NEW ENGLAND 13
BUFFALO 30
The Buffalo Bills (18-0) continued on the march to perfection with a 30-13 win over the defending champion New England Patriots (13-6). In what was a rematch of last year's AFC title game, the Bills flipped the script this time around using a mix of a "bend but don't break" defense and timely third down conversions.
"It felt really good to get this one after the way last year went down." Quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. "I'm going to enjoy a nice scotch after this one and then get ready for the Super Bowl."
Rodgers was big when his team needed him to be, picking up two crucial third and longs and turning both into JuJu Smith-Schuster touchdowns.
"What's funny is those were both the same play." Smith-Schister said. "We liked what we saw when we got the first one so coach dialed it up again and they gave us the same look. Huge throws by 12."
The defense had things going early when the Bills were up 13-0 late in the second, but New England (who was set to receive the 3rd quarter kickoff) was driving and looked ready to score right before the time ran out. However, Marcus Mariota, who revived the Patriots season after a mid-season trade, made what was likely his biggest mistake of the season when he threw a 93 yard pick-six to Budda Baker to make it 19-0 at the half (Buffalo's two point conversion attempt failed).
New England wasn't about to lay down though, and when things looked bleak, Alvin Kamara took a 98 yard yard run to the house to make it 19-7. After a Buffalo field goal made it 22-7, New England drove the length of the field and scored again to bring it to 22-13, but a crucial missed extra point in the snowy conditions left it a two-score game. From there, the Bills put the game away for good.
While New England is disappointed they couldn't go back to the Super Bowl, they did take a 1-4 team that was left for dead to the AFC Championship game. Coach Chris Petersen announced he was stepping away from the game at his press conference, stating "It's just become too much." Where the Patriots go from here will be closely watched this summer.
As for the Bills, they head to Miami to take on the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LIV.
