The Buffalo Bills’ might have been the more efficient of the two offenses on Sunday in terms of yards per play, but it was the New England Patriots’ that ultimately came out on top.
How did it manage to do that? Because it successfully strung plays together and maximized its time of possession to a point where New England finished with a clear advantage in both categories: if we exclude special teams, the Patriots held the ball for a season-high 76 plays and almost 33 minutes on Sunday. For comparison,
the Bills ran only 59 plays and finished with just under 25 minutes of possession.
The Patriots moved the chains at least once on eight of their 11 possessions, and had multiple first downs on five of them. The Bills weren’t bad either, but ultimately were unable to create a few more opportunities when they needed them. Obviously, some of that had to do with the aforementioned efficiency — they had more yards per play (6.3 vs. 5.5) and more explosives (8 vs. 7) — but New England’s defense also made the crucial defensive play at the end of the game.
Combine all of that and the differences proved significant in a three-point game.
Here is our full snap count report from the Patriots’ 29-26 win at Buffalo’s Highmark Stadium.
Offense
Total snaps: 76 | Time on the field: 32:45 | * denotes starter
QB Drake Maye* (76; 100%), LT Will Campbell* (76; 100%), LG Alijah Vera-Tucker* (76; 100%), C Jared Wilson* (76; 100%), RG Ben Brown* (76; 100%), RT Morgan Moses* (76; 100%), RB Rhamondre Stevenson* (50; 66%), WR Romeo Doubs* (49; 64%), TE Hunter Henry* (49; 64%), TE Eli Raridon (44; 58%), WR DeMario Douglas (35; 46%), WR Efton Chism III (34; 45%), WR Mack Hollins* (31; 41%), RB TreVeyon Henderson (28; 37%), OT/TE Caleb Lomu* (20; 26%), WR Kyle Williams (19; 25%), FB Reggie Gilliam (17; 22%), RB Corey Kiner (2; 3%), TE Cameron Latu (2; 3%)
The Patriots’ 76 offensive snaps was their highest of the season, and highest since a 76-snap game against the Rams in 2024. Despite the high workload, the offense remained efficient down the stretch.
As for the personnel it used, quarterback Drake Maye and the starting offensive line — including newly-inserted starting right guard Ben Brown — went wire-to-wire. The skill position personnel rounding out the unit was led by the usual suspects, even though Mack Hollins’ calf injury forced a change down the stretch. His replacement, Efton Chism, finished with 34 snaps, the second-highest playing-time total of the sophomore wide receiver’s career.
Chism’s usage stands out, and so does Eli Raridon’s. Despite the rookie tight end being announced as questionable to return to the game with an ankle issue at one point in the third quarter, he finished with 44 snaps. The team clearly thinks highly of the third-round draft pick, and his usage so far reflects that.
Speaking of tight ends, first-round offensive tackle Caleb Lomu served as the de facto TE3 on Sunday. He played 20 snaps against the Bills, all of them as a jumbo tight end.
Defense
Total snaps: 59 | Time on the field: 24:57 | * denotes starter
LB Robert Spillane* (59; 100%), LB Christian Elliss* (59; 100%), CB Carlton Davis III* (59; 100%), CB Marcus Jones* (59; 100%), S Craig Woodson* (59; 100%), S Kevin Byard* (59; 100%), DT Milton Williams* (46; 78%), ED Dre’Mont Jones* (44; 75%), ED Elijah Ponder (41; 69%), CB Charles Woods (35; 59%), DT Cory Durden* (34; 58%), ED Gabe Jacas (25; 42%), DT Leonard Taylor III (20; 34%), DT DaQuan Jones* (18; 31%), DT Joshua Farmer (16; 27%), LB Darius Muasau* (8; 14%), CB Kindle Vildor (8; 14%)
The Patriots defense were without two off its starters, being forced to replace defensive tackle Christian Barmore and cornerback Christian Gonzalez. The unit took two different approaches.
In Barmore’s case, Leonard Taylor saw a serious uptick in playing time. Typically a healthy scratch, Taylor played 20 snaps versus Buffalo as a rotational piece alongside the remaining top-level interior D-linemen Milton Williams and Cory Durden. Speaking of those two, their respective playing-time shares of 78% and 58% also marked season-highs for each of them.
In the secondary, the Patriots did not rely on a Taylor-esque presence to help replace Gonzalez. Instead, they used usual starters Carlton Davis and Marcus Jones as their top cornerbacks and also rotated No. 4 Charles Woods into the lineup on occasion. Practice squad call-up Kindle Vildor only saw the field after Woods briefly exited with what he later called a “stinger” in his right shoulder; rookie Karon Prunty saw no defensive playing time with Gonzalez out.
Also not playing any defensive snaps were the backup safeties. Unlike the first three weeks of the season, the Patriots decided against using any three-safety packages against the Bills.
Special teams
Total snaps: 26 | Time on the field: 2:18
LB Darius Muasau (23; 88%), LB Namdi Obiazor (23; 88%), S/PP Mike Brown (23; 88%), TE Cameron Latu (22; 85%), LB Erick Hunter (19; 73%), CB Karon Prunty (18; 69%), ED Elijah Ponder (17; 65%), ED Jose Ramirez (15; 58%), ED Gabe Jacas (14; 54%), S Jaylen Reed (13; 50%), RB/KR Corey Kiner (8; 31%), K Andy Borregales (8; 31%), DT Cory Durden (7, 27%), P/H Mitch Wishnowsky (7, 27%), LS Julian Ashby (7, 27%), WR/KR Kyle Williams (6; 23%), CB Kindle Vildor (5; 19%), WR Efton Chism III (4; 15%), DT Milton Williams (4; 15%), DT DaQuan Jones (4; 15%), CB/PR Marcus Jones (4; 15%), OT Will Campbell (3; 12%), OT Caleb Lomu (3; 12%), OL Alijah Vera-Tucker (3; 12%), OL Ben Brown (3; 12%), OL Walter Rouse (3; 12%), DT Leonard Taylor III (3; 12%), FB Reggie Gilliam (2; 8%), TE Eli Raridon (2; 8%), LB Christian Elliss (1; 4%)
The Patriots employed five “core four” players on Sunday to see the field as part of all the return and coverage units: Darius Muasau, Namdi Obiazor, Mike Brown, Cameron Latu and LB Erick Hunter. Hunter in particular deserves a special mention, because he played four of his snaps as a gunner on punt coverage — a role not typically reserved for a linebacker.
Speaking of players worth being highlighted, young edges Elijah Ponder and Gabe Jacas continue to see serious special teams exposure on top of their defensive roles.
Did not play
QB Tommy DeVito, OL Matt Pryor
After relieving Drake Maye late during last week’s blowout loss in Jacksonville, Tommy DeVito remained on the bench again for four quarters on Sunday. His season-long snap count therefore stays at 12, all of them coming in Week 3. Joining him on the list of DNPs was recently-signed guard Matt Pryor.
Inactive
QB3 Behren Morton, TE Tanner Arkin, OT Dametrious Crownover, DT Christian Barmore, CB Christian Gonzalez, CB Channing Canada
Besides missing the aforementioned Christian Gonzalez and Christian Barmore due to injury, the Patriots were also without backup cornerback Channing Canada. Their other inactives were all healthy scratches and at this point in the season are merely emergency options at their respective positions.
