The Patriots got the kind of Week 4 win that can change the mood around a team, and a few players drove it home while others left plenty to clean up. With the Raiders coming to Foxborough on Sunday, the Bills game offered a clear snapshot of who helped push New England forward and who dragged things back.
Drake Maye was the biggest reason the Patriots walked out with a divisional win. He opened by completing six of his first seven passes, but two first-half turnovers threatened to send the game off the rails.
Instead, Maye settled in and delivered the best version of himself the Patriots have seen since the end of last year’s regular season. He used his legs, climbed the pocket with confidence, and capped it off with a well-placed throw to Efton Chism for the go-ahead touchdown.
The pass rush also had its moments, and linebacker Ponder has quietly become a steady source of disruption. He has recorded at least half a sack in each of the Patriots’ last three games, giving him a team-high 2.5 sacks on the season.
He also leads the team with 4.5 tackles for loss. Filling in for the injured Harold Landry on the edge, he has handled the job well.
The group around him chipped in, too: Gabe Jacas nearly turned a play into a safety by tossing Dion Dawkins, and Dre’Mont Jones got to Josh Allen just before Allen threw the game-sealing interception in the fourth quarter.
Romeo Doubs keeps trending in the right direction after a quiet start in Seattle. Against Buffalo, he caught his first two touchdowns, including a one-handed grab on a fade.
There was still some volatility in his night - the interception that bounced off his hands and into Dee Alford’s grasp was a rough one - but with A.J. Brown out, the Patriots needed Doubs to grow into a bigger role, and he has done that so far.
Not everything on the defensive front was as encouraging. Milton Williams is still searching for his first sack and first tackle for loss through four games, and Pro Football Focus has him graded 72nd among 129 qualified defensive linemen. The Patriots were good enough defensively to win, and Williams does contribute in ways that don’t always show up in the box score, but the numbers on his sheet are still thin.
Charles Woods also had a difficult afternoon. Without Christian Gonzalez, the Patriots were already facing a tough assignment against Buffalo, and Woods struggled badly. Pro Football Focus says he tied Sauce Gardner for the highest passer rating against a cornerback in Week 4 at 156.3, a glaring number in a game where New England needed coverage to hold up.
TreVeyon Henderson rounds out the down side. His speed gives the Patriots a chance to hit explosives, and he flashed that with a 39-yard touchdown against Pittsburgh in Week 2.
But that play remains the outlier. Since then, he has 37 carries for 102 yards, a 2.75-yard average, and he has not scored again.
He has also done very little as a receiver, with one catch on three targets for six yards.
And the broader issue goes beyond Henderson alone. Through four games, Henderson has 141 rushing yards, just five more than Drake Maye despite 15 more carries than the quarterback.
Rhamondre Stevenson, on 44 carries, has 161 yards. That kind of production is not enough, especially this early in the season.
Maye deserved the criticism he took over the first three games, but the run game has to improve across the board. The offensive line has been much better in pass protection, yet the run blocking still needs work.
In Other News...
Patriots May Have Found An Unexpected Special Teams Difference Maker
The Patriots win over the Bills had plenty of moving parts, but one of the more encouraging developments came from a rookie who is quickly carving out a role beyond defense. Linebacker Erick Hunter has started to stand out on special teams, where his willingness to play heavy snaps and finish tackles gave New England a jolt in a tight 29-26 victory.
For a team that is always looking for hidden value on the roster, Hunters early impact matters because special teams can swing games that are otherwise decided by thin margins. His work in that phase helped tilt the field against Buffalo, and it has given the Patriots another young player worth watching as the season moves on. [Read more 🡒]
Patriots Safeties Are Heating Up Before Their Biggest Test Yet
Through three games, Kevin Byard and Craig Woodson have started to look like a back-end pairing the Patriots can trust, and their timing has shown up in both the communication and the versatility New England has leaned on in the secondary. The two safeties spoke after the recent win about how their chemistry has grown, with each handling the kind of moving pieces that can make or break a defense in September.
The next test comes against the Raiders, and it is not a soft one for a group trying to keep building momentum. Las Vegas brings tight ends that can stress a defense in different ways, which puts added importance on the Patriots safeties staying in sync and clean with their assignments. For Byard and Woodson, the challenge is less about proving they can talk the part and more about showing they can carry that communication into another difficult matchup. [Read more 🡒]
Drake Maye Just Gave Patriots Fans Another Reason To Believe
Drake Mayes latest step forward arrived on a big stage, and it came with the kind of recognition that tends to reinforce what Patriots fans have been seeing on Sundays. After leading New England past the Bills in a 29-26 win, Maye was named AFC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time in his career, rewarded for a poised afternoon that included 269 passing yards, three touchdown throws and another 54 yards on the ground.
For a Patriots team still looking to define its identity, those are the kinds of performances that matter beyond the weekly award. Mayes rise is starting to become part of the conversation around New England again, and with the next game on the schedule, the challenge now is turning one encouraging showing into a consistent stretch that keeps the momentum moving in the right direction. [Read more 🡒]