A blowout loss to Denver showed the New England Patriots that they aren't the best team in the AFC. An equally decisive victory over Buffalo reminded them that they don't have far to go.
With their AFC East lead at stake, the Patriots turned back Buffalo 33-6 Sunday to distance themselves from their divisional rivals and show that things aren't as bad as they looked six days earlier against the Broncos."I think we have a good team," New England (5-1) quarterback Drew Bledsoe conceded. "We're one of the top few teams in the AFC. But we're not the top team until we beat the top team."
The defending conference champions were coasting with a 4-0 record until going to Denver last Monday night and getting thrashed 34-8 in a matchup of unbeatens. Of course, a similar thing happened last year, when the Broncos beat New England 34-8 in Week 12.
But the Patriots won four of their last five regular-season games in 1996, and they were spared a playoff trip to Denver when the Broncos were eliminated by the Jaguars. And so it was New England - not Denver - that represented the AFC in the Super Bowl.
Monday night's game showed that the Broncos haven't forgotten how they were deprived of last year's glory. And the way the Patriots responded on Sunday showed they still remember how one regular-season game doesn't make or break a season.
"You can't sit there and linger and lick your wounds all week and pout about it," said fullback Keith Byars, one of a handful of Patriots veterans who told coach Pete Carroll the team would be able to bounce back against Buffalo (3-3).
"I told him we'd be ready," tackle Bruce Armstrong said. "For the first time in a while, these guys were really focused, and they wanted to redeem themselves from the way they played Monday night."
Adam Vinatieri, who has made 20 consecutive field goals since missing one in last year's Denver game, kicked four on Sunday, including a career-best 52-yarder. And Bledsoe, who struggled in both Broncos games, completed 14 of 27 passed for 181 yards, with touchdowns of 20 yards to Ben Coates and 4 yards to Byars.
Curtis Martin ran for 99 yards and a 26-yard touchdown. Buffalo managed to avoid its second shutout since Marv Levy became coach in 1986 when Darick Holmes scored on a 1-yard run with 13:59 left in the game.
"We would have liked to have thought we could play better, but all losses are painful," Levy said. "There were only two things we weren't able to establish - the running game and the passing game."
Buffalo's chances evaporated after its second possession, when quarterback Todd Collins strained his left (non-throwing) rotator cuff on a sack by Tedy Bruschi. There was no indication of how long he would be sidelined, and Levy said the shoulder wasn't fractured or separated.
Billy Joe Hobert took over, and the Patriots took advantage.
On Hobert's first play, he threw an interception to Willie Clay, who had two against Denver last week. He returned it to the Buffalo 20-yard line, but the Patriots couldn't get past the 3 and Vinatieri kicked a 20-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead.
"I was too excited," said Hobert, who hadn't thrown a pass this season before Sunday. "I didn't want to go into the game in those circumstances, and then it got worse."
Hobert threw another interception on the second play of the second quarter that led to Vinatieri's 23-yarder. Buffalo punted on its next series and Vinatieri hit a 41-yarder for a 16-0 halftime lead.
Vinatieri came through from 52 yards to make it 19-0 with two minutes gone in the second half, extending his team record for consecutive field goals.