The New England Patriots spent their bye week going over fundamentals and trying to find ways to remedy all of the issues that have ailed them over the first half of the season. They stood in the Gillette Stadium locker room following Sunday’s 37-31 win over the Buffalo Bills no closer to finding an answer.
As Patriots safety Devin McCourty aptly pointed out, it’s not easy to win in the NFL, so New England (6-3) isn’t ready to toss this one back, but that doesn’t mean they’ll be mounting the box score on their wall, either. The Bills begged to be run off the field after committing 14 penalties for 148 yards, yet New England didn't take advantage and the result remained in the air until McCourty intercepted Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick in the end zone at the end of regulation.
Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller helped the Bills rush for 162 yards, the most New England has surrendered this season, and Fitzpatrick (27 of 40, 337 yards, two touchdowns, one interception) at times looked like the more accomplished passer on the field. In other words, it was more of the same.
“It was bad defense,” McCourty flatly stated.
But the problems weren’t limited to that side of the ball. Wes Welker dropped a pair of passes, Stevan Ridley was hit with a costly false start penalty that forced the Pats to settle for a field goal on their final drive, and Tom Brady (23 of 38, 237 yards, two touchdowns) couldn’t close the game out. So maybe Deion Branch put it best when he said, "It was a good victory, but none of us feel good."
When the game turned: The final result remained up in the air until McCourty came through with his pick.
Highlight moments: Jackson had a 14-yard touchdown run where he spun out of a tackle in the second quarter. … Brady showed good poise when he ducked the rush, popped up and laced an 18-yard touchdown pass through DE Alex Carrington’s arms.
Top-shelf performances:
- McCourty -- Saved a touchdown by forcing a fumble on the 1-yard line in the fourth quarter and saved the day with his late interception.
- RB C.J. Spiller -- Ran nine times for 70 yards (7.8 ypc) and caught four passes for 61 yards.
- Woodhead -- Four catches for 46 yards, one carry for 15 yards, two touchdowns. The numbers won’t cause heads to turn, but he showed up when it mattered.
What they said about McCourty’s interception:
- Brady -- “I had an opportunity to do something about it 50 seconds before that. The defense really saved the day.”
- McCourty -- “(Vince Wilfork) always says that if we can get one big play out of everybody in the game, we’ll be in great shape. Toward the end of the game, he looked at all of us in the huddle and brought it up. He said, ‘Devin, you just made a play. Who is going to make the next play?’”
- Bills DT Kyle Williams -- “We got to figure out a way in the end, the way the Patriots do, to win the game.”
What they said about the penalties:
- Bills S George Wilson -- “They weren’t moving the ball with offensive production. It wasn’t anything they were doing to us; we just have to be smarter and not put ourselves in that position.”
- Bills CB Stephon Gilmore -- “I don’t know what happened. I don’t know what else I can do. On the first penalty, he ran into me, and the ball bounced off of him. On the second penalty, I was running with him and he tripped on my feet and they threw the penalty on me.”
- Bills WR Donald Jones -- “It comes down to, we can’t have as many penalties as we had today. That was terrible and it was undisciplined. We have to get back to the basics and just handle that first.”
Numbers you should know: While the Bills will receive all the attention for the penalties, the Patriots committed five in the second half for a total of 43 yards.
Injury update: Patriots -- G Logan Mankins suffered a left ankle injury and was seen leaving the stadium in a boot. OL Dan Connolly suffered a back injury and was knocked out of action. Bills -- Jackson and WR Donald Jones went down on the final series with undisclosed injuries.
Going forward: Patriots -- Things look favorable for the Patriots over the next few weeks with games against the Colts (home), Jets (away) and Dolphins (away) to follow. Bills -- Buffalo returns home against the Dolphins before traveling to Miami.
Nick Underhill covers the Patriots for MassLive.com. Follow him on Twitter @CBSPats or @Nick Underhill.
For more updates on the Bills, follow correspondent Mark Ludwiczak on Twitter @CBSBills and @MarkLud12.