Two Bills Drive

‘The defense, however, rebounded from its tough start to record takeaways on three straight New England drives in the second half. The last of those went for a touchdown that provided some much-needed breathing room against the Patriots (3-12), who played tougher than their record.’

‘Let Jimbo cook more often. Let Jimbo shake and sprint to the end zone. Let Jimbo gash through and dash by opponents. Let Jimbo run so Allen won’t have to as much on designed keepers.’

‘“Yeah, I mean, it took a good five to 10 minutes, so just making sure, trying to get some blood flow back in there, some activation,” Allen said. “When it’s cold like that, too, the more you leave it out, the number the whole hand gets. So, it was a weird feeling. Just glad it’s gone now.”’

‘New England rushed 17 times for 80 yards, a 4.7-yard average in the first half. The Patriots are not a dominant running team. They held the ball for 20:20 in the first half. The Bills are staring at potential playoff games against power running teams Baltimore or Pittsburgh. The Ravens, of course, destroyed the Bills on the ground back in Week 4.’

‘The Patriots, with rookie quarterback Drake Maye, rolled up 238 first-half yards and converted five of their first six third-down opportunities. When New England made it 14-0, it was the sixth consecutive touchdown drive by a Bills opponent. Six! The Patriots’ 16-play drive was tied for the longest allowed by the Bills this season, the 91 yards third longest and the 9:57 time of possession the longest. In the second half, though, the Patriots were held to 131 yards.’

‘“I got cut-blocked, so I knew it was a screen,” Rousseau said, referring to a low block from tackle Demontrey Jacobs that he avoided. “I went straight to the running back and got a hit on him. I should have recovered it, but Taron got it.”’