If Drake Maye had just thrown the ball out of bounds, it would have felt like success.
DaQuan Jones, the Bills’ 6-foot-4, 320-pound defensive tackle, had his left hand on the Patriots quarterback’s collar and his big right paw on Maye’s back.
For Maye, who has been sacked 51 times and thrown 12 interceptions over the course of his still-young career, not losing yards or losing possession would have been enough with just over 2 minutes left in a tied fourth quarter at Highmark Stadium.
But Maye held Jones off long enough with his left arm and kept looking downfield. As he started to lose his footing, Maye fired a short pass to Stefon Diggs at the right sideline for a 12-yard gain.
In the future, when the Patriots are good, they’ll look back at Oct. 5, 2025 as the day they turned the corner.
The Patriots’ 23-20 win over the previously undefeated Bills marked New England’s breakthrough from having promise to actually being capable of beating good teams.
And no play symbolized the change better than Maye’s escapist completion to Diggs. It was the signature play from a signature win.
Quarterbacks are defined by fourth-quarter success or failure. Maye completed 22 of 30 passes for 273 yards without a turnover. He capped a great day by leading a winning drive in the fourth quarter against the only undefeated team in the NFL.
“If it’s the last play, I want the ball in my hands,” he said. “I’m not going to lose that mindset. I’m going to keep that mindset my whole career.”
He’s had that mindset before, but his desire is now matched by his experience and ability.
Maye was outstanding Sunday, and he deserves all the credit he’ll get this week. But it was a night stocked with heroes for the Patriots.
Diggs, Christian Gonzalez and the Patriots’ run defense were all memorably outstanding.
For much of the preseason and into September, it was hard to know what to expect from Diggs or Gonzalez.
Diggs was an aging receiver who was back from a major injury way ahead of schedule. He showed flashes in New England’s early games, but hardly looked like a true No. 1 pass catcher. But after a good game last week, Diggs was outstanding with 10 catches for 146 yards against his old team.
After taking a long time to come back from an early-camp hamstring injury, Gonzalez returned last week and then broke out against the Bills. His fourth-quarter coverage on Keon Coleman helped stunt the Bills’ once-promising drive and force them to settle for a game-tying field goal instead of a go-ahead touchdown.
It was a game of redemption, too. After yet another fumble, Rhamondre Stevenson might not have carried the ball again if Antonio Gibson hadn’t been hurt. But Vrabel stuck with him and Stevenson rewarded him with two touchdowns.
On many teams, Andy Borregales might have been cut after his brutal start at Miami, but Vrabel stuck with him, too, and the rookie honored that faith with the 52-yard game-winner on Sunday.
The Patriots got a lot of praise after last week’s dominant win over the Carolina Panthers. But beating the Panthers is the equivalent of a Power 5 college team fattening up its record on an FCS opponent. It doesn’t take a good team to beat the Panthers.
And there was a danger that Patriots, who aren’t used to being praised, wouldn’t keep that in perspective heading into a much tougher game.
But helped by strong game plans on offense and defense, they were ready.
New England won despite making a lot of mistakes. They left a lot of points on the board in the first half and after taking a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, they committed some extremely avoidable, costly penalties that gave the Bills offense momentum.
But the Patriots’ triumphs outweighed their failures. Losing a 10-point fourth-quarter lead isn’t good, but it forced them to seize a victory late rather than just holding on, hoping for the clock to run out.
The 2025 Patriots aren’t better than the 2025 Bills yet. Buffalo isn’t going to commit 11 penalties for 90 yards and turn the ball over three times on most nights. Ed Oliver will eventually be back.
But when the Bills left the door open a crack, the Patriots plowed through it and grabbed what was arguably their biggest win since Tom Brady left.
“Those players took advantage of their opportunity and beat a really good football team that hasn’t lost here much,” Mike Vrabel said.
Statement wins for the Patriots have been about as rare as the Bills’ home losses. New England made the playoffs with smoke-and-mirrors in 2022, but that team never had a win like this one.
New England now has back-to-back for the first time since that 2022 season and the schedule offers a real chance to build on them.
Of the Patriots’ 12 remaining games, eight are against teams whose record is either 1-4 or 0-5. Only two are against teams with winning records.
The Patriots are getting better while their opponents are getting worse. The playoffs should be the target now and after Sunday, that feels like a realistic goal.
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