler Bass made a 49-yard field goal to cut the deficit down.

NEW ENGLAND TAKES THE LEAD 14-7 WITH 9:10 LEFT IN THE FIRST HALF. The Patriots lost three yards to start the drive but had back-to-back passes for nine and 14 yards before Milton scrambled right and found Kayshon Boutte for a 48-yard touchdown.

BUFFALO TIES IT 7-7 WITH 12:09 LEFT IN THE FIRST HALF. Mitchell Trubisky finds Ray Davis in the flats for a two-yard passing touchdown.

FIRST QUARTER

-Bills will be on the Patriots seven-yard line to start the second quarter. Mack Hollins has two catches for 25 yards on the drive plus James Cook went over 1,000 yards on the season with 22 yards on the drive.

PATRIOTS TAKE A 7-0 LEAD WITH 4:25 LEFT IN THE FIRST QUARTER. The Patriots followed suit and benched Drake Maye for Joe Milton. Milton picked up 12 yards on his first play with a pass to DeMario Douglas. Two plays later, he found him again for seven yards to convert on third down. New England faced a second third-down, needing 13 yards to convert and came up one yard short with a pass to Kayshon Boutte. Milton picked it up with a QB sneak. New England converted on a third-straight third down with an Antonio Gibson slip pass that went for 11 yards. Milton walked in on the read option to cap the drive off.

-The Bills drive started with a handoff to James Cook from Josh Allen. Allen was then subbed out immediately, ending his day for rest. The Bills ran back-to-back QB sneaks on third and fourth down, both were short of the sticks and the Patriots take over with 11:43 left in the first quarter.

-The Patriots receive the opening kickoff. Von Miller sacks Drake Maye on third down as the Patriots punt. Bills take over with 13:36 left in the first quarter.

PREGAME

Buffalo Bills gameday basics:

  • Teams: Buffalo Bills (13-3) and New England Patriots (3-13)
  • Kickoff: 1 pm, Sunday
  • Location: Gilette Stadium (Foxborough, MA)
  • Network: CBS

What’s at stake?

The Bills have already locked up the two seed in the AFC and can not move up or down in the standings with a win or a loss.

The Patriots currently hold the first overall pick, with a win, they’d likely move back in the draft. With a New England loss, however, the Patriots would secure the number one pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

For the Bills, Josh Allen will start the game to continue his consecutive start streak which stands at 114 games and is the longest active streak for a quarterback in the NFL.

Buffalo Bills player to watch: Damar Hamlin

Bills starting safety Damar Hamlin has not played since week 14 against the Rams and has no injury designation ahead of Sunday’s game against the Patriots, paving the way for his return. Hamlin’s injury is a rib injury.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott discussed the importance of getting players, who have missed time, reps before the postseason.

“[Hamlin’s] gonna play,” McDermott told media Friday. “How much he plays remains to be seen. I do think since he’s been out a significant amount of time, that he gets out there and he plays, he may play the whole game, we’ll see. But it is important that he’s back out there and that he continues to work on some of his communication with [Taylor Rapp].”

In Hamlin’s absence, rookie safety Cole Bishop has filled in.

Injury report

The only Bill listed as “out” on Friday’s injury report was starting linebacker Terrel Bernard who’ suffering from a quad injury. Wide receiver Curtis Samuel is listed as questionable with a rib injury, he has not played since week 15. No other Bill has an injury designation.

The Bills announced on Saturday that wide receiver Amari Cooper will not travel or play with the team because of a personal family matter.

Offensive lineman Will Clapp and Casey Toohill were elevated from the practice squad for Sunday’s game.

Bills inactives

-CB Taron Johnson

-WR Amari Cooper

-LB Terrel Bernard

-CB Christian Benford

-DE Greg Rousseau

-OL Dion Dawkins

-DT Ed Oliver

-DT DaQuan Jones