NFL Power Rankings: Buffalo Bills Slide After Loss to New England Patriots

How far did the Buffalo Bills fall after their loss to the New England Patriots?

For the second time in as many weeks, the Buffalo Bills were a defensive stop away a win. Only this time, they were unable to get the job done, as Mac Jones orchestrated a game-winning drive to hand the Bills a 29-25 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday at Gillette Stadium. 

With Bills' second loss in three games, they dropped from No. 7 to No. 10 in Sports Illustrated's Power Rankings. 

"I knocked the Bills for this loss, but I am less aghast by it than others (perhaps because I am the doofus who picked the Patriots to win the AFC East)," SI writes. "Bill Belichick is always going to pick off a few wins against divisional opponents during the year. Buffalo, though, tackled poorly, they allowed themselves to get corralled defensively and they gave Mac Jones a chance to get comfortable, which few teams have done this year. It’s proof that any team can lose, but certainly, the Bills are deciding to go through their slump right now. This is a loss they would like to have back." 

Dalton Kincaid had the best performance of his career against the New England Patriots / © Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sport

On a whim, losing to a Bill Belichick-coached Patriots team even after their horrid start to the season isn't the end of the world. The Bills putting themselves in a position to come back after trailing 22-10 with 7:40 left in the game shows no lead is insurmountable when Josh Allen and the offense finally get going.

Rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid's performance was also a silver lining, as he had eight catches for 75 yards. 

But when you dig deeper into the Bills performance, it was a third straight week where they got off to a slow start and struggled to run the ball. Because of that, Buffalo has gone 1-2 in its last three games and look like a shell of the team that blew out the Las Vegas Raiders, Washington Commanders and Miami Dolphins in three consecutive weeks. 

If the Bills are going to remain among the AFC’s elite, they need to right the ship and return to their dominant form that had them looking like a bonafide Super Bowl contender.

Buffalo has a short week as they face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-3) on Thursday Night Football at Highmark Stadium at 8:15 p.m. ET.