FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Josh Allen threw two touchdown passes and the Buffalo Bills beat the New England Patriots 24-10 on Thursday night for their first AFC East victory of the season.

Devin Singletary had a 1-yard touchdown run to help the Bills (9-3) win their third straight and take a half-game lead in the division over Miami. Buffalo had been 0-2 against division foes.

Buffalo had possession for 38:08 on Thursday night to keep control of the game. The Patriots took a 7-3 lead with 4:55 left in the first quarter when Mac Jones connected with Marcus Jones for a 48-yard touchdown. The Bills scored the next 21 points to take control with New England adding a Nick Folk field goal with 1:53 left.

Allen became the first player in NFL history with three seasons of 25 passing TDs and five rushing scores. Including the playoffs last season, the Bills have won their last three meetings with New England (6-6). Allen went 22 of 33 for 223 yards, consistently buying time in the pocket and finding soft spots in the Patriots’ zone. The Bills have struggled at times in the red zone, but went 3 for 3 on Thursday.

Despite playing without top pass rusher Von Miller, who suffered a knee injury in a Thanksgiving win over Detroit, Buffalo’s defense held the Patriots to three points over the final three quarters.

New England has lost two straight since posting a season-best, three-game win streak.

A week after putting together his most complete effort of the season, New England’s Mac Jones was flustered and unsure for most of the night. He finished 22 of 36 for 195 yards and a touchdown. The Patriots were 3 of 12 on third down and 0 for 1 in the red zone.

The Bills started slowly on offense, settling for a field goal on their first possession.

Trailing 7-3, Allen went to work during Buffalo’s next two opportunities.

He led his team 82 yards in nine plays, ending the drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs on the first play of the second quarter. Diggs finished with seven catches for 92 yards, and his TD catch was his 10th receiving score of the season, tying the career high he set last season. He is the first player in team history to record multiple seasons with 10-plus receiving TDs.

Following a Patriots punt, Allen capped a 14-play, 56-drive by eluding the Patriots’ pass rush and tiptoeing along the sideline before throwing across his body for an 8-yard TD pass to Gabe Davis.

The Patriots came in banged up on their offensive line and got creative to get their first points of the night. After going three-and-out on their opening drive, New England inserted speedy cornerback and return man Marcus Jones for his first offensive snap of the season.

He made the most of it, catching a quick screen from Jones, finding a seam and sprinting through Buffalo’s secondary for a 48-yard touchdown.

That was about the only highlight for the Patriots. They punted on three straight possessions, then failed to get anything out of Allen’s fumble after Nick Folk hit the crossbar on a 48-yard field goal attempt with 10 seconds left in the half.

NOTES: Buffalo starting left tackle Dion Dawkins (ankle) also sat and was replaced by David Quessenberry, who gave up a sack on Buffalo’s opening drive and appeared to aggravate his troublesome knee. Just before halftime, Quessenberry was also responsible for letting Josh Uche get to Allen for a strip-sack that was recovered by Matt Judon. Quessenberry left late in the third quarter with an ankle injury. … Patriots center David Andrews returned after his one-game absence due to a thigh injury, but New England was missing starting running back Damien Harris (thigh) along with tackles Isaiah Wynn (foot) and Yodny Cajuste (calf/back). … Buffalo went 23 straight drives over more than two games without punting against the Patriots before the streak ended with Sam Martin’s punt with 3:04 left in the second quarter. … Bills safety Damar Hamlin was ejected with 2:54 left in the game after being called for unnecessary roughness for his hit on defenseless Patriots receiver Jakobi Meyers in the end zone.

Copy the Story Link

Comments are not available on this story.