The New England Patriots face their toughest challenge of the season so far against the Buffalo Bills in Week 4, and several factors will directly determine how the game goes.
The Patriots are off to a 1-2 start to the year, with Drake Maye having endured his share of lows and not the same highs that told the story of his year in 2025. Meanwhile, the Bills are absolutely rolling at 3-0 with the highest-scoring offense in the league, averaging 33.7 points per game. Defenses around the league have not had an answer for them this year.
Everyone from Josh Allen to DJ Moore will require attention from New England in order to contain, while the Patriots offense will need to execute to keep up on the scoreboard. With that at play, let’s take a look at the three
things to watch for in the upcoming matchup against the two AFC East rivals on Sunday.
Maye has chance to break out of slump against Bills secondary
Maye enters the matchup looking to rebound from a difficult start to the year. He has completed 63.8 percent of his passes for 585 yards and a touchdown, and he has thrown the most interceptions in the league with six. He’s also been sacked nine times this year so far.
However, Buffalo’s secondary has allowed the seventh-most passing yards (827) and fourth-most passing touchdowns (7) in the league to opponents this season, giving Maye a great opportunity to get going by making plays in the passing attack.
Maye’s priority will be taking care of the football and making more explosive, scoring plays, two areas of play that have been most glaringly out of sorts for him to begin the season. Buffalo’s record and esteem among Super Bowl contenders do not dismiss the fact that Maye will be in position to go blow-for-blow with their offense this week. No storyline is greater for New England than that.
Containing Buffalo’s ground game
The Patriots’ defense must deal with a multifaceted Buffalo rushing attack led by the reigning NFL rushing yards leader James Cook and Allen. Cook has the third-most rushing yards in the league this season with 346 yards, and he has also scored two rushing touchdowns, continuing his stellar level of play dating back to last season. Allen has added 119 rushing yards this year and is tied for the league lead in rushing touchdowns with six.
New England will need to contain the run against Buffalo as best as possible. The Bills have one of the most potent rushing attacks in the league, and not accounting for Allen on scrambles or Cook on designed runs might allow Buffalo to dictate the tempo of the game.
The Kincaid test
Kincaid presents another demanding assignment for New England’s linebackers and secondary. He has produced the seventh-most receiving yards in the league this season with 263 yards, and he has also scored a receiving touchdown through three games, giving Allen a productive target to rely on.
The Patriots will need clean communication in coverage, particularly when Buffalo uses formations designed to create advantageous looks for him. Preventing Kincaid from going off will be essential to limiting the Bills’ passing attack in the game.
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This article originally appeared on Patriots Wire: Three things to watch for in Patriots’ Week 4 matchup vs. Bills
