Bills squeak by rival Patriots in a chilly thriller at Highmark Stadium

Far from pretty, and nowhere near perfect, the Buffalo Bills managed to improve their record to 12-3 and maintain their hopes for the 1 seed in the AFC, and all but secure the 2 seed.

Dec 22, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills running back James Cook (4) uses blockers to gain yards against the New England Patriots in the third quarter at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images / Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

It's been said that it's better to win ugly than to lose ugly. The Buffalo Bills tested that theory to the best of their abilities today, as they managed to grind out a win against the New England Patriots, 24-21. It was a tough day for the Bills as all three phases took turns struggling throughout this game. In the end, all that's needed is a win, and that's what the Bills were able to do.

Below we'll take a look at the most "inspired" (if it can be called that) part of today's game, the performance that left us inquiring, the part of the team that requires a better performance moving forward, and the part of the team that delivered the most irksome performance.

Inspire-Not letting it get away:

Dec 22, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills linebacker Dorian Williams (42) tries to strip the ball from New England Patriots running back Antonio Gibson (4) in the second quarter at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images / Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

After a tough start, it looked like the Bills were in for a potential upset. But looks can be deceiving, as the Bills managed to rally back from being down 14-0 and take advantage of New England’s inexperienced roster and coaching staff. A well executed game script got the Patriots out to their early lead, but once halftime came and went, the Bills attacked the ball, earning two turnovers off a fumble of Rhomandre Stevenson, and a red zone INT courtesy of Cam Lewis. The offense, led largely by James Cook, managed to do just enough to essentially play keep away from the Patriots and score enough points to maintain a lead against them in the 4th quarter. It wasn’t easy, it wasn’t pleasant but the Bills did enough to not fully fall into the trap game against the Patriots. While the performance itself is not all that inspiring, to say the least, the Bills did what they should have done, and that's winning the game.

Inquire-Passing offense:

Dec 22, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) looks downfield to throw while avoiding New England Patriots safety Brenden Schooler (41) in the second quarter at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images / Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

After two weeks of absolutely superb, borderline flawless offense, the Bills’ passing offense looked listless at best. Everything seemed difficult for the Bills’ passing game today, receivers weren’t getting open, timing and rhythm wasn’t there all day, and everything felt very sporadic and random. After two straight weeks of being an unstoppable forced the Bills met the easily movable object in the Patriots defense, and somehow managed to to get stopped. So what changed? Were Joe Brady and the coaching staff keeping things simple against an opponent they felt they were immensely superior to? Was there something the Patriots were doing that flummoxed the Bills’ passing game? Was it simply a lack of execution? Whatever it was, the Bills need to figure out what happened, move on, and get ready for a game next week against the Jets.

Require-Special Teams:

Dec 22, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills wide receiver Mack Hollins (13) runs between New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Jones (31) and safety Marte Mapu (15) in the second quarter at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images / Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Another week, and another special teams problem. While not quite so major as the blocked punt against the Rams from a few weeks ago, giving up a 4th down fake punt on what is essentially just a power concept, and it seems at no point the Bills ever considered the Patriots would attempt something like this. There’s maybe something to be said about the Bills assuming that Mayo would take the most conservative approach possible, as he has for most of the sssson, but that in itself shouldn’t lull you into a sense of vulnerability and leave you caught with your pants down. The Bills special teams, particularly their coverage units, have been a weak point all season, and have gotten progressively worse since Matthew Smiley has taken over as the coordinator in 2022. While a move wong, and shouldn’t, be made this season, it’s tough to even wonder why Smiley has maintained his role as the special teams coordinator for this long. However this season goes for the Bills, Matthew Smiley’s replacement should be near the top of the list in terms of moves to make during the offseason.

Irk-Defensive Line:

Dec 22, 2024; Orchard Park, New York, USA; New England Patriots quarterack Drake Maye (10) runs with the ball against the Buffalo Bills during the first half at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

It’s been an extremely disappointing season from the Bills’ defensive line, as they struggle to shed blocks, and maintain a consistent level of performance week to week. While the Bills defense was certainly missing numerous players in the secondary and at linebacker, the defensive line was not missing talent and had a fairly weak opponent in front of them to bully into submission. Instead, it was another week of the same performance from the defensive line: pressures, with only one sack; disruption, but only a pair of TFLs to account for it; plenty of displacement made by an offensive line that hasn’t done anything close to that for most of the season. All in all, it's another disappointing performance from the Bills’ defensive line. When one part of the defense struggles, or has guys down, as the Bills did in the secondary, it’s up to another part of the team to help them, to pick up the slack. While you cannot completely replace what comes from having three fifths of your secondary out, there should still be something that your defensive line, which has a lot of assets put into it, can do to help mitigate the losses. We’ve seen this unit play well against tough opponents like the Chiefs and the lions, yet seem largely uninvolved against other teams that they should be able to maintain strong control against. 

What's next for the Bills?

The Bills will stay at home and take on the New York Jets at 1PM. The Bills are likely hoping to get some players on defense back to health as they take on a decidedly dysfunctional Jets team, but if they can't get players like Rasul Douglas, Taylor Rapp, Damar Hamlin, and Matt Milano back in the lineup, then next week's game will likely feel a little bit like deja vu.