Buffalo Bills 38-9 New England Patriots: Josh Allen breaks Jim Kelly's franchise record in blowout win
Cam Newton scored his 12th rushing touchdown of the season to tie Steve Grogan (1976) for the New England Patriots' single-season record among quarterbacks, but he was benched in the third quarter after completing 5 of 10 passes for just 34 yards
Tuesday 29 December 2020 10:03, UK
Josh Allen threw four touchdown passes - three of them to Stefon Diggs - to surpass Jim Kelly's franchise record and see the Buffalo Bills to a convincing 38-9 win over the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football.
With victory, the Bills became the first team to complete a season sweep of the Patriots since 2000, the same year that New England (6-9) last posted a losing record until this season following their defeat on Monday night.
- Bills passing: Josh Allen, 27/36, 320 yards, 4 TDs
- Rushing leader: Zack Moss, 12 carries, 57 yards, 1 TD
- Receiving leader: Stefon Diggs, nine catches, 145 yards, 3 TDs
Allen, who completed 27 of 36 passes for 320 yards, found Diggs for a third time - this one an eight-yard score early in the fourth quarter - to pass Kelly's mark of 33 from 1991 and set a new franchise record (34) still with one week of the regular season remaining.
Diggs had nine receptions for 145 yards - tying a career high - for the Bills (12-3), who currently hold the No 2 seed in the AFC by virtue of their victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers (12-3) from a fortnight ago.
- Patriots passing: Cam Newton, 5/10, 34 yards
- Rushing leader: Sony Michel, 10 carries, 69 yards
- Receiving leader: Jakobi Meyers, four catches, 45 yards
Cam Newton recorded his 12th rushing touchdown of the season early in the second quarter to tie Steve Grogan (1976) for the Patriots' single-season record among quarterbacks. But he endured another nightmare outing through the air, completing 5 of 10 passes for just 34 yards before being pulled early in the third quarter in favour of Jarrett Stidham, who fared little better (4 of 11 for 44 yards).
Nick Folk missed with his extra point attempt following Newton's nine-yard touchdown run in the second quarter, meaning the Bulls held a slender 10-9 lead at that stage before Allen started his scoring frenzy.
Tight end Lee Smith had a four-yard touchdown reception later in the second, while Diggs' first of his personal hat-trick was a 50-yard effort shortly before half-time.
Allen and Diggs weren't done, as the receiver split a pair of defenders for an 18-yard TD early in the third quarter and then the pair linked up again for Allen's record-setting score in the fourth.
Earlier, Buffalo rookie running back Zack Moss had a five-yard touchdown run in the second quarter after the two teams traded field goals in the first.
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