Post-Game, Week 8: Patriots 21 @ Buffalo 16

New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi returned to the field, and the Patriots survived an inane imbalance in first-half time of possession and scored three touchdowns in the second half to defeat the Buffalo Bills, 21-16, and claim a one-game lead in the AFC East.

Bruschi, less than 9 months removed from a stroke following the Patriots most recent Super Bowl victory, returned to the playing field and played a lot. The man called the "heart and soul of the Patriots defense" recorded 2 solo tackles and 5 assists on 64 of 77 defensive plays. But by far, his contributions were felt much deeper than a few numbers on the stat sheet.

"With Bruschi out there we played with a different intensity and it was good,"” safety Eugene Wilson said. "“As soon as he came back to practice, you could see the difference in the players."

Indeed, a lackluster Patriots defense that has broken past bending the last several weeks still struggled mightily but gave up only 3 points despite Buffalo controlling the clock for 22 of 30 minutes in the first half. Bruschi's presence may have forced Buffalo to recognize his threat, concentrate on him, freeing up other players to do what they have been unable to up to now.

Maybe a recognition of Bruschi's presence contributed to what many have called the play of the game: The Patriots down 16-14 with 6:20 left in the game, linebacker Rosevelt Colvin came on a blind-side blitz to strip-sack Buffalo quarterback Kelly Holcomb. Colvin recovered the fumble himself, and that led to the Patriots' winning score.

"“We'’re in the huddle saying somebody do something,"” Bruschi said. Â"“We needed someone to make a play, and he was the guy tonight."”

A lot of guys made plays when they absolutely needed to. But for the most part, it was a frightful affair somewhat reminiscent of last year's Halloween debacle at Pittsburgh: a game of mis-tackles and huge tracts of yardage.

''We didn't play as well defensively as we wanted to," said linebacker Willie McGinest. ''There are some things we can do better. We're going to work it out. If we don't get better, there are going to be some problems."

In addition to Colvin's play, Asante Samuel piHolcomb Holcombe with 6:31 left in the third quarter. It was only the second interception this season for the Patriots and just the first by a defensive back.

Buffalo controlled the majority of the clock in all four quarters, but the first half was virtually unprecedented. The Bills owned the ball for a full 12 minutes in the first quarter and 10:08 more in the second. Even in the second half, Buffalo held a 17:13 to 12:47 clock edge. That's just under a 40- to 20-minute advantage.

Despite the lopsidedness, Buffalo scored just 3 points on a Ryan Lindell chip-shot field goal with 8:41 left to play in the second quarter. Lindell missed a 46-yarder on the Bills previous series, and New England's Adam Vinatieri missed a 44-yarder at the end of the half.

Things changed rapidly in the third quarter. The Patriots took the second-half kickoff and streaked down the field in 2:28, the drive culminating on a 33-yard in-stride pass from Tom Brady to Deion Branch. The lead was short-lived as the Bills struck back in 83 seconds on a 55-yard Holcomb to Eric Moulds hookup.

A couple of early fourth-quarter field goals put Buffalo up 16-7 before New England, backs comfortably against the wall, scored on their next two possessions, both Corey Dillon 1-yard touchdowns with Dan Klecko filling in a fullback. The first score followed a 3:01 drive sparked by a first-play 37 yard loft to Branch that was unsuccessfully challenged by Buffalo. Following Colvin's heroics, the Patriots scored on two plays: a 22-yard bullet from Brady to Branch, and Dillon's dive.

Branch had three receptions (for 92 yards), all of them scores or key plays leading to scores.

Dillon gained 72 yards on 18 carries (4.0 avg) in relief of Patrick Pass who pulled up lame and fumbled on a left-side second-down sweep on the second play of the second quarter. The injury was reported to be a hamstring, and Pass did not return. There is no information on his status.

Brady finished with 199 yards on 14 of 21 passing. In addition to his three completions to Branch, he hit David Givens 7 times for 58 yards and just four other receivers just once each.

Holcomb had 263 yards on 20 of 33 passing with a touchdown and an interception. Moulds had 125 of those yards on 9 receptions, including his touchdown. Willis McGahee had 136 yards on 31 carries (4.4 avg) as the middle of the Patriots defense remained very soft.

New England defensive lineman Richard Seymour, who said he would play in Sunday night's game, did not practice Thursday or Friday and was listed inactive. It was the third consecutive game Seymour missed.

Next week: Buffalo has its bye week. The Bills (3-5) host Kansas City (4-3) the following Sunday at 1 p.m. New England (4-3) hosts Indianapolis (8-0) next Monday Night at 9 p.m.

Quotes in this story were taken from the Boston Herald and The Boston Globe.