One-Stat Recap: Buffalo Bills take control of the AFC East with win over the New England Patriots

The Buffalo Bills traveled to Foxborough and took control of the AFC East division title race with a win over the New England Patriots. Josh Allen and the offense returned to form despite missing Jon Feliciano, Cole Beasley, and Gabriel Davis. Head coach Sean McDermott and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll also seemed to return to the aggressive nature we saw in 2020.

The offense’s successful day combined with McDermott and Daboll’s aggressiveness resulted in a relaxing day for Matthew Haack, who did not see the field for any punts. It was just the fifth game in Bills’ franchise history where the Bills did not punt. Last year’s field goal fest against the New York Jets was the last time the Bills went puntless. Prior to that it was a 1992 win over the San Francisco 49ers. On top of that, according to ESPN Stats and Info, it was the first time in Bill Belichick’s coaching career that his opponent did not punt. There have been four times where one of Belichick’s opponents punted just once, but this is the first no-punt game the Pats have faced.