Patriots Rally Past Bills 29-26, Handing Buffalo First Loss at New Stadium

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y., Oct. 4 (TodayViralUSA) — Drake Maye threw three touchdown passes, the last a one-handed 23-yard grab by Efton Chism III with 1:50 remaining, as the New England Patriots beat the Buffalo Bills 29-26 on Sunday, ending Buffalo’s unbeaten start and handing the Bills their first loss at the new Highmark Stadium.

The win lifted the Patriots to 2-2 and moved them within one game of the Bills (3-1) in the AFC East. It was also Buffalo’s first defeat under head coach Joe Brady.

Maye completed 22 of 37 passes for 269 yards, with one interception and a lost fumble, and added 54 rushing yards on eight carries, ESPN reported. He had entered the game with one touchdown pass and six interceptions this season. New England’s 29 offensive points equaled its combined total from its first three games, according to the Associated Press.

Late drive decides it

Buffalo went ahead 26-21 in the fourth quarter on Josh Allen’s 34-yard touchdown pass to Keon Coleman. Maye responded with an eight-play, 73-yard drive. On third-and-5, he rolled to his right and lofted a pass that Chism, a second-year receiver who made the team as an undrafted free agent from Eastern Washington, secured with his right hand as he fell.

Chism was playing an expanded role, with No. 1 receiver A.J. Brown out with a high ankle sprain and Mack Hollins leaving in the third quarter with a calf injury. Romeo Doubs caught touchdown passes of 2 and 14 yards, and Rhamondre Stevenson scored on a 1-yard run.

Buffalo got the ball back at its own 40 with about a minute left. Allen spun away from a sack attempt and threw deep, but safety Craig Woodson intercepted the underthrown pass. Allen said afterward he should have thrown the ball out of bounds. Maye then found Hunter Henry for 12 yards, allowing New England to run out the clock.

Reaction from both sidelines

Patriots coach Mike Vrabel said the result put his team “back in the race” and that Maye had matched Allen “toe to toe.” Vrabel awarded game balls to Maye, Woodson, Doubs and Chism, according to ESPN. Maye called the victory “relieving a little bit” and said the team needed to build on it.

Allen finished 23 of 33 for 253 yards and a touchdown and scored on a 2-yard run, while James Cook added an 8-yard touchdown run. Allen’s rushing score was the 88th touchdown from scrimmage of his career, breaking a franchise record shared by Hall of Famers Thurman Thomas and Andre Reed, the AP reported.

The Bills committed two turnovers, including a lost fumble by Khalil Shakir, a week after giving the ball away five times in a 24-16 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. Receiver DJ Moore left late in the first half with a shoulder injury, defensive tackle Ed Oliver was sidelined by a knee injury, and top cornerback Christian Benford was already out with a toe injury.

Brady said his team would not make excuses and that the work of cleaning up mistakes would start with him.