Bills sink Patriots in meaningless season finale

AP Photo/Charles Krupa

The Buffalo Bills defeated the New England Patriots 17-9 at Gillette Stadium in what was a meaningless game for New England as it gears up for its playoff run.

The loss snapped a 35-home game winning streak against AFC opponents for the Patriots as they fell to 7-1 at home this year. This was also Buffalo's first ever win at Gillette Stadium. They are now 1-12.

The Bills dictated play for the majority of the afternoon, as Kyle Orton led the way by completing 16-of-23 passes for 176 yards and a touchdown. Orton found Robert Woods in the end zone for a touchdown on the Bills first possession of the game, and Buffalo never looked back.

Tom Brady finished the first half going 8-of-16 for 80 yards and saw constant pressure from the Bills, as the offensive line once again failed to get anything going. Rookie backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo came in during the second half and fared a little bit better, going 10-of-17 for 90 yards.

The Patriots were without the likes of Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman, Brandon Browner, Dont'a Hightower and others. Darrelle Revis and Jamie Collins did not see any second half snaps. They did not escape this game fully unscathed, however, as left tackle Nate Solder left with an injury and did not return.

Wide receiver Brandon LaFell was also nicked up at one point, but returned to action on the final drive of the game. Buffalo finishes the regular season with a 9-7, and New England finishes at 12-4 and holds the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs.

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