Patriots vs. Bills final score, highlights, NFL Week 4 game recap

After suffering the worst loss of the Mike Vrabel era, the New England Patriots desperately needed to make a statement. They did it on Sunday against the Buffalo Bills.

Despite being listed as a near-touchdown underdog and missing several starters, including the recently ruled out Christian Gonzalez and Christian Barmore, Vrabel’s team pulled off a surprise 29-26 road win over a previously undefeated opponent. Along the way, they showed encouraging progress in all three phases and managed to dig themselves a late hole in a hostile environment.

We’ll see whether or not the game has the same season-transforming effect as last year’s win in Buffalo. For now, though, the Patriots can safely say they’ve taken a huge step forward — and shown the rest of the league that they’re far from done.

Final score: Patriots 29: Bills 26

Sunday, October 4, 1 p.m. ET | Highmark Stadium (Orchard Park, New York) | Information disseminated | Inactive | Match day roster | Weather forecast

Joined by game day captain and ex-Bill Reggie Gilliam, the Patriots called heads only to see the ceremonial coin come up heads. While Buffalo opted to start on offense, a short-handed New England defense, lacking Christian Gonzalez and Christian Barmore, was up first. On the game’s first series, it didn’t matter: the home team made a field goal three and Kevin Byard intercepted a pass on third down.

Marcus Jones fumbled the ball on the ensuing punt return, but because Bill had touched the ball before him to put it back on the field, the Patriots retained possession.

Unlike its Buffalo counterpart, the Patriots offense was able to move the chains on its opening possession of the game. A scramble by Drake Maye and passes to tight ends Eli Raridon and Hunter Henry gave the unit some breathing room after starting at its 3-yard line. New England faced a 4th and 3 in Buffalo territory, but Maye connected with Romeo Doubs to move the chains. One play later, the pair connected again on a 14-yard touchdown pass, capping a 12-play, 97-yard drive in style. | Patriots 7: 0 bills

The Patriots defense started their second series with a 4-yard sack of Josh Allen by Elijah Ponder, but Buffalo managed to keep the series alive despite then facing third or fourth down three times – knocking on the door late in the first quarter.

After converting a 3rd-and-6 to start the second quarter, the Bills found the end zone on a James Cook 8-yard run to tie the score. | Patriots 7: 7 bills

The Patriots offense received a gift to begin its second drive, with Bills kicker Tyler Bass fielding the kickoff after his team’s touchdown before the touchdown zone. However, the unit failed to capitalize even though it found itself on Buffalo’s side again after a 10-yard TreVeyon Henderson reverse. Unfortunately for New England, the series – as has been too often the case this year – ended with a turnover: a strip-sack by Drake Maye was recovered by the Bills.

Just like the Patriots before, the Bills couldn’t take advantage of the gift they were given. They quickly went three-and-out to return the ball to New England’s Marcus Jones, who gained 17 yards on the runback to give his team possession at the 37.

Things seemingly continued to deteriorate for the Patriots on the next drive, but what was initially ruled a Drake Maye fumble returned by the defense for a touchdown was overturned and labeled incomplete after a brief review. Instead of disaster, the team responded by gaining 26 yards on a pass to Mack Hollins and 10 more on a run by Rhamondre Stevenson. Maye then added 26 more from scrimmage to get his team to the 1-yard line. Stevenson closed the series with a giant look one play later to get his team back on its feet. | Patriots 14: 7 bills

The Patriots defense talked all week about defending the “second play” against Josh Allen, but they failed to do so on Buffalo’s next drive after Stevenson’s touchdown. The former league MVP earned extra time on a 50-yard pass to Khalil Shakir, who was able to break a tackle before gaining the final 29 yards to put his team on the New England 6 just after the two-minute warning. Unfortunately, an apparent stop on third down was negated by a holding penalty against Marcus Jones, which in turn was followed by head coach Mike Vrabel being flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct. That gave the Bills second life, and they conceded three plays later to tie it again. | Patriots 14: 14 bills

With a minute left in the first half, the Patriots offense had an opportunity to gain some momentum into the half. However, the unit opened with two incompletions followed by pressure on the left side forcing an errant throw on third down. Mitch Wishnowsky’s ensuing punt left the Bills with 29 seconds left.

It didn’t take long for the Bills to get back into Patriots territory on their next drive, gaining 22 yards on a first-down pass from Josh Allen to Keon Coleman. However, Carlton Davis knocked the ball out of Khalil Shakir’s hands on the very next play – with teammate Elijah Ponder recovering it, it turned into a potentially point-saving play at the edge of the field.

What followed, however, was a rough patch for the Patriots. Romeo Doubs failed to recover a pass from Drake Maye on the first play after the interception, and the ball jumped in the air only for the Bills’ Dee Alford to intercept it and bring it back to the New England 9-yard line with 5 seconds on the clock. Tyler Bass made a field goal just before time expired, giving Buffalo its first lead of the day. | Patriots 14: 17 bills

The Patriots mostly ran the ball well in the first half, and they looked the same in the second. A Romeo Doubs kick to the sideline and a Drake Maye scramble brought the offense back into Bills territory. Once there, Maye hit Hollins for a gain of 19 and then connected again with Doubs to convert a 4th and 2. However, despite finding herself at the Bills’ 2-yard line, New England had its share of difficulties pushing the ball – until Maye hit Doubs on a 2-yard goal line fade for six. | Patriots 21: 17 bills

New England’s defense made a stop on its first series of the second half. After nothing but short gains, Carlton Davis crashed on a screen attempt on 3rd-and-8 to bring down Keon Coleman for a modest 1-yard gain, prompting the Bills to punt.

The Patriots fared better on their next possession, preventing a three-and-out on a DeMario Douglas catch down the sideline. However, the series didn’t progress much after that and Mitch Wishnowsky eventually had to come out for his second punt of the day.

The Patriots defense continued to put the clamps on Josh Allen and the Bills offense on the next play, nearly bringing down the quarterback for a safety when Gabe Jacas powered past left tackle Dion Dawkins. Allen prevented that particular outcome, but couldn’t stop his team from completing a hat-trick on a second straight drive.

Trying to go to the ground, the Patriots called on Rhamondre Stevenson three times in a row to open their next possession. But while he gained 8 yards on his first carry, the offensive line failed to create a significant push on the next two plays. The result: a net gain of 0, and another punt.

Buffalo’s running game showed some signs of life early in the fourth quarter, with James Cook gaining a total of 35 yards on the first three plays of the series. The Bills finally ran out of steam, but not before a 21-yard grab by Keon Coleman on cornerback Kindle Vildor – entering the game for an injured Charles Woods – put them within field goal range. An open-space tackle by Marcus Jones on third down prevented further damage, but the home team still cut into New England’s lead. | Patriots 21: 20 tickets

A big tackle for loss, a hold on an apparent third-down conversion – untimely mistakes kept the Patriots from making the most of their next possession even after being in a 2nd-and-2 situation at their own 44-yard line. To make matters worse, Mitch Wishnowsky’s ensuing punt resulted in a net swing of just 38 yards.

The Patriots came close to a critical stop on the next drive, but instead allowed Josh Allen and Keon Coleman to make two big plays in a row. The first was a 34-yard gain on a 3rd-and-4, immediately followed by a 34-yard touchdown run. A two-point conversion fell incomplete, giving New England a chance at victory with a touchdown with five minutes remaining. | Patriots 21: 26 bills

The Patriots needed a touchdown and they got it on their next drive. Drake Maye throws to Hunter Henry and Romeo Doubs brought the offense into Buffalo territory, with Efton Chism’s strong catch for 19 yards taking it even further to the promised land. At the time of the two-minute warning, New England was 28 yards short of the go-ahead score. It only took Maye and company one play to close that gap: a one-handed grab from Efton Chism for the go-ahead touchdown. With Drake Maye and Rhamondre Stevenson connecting on the two-point conversion, the Patriots found themselves up three with 1:50 left. | Patriots 29: 26 bills

The Patriots defense had its problems against Josh Allen and company, but not on the next drive after Chism’s touchdown: Craig Woodson, returning from a shoulder injury, intercepted a deep pass with 1:05 remaining.

The Patriots got aggressive on their next drive, not relying on their ground game to bleed the clock. While a pass attempt to Efton Chism sailed wide on second down, Maye found Hunter Henry on the next 3rd and 10 for a gain of 12. Two plays later, it was time for the victory formation.

With the win, New England improved to 2-2 on the season. Buffalo is now 3-1, with the head-to-head tiebreaker going to the Patriots for now.