Plays that defined 2019: Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots, Week 16

The 2019 season is behind us, but the stories live on. Every week brought a different narrative and we look back on the season to tell those stories through the plays that defined the game. Sit back and get ready for the tale of Week 16:

Buffalo Bills at New England Patriots

Buffalo had locked up a playoff spot, lost a tight game to one of the league’s best teams, and now had what looked like a realistic shot against the New England Patriots. Fans used to crossing fingers for a long-shot scenario were now looking at the division rather than a Wild Card spot. A win over the Patriots made that very scenario possible.

What ensued was yet another battle of defensive juggernauts that came down to the waning moments of the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, Buffalo fell just short in this battle—losing their chance at the division as well.

Devin Singletary run for no gain (Q1, 10:15)

A major factor in the day’s events was the unfortunate bottling up of Devin Singletary. New England would limit the featured back to just over three yards per carry. Frank Gore was practically non-existent and had zero carries. The lack of balance on offense led to Buffalo struggling mightily to put up points.

Sony Michel gain of 8 (Q2, 11:01)

Sony Michel on the other hand had a much more productive day. A nearly perfect split between run and pass kept New England moving. Plays like this kept later downs manageable, which led to sustained drives. In the first half alone New England had two drives that took over an entire quarter of game clock. They had two drives in addition to those. The time of possession was preposterously skewed, with the Patriots holding the ball more than 17 minutes longer than the Bills.

Dion Dawkins Touchdown (Q2, 0:06)

Knowing how big the game was, Buffalo pulled out all the stops. Taking a trick right out of Belichick’s own play book Dion Dawkins lined up as an eligible receiver. No one on defense thought he was actually getting the ball until it was too late. Despite a crazily skewed time of possession, Buffalo closed the half tied at ten.

John Brown touchdown (Q3, 7:34)

The Buffalo defense slowed the New England scoring enough to give the offense a chance. In the middle of the third quarter Buffalo took the lead with this long touchdown to John Brown. Unfortunately it would be the Bills’ final score of the day.

Josh Allen incomplete to Cole Beasley (Q4, 1:12)

The final play for Buffalo exemplifies the day Josh Allen had. Held to exactly 50% completion rate, Allen was stymied by the defense all day. Four sacks and seven quarterback hits only start to describe the pressure that Allen faced.