The 3-11 New England Patriots they put together their best half of the season, leading 14-7 at halftime against 11-3 Buffalo Bills.
Then disaster struck.
After three straight turnovers, a team that quickly became 3-12 Patriots let the game slip away. Meanwhile, the 12-3 Bills exited having come through little more than a speed bump.
What happened in Sunday’s game in Buffalo? Here are my observations immediately afterward. FINAL SCORE: Bills 24 – Patriots 21
— Ouch. The Patriots played their best half of the season and immediately let the lead slip away in the second half. Leading 14-7, New England did little to slow Buffalo’s start to the half.
— Double woe. New England turned him over on his first drive while Rhamondre Stevenson coughed it up.
— It didn’t escape notice that Stevenson remained on the sidelines for much of the ensuing drive. This was his seventh shutout of the season. He had just six in his first three seasons combined.
— Triple woe. Drake Maye threw an ugly interception in the end zone, throwing a pass well short of Austin Hooper, who fell on the play.
— That’s seven games in a row with an interception for Maye. This is the longest active streak in the NFL.
— Quadruple ouch. Things completely fell apart when Maye tried to make an easy pass to Stevenson in the backfield. Instead, the ball went backwards and out of Stevenson’s hands. The Bills bounced back, recovering in the end zone for an easy defensive touchdown.
— Turnovers are a problem. However, Maye can make some crazy throws. Move to his right and shooting deep down the middle, this kid can shoot some laser beams.
— If you’re ever sitting there wondering, “Wow, why did Maye throw it away so fast? Why didn’t she have time in her pocket?” I’d like to point the blame squarely at right tackle Demontrey Jacobs, who had a positively terrible game, especially against veteran pass rusher Von Miller.
— The Patriots had some bad breaks with turnovers. The Bills bounced back with some luck. Buffalo coughed it up twice on the same drive early in the fourth quarter and made it up both times. Sometimes that’s what happens with fumbles.
— That Stevenson fullback was close. That pass interception on Hooper was a weird play. We’ll see if those are issues New England can solve with their rookie quarterback.
— Maye then hit Hooper for a big gain in the fourth quarter. But the rookie had his hands over his head after the tight end made a big throw. He appeared to regret throwing a high-risk pass with a defender pulling down.
— The New England coaching staff has been reluctant to call Maye designed runs all year. But with a chance for a big win on the line, Maye took the ball on multiple QB rushes and carries. It’s clear they were digging into their playbook to try and make this work.
— Even with the third-quarter disaster, the Patriots made it a game in the final minutes. A long, ugly drive in the fourth quarter ended with Maye finding Hunter Henry in the red zone. The offense wasted a lot of time in the process. But the unit was converted.
— To be honest, that’s what the Patriots are after right now. Things worked, but need polishing.
— There was a world where the Patriots did enough to win this game. It wasn’t there that they gave him three turns, including that brutal lateral play.
— The Patriots have a run defense problem. James Cook’s first three carries were 75 yards. This is not a good way to make your dreams come true. Things didn’t get much better.
— CBS’ Ian Eagle summed it up simply after a James Cook haul. “They can’t stop him.”
— That’s not what you want to hear from the man play by play in a game.
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