New England Patriots studs and duds from the ugly loss to Buffalo in Week 16.
The New England Patriots entered a Week 16 contest looking to erase a recent losing streak while also being on the outside of the NFL playoff picture looking in for the first time in more than a decade.
Having lost two straight and officially being eliminated from postseason contention in 2020, New England returned home to welcome in an AFC East opponent on national television in Week 16 at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots took on the bright lights of Monday Night Football to play host to the Buffalo Bills for the second and final time of the regular season in Week 16, not having much to play for outside of pride at this point in the year.
In the second game of the two-game series with the division opponent, New England once again was handed a defeat, this time in a 38-9 blowout in Foxborough.
To open up the first half of action, both the Patriots and Bills notched field goals in the first quarter to remain knotted up at 3-3 after one frame. Before halftime, Buffalo started to create some separation while outscoring New England 21-6 in the second quarter alone to carry a 24-9 lead into the break.
In the second half, the Bills were able to coast to a victory while holding the Patriots off the scoreboard for the final two quarters. Buffalo went on to outscore New England 14-0 in the second half to secure the 29-point win.
With the divisional contest between the Patriots and Bills now over with, let’s take a look back at some studs and duds for New England that appeared in the Week 16 game on Monday Night Football.
Stud: Patriots ground game
As has been the story basically all season long for New England, the ground game both at the running back and quarterback positions performed well against Buffalo on Monday night.
The running attack set the tone early on for the Patriots, finishing the game with 24 carries for 145 yards and one touchdown. Leading the way for that unit was Sony Michel with 10 carries for 69 yards, with J.J. Taylor adding six carries for 38 yards and Cam Newton tallying four rushes for 24 yards and one touchdown.
Dud: Limiting the Bills passing attack
When it came to New England defending Buffalo in the AFC East showdown on Monday Night Football, the Patriots allowed the Bills to run all over them in the game led by a high-powered passing game.
Overall, Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen put on a show for the Bills and help lead the offense to a total of 38 points against New England on the Patriots’ home field. Allen completed 27 of his overall 36 pass attempts, throwing for 320 yards and four touchdowns while averaging 8.9 yards per completion under center.
Along with Allen’s performance, Buffalo was able to get some others under center in the contest as well, including Jaquan Johnson completing one pass for 13 yards and Matt Barkley going 2-for-3 for 11 yards in the game.