Patriots-Bills Live Blog: Pats Now 10-0 After 20-13 Win Over Buffalo
Final -- Patriots 20, Bills 13:
Taylor hit Watkins for a pass along the sidelines, but he didn't get out of bounds to stop the clock and the game comes to an end. The Patriots improve to 10-0 on the season!
Tom Brady was under pressure for most of the night, completing 20 of his 39 passes for 277 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Running back James White scored both of New England's touchdowns, the first two of his career, doing so with one receiving and one rushing score.
Danny Amendola led the way with nine receptions for 117 yards, but left in the fourth quarter with a knee injury and did not return.
We certainly have a lot to talk about from this one, from inadvertent whistles to some more injury concerns for New England. Stick with CBSBostonsports.com for continuing coverage, tune in to 98. The Sports Hub for three hours of postgame coverage or myTV38 for Bill Belichick and Tom Brady's press conferences on Patriots 5th Quarter.
4th Quarter, 00:31: Taylor was hit by Ninkovich and fumbled, but Buffalo recovered.
4th Quarter, 00:40: Taylor went over the middle for McCoy, who dropped the pass. Probably a good thing, as Buffalo doesn't have anymore timeouts and McCoy was going to get brought down at midfield.
4th Quarter, 00:46: It's not over yet. Watkins got a knee and his elbow down before rolling out of bounds, so Buffalo has a new set of down at their own 40.
4th Quarter, 00:46: Taylor went looking for Watkins, but his throw was low and Watkins hauled it in as he rolled out of bounds. The official called it incomplete, but are taking another look at it.
4th Quarter, 00:50: On 3rd-and-6, Taylor was nearly picked by Malcolm Butler on a pass that flew over the head of Sammy Watkins. This is it for the Bills.
4th Quarter, 00:57: Chung nearly picked off Taylor on a 2nd-and-6. He jumped in front of a pass for Woods, and just couldn't come down with it.
4th Quarter, 1:09: After a lengthy review, the officials brought a Robert Woods reception back a yard. Yep, a full yard.
The next play, Taylor scrambled for three yards, a first down and stopped the clock.
4th Quarter, 1:51: McKelvin bobbled the punt, but was fortunate to fall on it at the Buffalo 15.
The Bills apparently don't have any headsets right now. Maybe Rex threw all of them?
4th Quarter, 2:00: Blount couldn't get enough for the first down, so the Patriots will be forced to punt when we get back from the 2-minute warning.
4th Quarter, 3:05: Blount picks up a couple more yards as the clock continues to tick, as the Pats will face a 3rd-and-3.
The Bills only had 10 players on the field for that play. Never change, Buffalo. Never change.
4th Quarter, 3:20: Blount rushes for five yards on first down, causing the Bills to burn their final timeout.
4th Quarter, 3:30 -- Patriots 20, Bills 13: Taylor went looking for Chris Gragg on 3rd-and-10 from the New England 15, but the pass fell incomplete with Logan Ryan defending the receiver.
That set up a 33-yarder from Dan Carpenter to pull the Bills within a touchdown, but time is running out for Rex and Company.
4th Quarter, 7:01: Butler has done a nice job on Watkins all night, but the receiver just brought in a one-handed grab for a 17-yard pickup. It gives Buffalo a fresh set of downs at their own 45, but Watkins is now being looked at on the sidelines.
4th Quarter, 7:25: Dont'a Hightower is just an incredible linebacker. He chased down Taylor and threw the QB out of bounds after a five-yard pickup on first down.
4th Quarter, 7:47: Tom Brady just took another shot, this one from Jerry Hughes who just blew by Marcus Cannon. Brady isn't getting much help from his offensive line, as Bryan Stork was called for a hold on a nice Blount run the play before.
Brady took a few seconds to get up from the Hughes hit, and he'll be feeling this one all week.
The Pats were forced to punt it away again, giving Buffalo the ball at their own 25.
4th Quarter, 9:56: LeGarrette Blount hasn't done much tonight, but just broke off a 17-yard run on New England's first play of the drive.
4th Quarter, 10:43: Facing a 3rd-and-short, the Bills tried to give it to Karlos Williams to move the chains. Instead, he was stuffed by Patrick Chung at the line and the Bills had to punt it away again.
Kind of shocking that Rex Ryan didn't go for it on 4th-and-short near midfield, but that's Rex for you.
4th Quarter, 12:01: Malcolm Butler has done a great job on Sammy Watkins, keeping Buffalo's No. 1 receiver off the stat sheet for most of the night, but he was just flagged for PI to give the Bills a fresh set of down at their own 39.
4th Quarter, 13:22: Tom Brady just made a terrible decision, forcing a deep ball to Chris Harper. Harper was covered, and the ball was tipped to Stephon Gilmore for an easy interception.
Brady had plenty of time, he just forced a throw he shouldn't have. Not a good play with a 10 point lead.
Buffalo now takes over at their own six-yard line.
4th Quarter, 14:09: Rob Gronkowski has been pretty quiet all night, but Brady just hit him with a nice 27-yard pass along the sidelines to set the Pats up at the Buffalo 47.
4th Quarter, 14:52: Taylor went scrambling, and the Patriots defensive line was waiting.
Dominique Easley and Rob Ninkovich wrapped up Taylor on third down, forcing yet another Buffalo 3-and-out.
With Amendola sidelined, Chris Harper took the punt from the Bills. He called for a fair catch at the New England 28.
End 3rd Quarter -- Patriots 20, Bills 10: The third quarter comes to an end with Taylor hitting McCoy for a five-yard pickup. The Bills will face a 3rd-and-4 at their own 26-yard line when play resumes.
3rd Quarter, 00:47 -- Patriots 20, Bills 10: The Patriots don't make much of the short field, and settle for a 35-yard field goal from Gostkowski.
And Josie is already playing at Gillette. Seems a little early, but maybe the fans are cold.
3rd Quarter, 2:37: A wild Leodis McKelvin fumble on a punt return gives the Patriots the ball on the Buffalo 30. It's the second most entertaining fumble McKelvin has made at Gillette.
Jordan Richards caused the initial fumble, which was picked up by Jonathan Freeny. He then fumbled after taking a few steps, but the ball rolled out of bounds before Buffalo could pick it up.
While that's great news, the bad news is Danny Amendola is questionable to return with a knee injury.
3rd Quarter, 3:41: Facing a 3rd-and-5, Brady went deep down the middle of the field for Chris Harper, who hauled in a nice 27-yard catch. But it was all for nothing, as Marcus Cannon was flagged for a hold. It's Cannon's second penalty of the night.
3rd Quarter, 4:26: There is some concern as the Patriots offense takes the field without Danny Amendola, who is being looked at on the sideline. Pats' trainers are checking out his knee.
3rd Quarter, 4:57: After their offense puts points on the board, the Patriots defense forces their second straight 3-and-out.
Rob Ninkovich was all over Taylor as he scrambled out of the pocket on 3rd-and-11, forcing the QB to throw it over the head of Charles Clay along the sideline.
3rd Quarter, 5:55: No review of the touchdown, it was just a chat to determine the Bills were offsides. Rough night for the officials...
Either way, the Patriots take a 17-10 lead on White's touchdown. It's his first career rushing touchdown.
3rd Quarter, 5:55: And before anyone could catch their breathe, the Patriots go hurry-up and James White takes it in from six yards out to put the Patriots back on top.
The touchdown is under review at the moment.
3rd Quarter, 6:13: Another big play from Brady-to-Amendola, as Danny took a short pass 41 yards down to the Buffalo 6.
3rd Quarter, 7:34: Amendola picked up nine yards on a nice completion from Brady, coming up just shy of the first down mark.
Baccari Rambo came up lame with what looks like a shoulder injury after tackling Amendola. He had been doing a lot of talking throughout the game, mostly aimed at No. 12.
3rd Quarter, 8:40: The Bills go three-and-out as well thanks to Chandler Jones, who hit Tyrod Taylor for a key third down stop. It did not go in the books as a sack, as Taylor was out of the pocket.
Amendola took Buffalo's punt 21 yards to the New England 36. It's time for Brady to put some more points on the board.
3rd Quarter, 9:38: Facing 3rd-and-5, Tom Brady felt more pressure and went deep downfield to Brandon LaFell. He nearly had him, but Stephon Gilmore made an incredible play to bat it away.
It's another 3-and-out for the Patriots. Brady went incomplete to Gronk on first down, who has just one catch on four targets, and Blount could only pick up five yards on a 2nd down run.
The Bills will take over on their own 35 following another Ryan Allen punt.
3rd Quarter, 10:40 -- Patriots 10, Bills 10: The call stands and it's a game-tying touchdown for McCoy.
It goes down as a five-play drive that covered 56 yards in 2:06, and knots this one up at 10 apiece.
3rd Quarter, 10:40: A 27-yard touchdown run by LeSean McCoy, that wasn't ruled a touchdown until the refs discussed the play, is now under review.
Devin McCourty wrapped McCoy up as he was nearing the end zone, but it looks like the tip of the ball hit the pylon before his elbow hit the ground.
The zebras have to make sure they get this one right, but it looks like it will go as six points for Buffalo.
3rd Quarter, 12:39: A Blount 4-yard run sandwiched between a pair of incomplete passes led to a Gostkowski attempt from 54-yards. But we're calling it an attempt for a reason, as it was the kicker's first miss of the year.
So we stay at 10-3 after the Patriots' first possession of the half. There's no telling what Danny Amendola would have done on the play that was whistled dead, but the officials just stole points from New England.
A nine-month investigation by the league will figure out what happened though, right?
3rd Quarter, 13:54: It's being called an inadvertent whistle, so the Patriots will get the ball where Amendola made the catch -- the Buffalo 40.
The Bills bench was also hit with a 15-yard penalty. Somehow, the zebras are getting off with just a healthy serving of boos from the Gillette crowd.
3rd Quarter, 13:54: The officials just cost the Patriots a 1st down, and maybe much more.
Brady scrambled to his right, and just before he delivered a pass to Amendola that would have netted them a first down -- and possibly a lengthy touchdown -- someone blew a whistle. They must have thought Brady stepped out of bounds, even though he was about three feet away from the white chalk.
Just the NFL being the NFL.
Halftime -- Patriots 10, Bills 3
It hasn't been pretty, but the Patriots take a lead into the locker room thanks to a late touchdown connection by Brady to James White. They'll also have the ball to start the second half.
The Patriots turned a missed Buffalo field goal into seven points with a six-play drive that covered 62 yards in 33 seconds. That's pretty much it for the New England offense so far in this one. Brady has been pressured by the Buffalo defensive line, getting hit seven times and sacked once. He is 12-for-22 for 160 yards, with Danny Amendola hauling in five of those passes for 47 yards.
We'll see what Bill Belichick has up his sleeves for the second half, but he can't be happy heading into the locker room after the first 30 minutes.
2nd Quarter, 00:13 -- Patriots 10, Bills 3: Buffalo sent another blitz at Brady, and this time he made them pay.
Brady went short to James White, who slipped Cory Graham at the 12-yard line and scampered into the end zone for the first touchdown of the evening. It'll go into the books as a 20-yard TD connection from Brady to White, the running back's first career score.
Rex Ryan wasn't very pleased, throwing his headset to the ground and firing off a few words we can't type.
2nd Quarter, 00:19: Brady throws another one into the ground as he feels the pressure from the Buffalo line. The Gillette turf is taking a beating tonight, as is Brady.
2nd Quarter, 00:27: The ball never hit the ground but the refs took a good two minutes to figure that out. What's a few extra minutes added to an already late night, right?
2nd Quarter, 00:27: Brady hits LaFell for 24 yards over the middle down to the Buffalo 20, and the Patriots offense is in business.
The catch is currently under review. LaFell definitely bobbled it a little bit, but the ball never hit the ground.
2nd Quarter, 00:33: An 18-yard connection with Danny Amendola has Brady and the Patriots at the Buffalo 44.
2nd Quarter, 00:46: And the goal post just saved three points for the Patriots, as Carpenter's 48-yard attempt is no good.
That sets Brady up at their own 38.
2nd Quarter, 00:51: Devin McCourty just saved a touchdown, knocking the ball out of McCoy's hands as he came down with a deep pass from Taylor in the end zone.
2nd Quarter, 2:00: Someone blew an assignment, because Chris Hogan was wide open to haul in a 31-yard pass from Taylor to move the chains on 3rd-and-4. The long connection has Buffalo set up at the New England 45 when we return from the two-minute warning.
It was Malcolm Butler who got crossed with Tavon Wilson on the coverage. That one might come back to haunt the Pats, and will likely lead to some laps for Butler later this week.
2nd Quarter, 2:49: Aaron Dobson is questionable to return for the Patriots.
2nd Quarter, 3:41: The Bills are making life tough on Tom Brady, who isn't getting much help from his offensive line. Not even a Sebastian Vollmer hold could keep Manny Lawson from getting to Brady on a 3rd-and-6, forcing another New England punt.
It was just the first sack of the night for the Bills, but they've hit Brady three additional times and forced him to make quick passes a few others.
2nd Quarter, 5:05: Aaron Dobson just made a nice grab in traffic for a 17-yard pickup, but is limping off the field with help from the New England training staff.
The catch moved the chains for the Patriots, who have a first down at their own 42-yard line. Chris Harper may see some action very soon.
2nd Quarter, 6:28: If you blinked, you missed the Bills' latest possession.
After a New England 3-and-out, the Bills do the same thing. A pair of McCoy rushes gained just three yards, and Buffalo was forced to punt after Taylor couldn't connect with Woods.
Brady & Co. will take over at their own 13-yard line when action resumes.
2nd Quarter, 8:25: Tom Brady just handed off on 3rd-and-10. What is going on here?
James White picked up eight yards on that third down handoff, but it wasn't enough and the Pats were forced to punt away for the second straight possession.
The Pats essentially gave that possession back to Buffalo. Brady is not pleased on the sidelines right now.
2nd Quarter, 9:27 -- Patriots 3, Bills 3: Tyrod Taylor had Chris Hogan deep, but underthrew his receiver on 3rd-and-4 and Buffalo had to settle for a 52-yard field goal from Dan Carpenter.
Hogan had Patrick Chung beat, but Taylor's underthrow bounced off the receivers hands and nearly landed in the hands of Logan Ryan.
2nd Quarter, 12:19: Karlos Williams just coughed one up at midfield, but was able to recover before a Patriots' player pounced on it.
2nd Quarter, 12:58: Jabaal Sheard just put a licking on Taylor, but he got his pass off in time to connect with McCoy for eight yards and another Buffalo first down.
2nd Quarter, 13:15: Buffalo right guard John Miller is being carted off the field after his leg was rolled up on by Dont'a Hightower. Both Buffalo and New England players gave him pats on the shoulder before he left the field.
2nd Quarter, 14:18: Tyrod Taylor just pulled off a great Houdini impression, escaping the grasp's of Chandler Jones to complete an 18-yard pass to Woods. It's a pretty big play, considering it came on 3rd-and-8.
End 1st Quarter -- Patriots 3, Bills 0: The first quarter ends with just a New England field goal on the scoreboard.
The Pats had four first downs in the first frame, with the Bills getting three of them -- all on one drive. The Pats have had the ball for 7:57 to Buffalo's 7:03.
1st Quarter, 0:03: The Bills sent the kitchen sink at Brady on a 3rd-and-9, and he had to throw it away before Aaron Dobson could get open down the field.
Buffalo's pressure is having some success in making Brady throw before he wants to. The Pats had to punt it away, and Buffalo will take over at their own 15 with a few ticks remaining in the first quarter.
Needless to say, Tom Brady was a little miffed as he walked off the field.
1st Quarter, 1:41: With the drive starting at their own 26-yard line, Brady hit Brandon LaFell with a slant, and LaFell took it 28 yards into Buffalo territory.
1st Quarter, 2:14: The Bills love their penalties.
An illegal formation on Seantral Henderson whipped out a Tyrod Taylor scramble on 3rd-and-3 that would have moved the chains. Instead, Taylor couldn't connect to Woods on 3rd-and-8 and the Bills were forced to punt it away. They had picked up three first downs on the drive before it stalled.
Two Buffalo penalties have cost them 19 yards, and another cost them an interception.
1st Quarter, 7:29 -- Patriots 3, Bills 0: The Patriots had a nice drive going, thanks to some costly penalties by the Bills, but settle for a 35-yard field goal off the foot of Stephen Gostkowski. The Pats' kicker is now up to 31 straight field goals.
Brady was pressured heavily throughout the drive, so the offensive line will have to do a better job protecting their quarterback. Brady was 4-for-6 on the drive for 38 yards. Blount managed just seven rushing yards on four carries.
1st Quarter, 8:55: Brady was hit again, and couldn't hook up with Aaron Dobson on another 3rd down pass, but a Buffalo PI keeps the drive alive.
Lots of laundry on the field to start this one.
1st Quarter, 9:47: Brady steps up and takes a hit on 3rd-and-7 , but delivers a beautiful pass to Danny Amendola for 11 yards to move the chains.
Brady also took a shot the play before when the two penalties canceled out a Buffalo interception, so the Bills are taking aim at Brady early in this one.
1st Quarter, 10:28: Brady was picked off by safety Baccari Rambo, but offsetting penalties canceled it out. Phew.
1st Quarter, 10:59: Just four plays into the Patriots first possession and they've already been flagged for a pair of false starts. First it was David Andrews and a few plays later Marcus Cannon was flagged.
1st Quarter, 12:25: Brady just called out "Rex Ryan" at the line. Much better call at the line than "Omaha."
1st Quarter, 13:25: Rookie Malcom Brown brings some pressure on Tyrod Taylor and forces the QB to throw incomplete to Robert Woods over the middle.
1st Quarter, 13:59: We have a Jerod Mayo sighting, as the veteran linebacker hit LeSean McCoy for a loss on a 2nd-and-1 run. This came after McCoy picked up nine yards on a 1st down pass from Tyrod Taylor.
1st Quarter -- 15:00: The Patriots won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. Let the conspiracy theories begin again.
Pregame 8:25pm: Just ahead of the National Anthem, the Patriots held a moment of silence for Ezra Schwartz, a Sharon native and life-long Patriots fan who was killed last week in a terrorist attack in Israel.
Pregame 8:20pm: It's almost time for kickoff, and the players probably can't wait to get moving in this one.
The temperature just ahead of game time is 29 degrees with a 21 degree wind chill.
Yep, it's November in New England.
Pregame 7:52pm: Talking with Scott Zolak on 98.5 The Sports Hub, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick just said that Patrick Chung will be covering Charles Clay this evening.
Chung has played very well this season, so he should be up to the challenge that goes with covering Buffalo's talented and versatile tight end.
Over on the offensive line, Marcus Cannon was the left tackle in warmups. Sebastian Vollmer was subbing in for starter Cam Fleming at right tackle.
Pregame 7:39pm: Chris Harper is out there with Danny Amendola fielding punt returns in warmups.
Pregame 7:04pm: The Patriots' inactives are out, but it's much more important who isn't on the list tonight.
Tom Brady will get a pair of his tackles back in Sebastian Vollmer and Marcus Cannon. Vollmer had taken over at left tackle for the injured Nate Solder-Cannon combo, so we'll see who is protecting Brady's blindside when this one kicks off.
Receiver Aaron Dobson is also active after he was added to the injury report this morning with a back injury. Instead, receiver Keshawn Martin will sit this one out. Receiver Chris Harper is also active, so we'll see if the preseason standout can get involved in the offense.
Pregame 6:43pm: The Patriots and Bills are gearing up for a chilly Monday Night Football showdown at Gillette Stadium tonight, as New England looks to improve to 10-0 on the season.
Things are much different for the Patriots this time around against the Bills, having lost Julian Edelman and Dion Lewis since their Week 2 win in Buffalo. It'll be interesting to see what game plan the New England offense brings tonight, given they had Tom Brady drop back 61 times and throw 59 passes back in Week 2. Without Edelman and Lewis to haul in those passes (they were targeted a combined 28 times on September 20) we'll see if the Buffalo pass rush can make Brady feel some pressure this time around. Rob Gronkowski will likely be double-teamed (potentially triple-teamed), so Brady will have to rely heavily on the likes of Danny Amendola, Brandon LaFell and Scott Chandler.
We'll also know soon enough if Aaron Dobson will be able to suit up. Dobson was a late addition to the injury report this morning with a bad back, and if he can't go, preseason standout Chris Harper will likely slide in and take his snaps.
While it won't be a 50-50 split between the pass and run, LeGarrette Blount could be in for a busy night. It's going to be the coldest game of the season for the Patriots, so who better to carry the load than their big running back? It's hard enough to bring Blount down, but it gets even more difficult when the temperature gets down into the 20s and 30s. And the Bills have struggled a bit against the run their last four games, with each of their opponents hitting the century mark on the ground.
Rex Ryan and his Bills are coming in a confident but desperate bunch, winners of two straight and in need of victories to cement themselves in the AFC playoff race. Rex has made this week personal, feeling he and his team have been disrespected by the New England media and fans. That disrespect card can do funny things as far as motivating a desperate team. Look for them to try to get LeSean McCoy going, as he's rushed for 100 yards in each of his last two games -- both Buffalo wins.
But it's hard to imagine a team coming in and beat the Patriots in their house on National TV. This will be the third time the Patriots and Bills meet on Monday Night Football, with the Patriots winning the previous two: A 27-14 win in 1995 and 25-24 win in 2009.
Bill Belichick is 16-10 all-time on Monday nights and 15-7 with New England. Brady is 13-6 in his Monday Night Football appearances, and has the third-most touchdown passes with 43 -- behind just Brett Favre (69) and Dan Marino (74).
Patriots fans are pretty fired up for this one, and not just for the game that will be played on the field. This is the first time the Patriots will be on ESPN this season, giving their faithful fans to take some shots at the network and their coverage of the whole DeflateGate mess.
Stick with us throughout the night for all the updates from Gillette Stadium, as the Patriots look to remain perfect on the season. Following the game, stay tuned to 98.5 The Sports Hub for three full hours of postgame coverage, or switch over to myTV38 for Bill Belichick and Tom Brady's press conferences on Patriots 5th Quarter.
