NFL – Bills v. Patriots: High stakes Thursday night

You will be able to see the game Bills vs. Patriots Thursday at 8 p.m. on RDS2 and RDS.ca.

Pregame Bills v. Patriots

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The last time the Buffalo Bills faced the New England Patriots, they left no doubt about their dominance in the American East.

The Bills exited the field with a 47-17 first-round playoff win last January, demoralizing the New England squad celebrating their return to the winter tournament after a season-long absence.

Once dominated by the Pats (6-5), it is the Bills (8-3) who will try this time to add to their recent series of successes in this rivalry.

The Bills have won three of the last four games against the Patriots this season and sit second in the division, the only one with all four teams above .500.

But they still haven’t scored an intra-division win, after narrow losses to the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets. Both of those setbacks were suffered on the road, which quarterback Josh Allen knows only too well.

« The section games, you have to win them, » he said. We know our record this year on such occasions. It’s not easy to play these games abroad. We have to understand it and be ready. »

For the Pats, who are coming off their best performance since quarterback Mac Jones returned to the game, their preparation has been to forget about last year’s playoff game.

« I’m not going to feel sorry for what happened in this duel, but I remember very well how our season ended, » said running back Rhamondre Stevenson. We need to perform better. »

Thursday’s game will be the third in 12 days for the Patriots, who are enjoying their best moments of the season with three straight wins before their 33-26 Thanksgiving Day loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

Back in last place in the section, they have little room for error with six games to go.

“We’ll have to play our best game and we’ve been training for that this week,” head coach Bill Belichick said.

The Bills’ defense has been hit hard with injuries this season and this matchup will be no different. The last player affected is quarterback chaser Von Miller, who will miss the game with a knee injury.

Miller leads the team with eight sacks. It’s a significant loss for a defense that has conceded just 18.1 points on average per game this season, the fifth-lowest total in the NFL.

Coach Sean McDermott admitted it was their toughest adjustment yet.

« She’s a future Hall of Famer, » McDermott said. That said, we need to turn the page. And the people, the people who will be responsible for his position will have to do the work. »