‘Things couldn’t have changed much more over the past year for the Buffalo Bills or the New England Patriots. Almost a year to the day after their last visit to Orchard Park, the Patriots come into Sunday’s renewal of a rivalry that dates to 1960 as one of the National Football League’s hottest teams. The Bills, meanwhile, are just trying to salvage something, anything from one of the worst seasons in franchise history (and if you count last week’s crawl-back against equally pitiful Carolina as ‘something,’ may you find a “Best of Joe Dufek” videotape under your tree). Last year, Buffalo hosted New England just one week removed from playoff contention, while the Patriots were hoping to tack their fifth win on to a season nearly as dreadful as this one has turned out for the Bills. That game turned into the Snow Globe Bowl, a 13-10 New England win in overtime played under conditions better suited for an Antarctic expedition. Coming into this year, few predicted the speed and angle of Buffalo’s demise. Even fewer expected New England to compete for anything higher than fourth place in the AFC East. And that was before Drew Bledsoe got hurt.’