National Football League

Tom looks terrific as Patriots beat Bills 37-22

Published Oct. 13, 2014 4:21 a.m. ET

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ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) Tom's Terrific again. And the New England Patriots sure don't appear to look so vulnerable.

Two weeks after questions were raised over whether the Patriots' decade-plus era of dominance might be dimming, Brady and Co. showed they're in no position to be written off any time soon.

It helps, too, that Buffalo Bills continue to bring out the best out of their AFC East nemesis.

Brady threw four touchdowns for a season-best 361 yards in New England's 37-22 win over the Bills on Sunday. It marked his 60th career 300-yard game and 16th outing in which Brady has four or more touchdowns and no interceptions.

In doing so, he upped his record to 23-2 over Buffalo, helped the Patriots (4-2) claim top spot in the division, and bested the Bills (3-3), who were opening a new era under new owners Terry and Kim Pegula.

''It was fun to be out there,'' Brady said. ''We are six games into the year. We are a long way from the team we are going to be here in a couple of months.''

The offense continued showing signs of a newfound identity in winning two in a row following a 41-14 loss at Kansas City on Sept. 29.

Brady went 27 of 37 and completed passes to 10 receivers, including two touchdowns to Brandon LaFell about six minutes apart in the fourth quarter to seal the victory. Brian Tyms and tight end Tim Wright also scored touchdowns.

The Bills continued raising doubts about their consistency.

They've lost three of four. They failed to build on the momentum of a come-from-behind 17-14 win at Detroit last weekend. And they failed to capitalize on the electric environment generated by a sold-out crowd that eagerly greeted the Pegulas, while losing to an all-too-familiar opponent.

''It's frustrating,'' Bills tight end Scott Chandler said. ''They've been the top dog in our division since the division was formed.''

Here's some things that stood out in a game the Patriots never trailed:

TURNOVERS: The Bills turned the ball over three times on six second-quarter possessions, which led directly to 13 New England points.

Kyle Orton went 24 of 38 for 299 yards with touchdown passes to Robert Woods and Chris Hogan. But he threw an interception and lost a fumble in his second start since taking over for EJ Manuel. Running back C.J. Spiller also lost a fumble with 6 seconds left, which set up Stephen Gostkowski's 53-yard field goal that put New England up 13-7.

Brady opened the second half with a 43-yard TD pass to Tyms.

INJURIES: Patriots coach Bill Belichick expressed concern over Jerod Mayo's status after the linebacker hurt his right knee and was carted off in the second quarter.

''Obviously, it was a little bittersweet with Jerod going down in the first half, so I hope he's OK,'' Belichick said without going into detail. The Patriots also lost starting running back Stevan Ridley (right knee) and starting guard Dan Connolly (concussion).

New England has little time to rest up in preparing to host the New York Jets on Thursday.

GRONKED OUT: Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski, who grew up in Buffalo, had seven catches for 94 yards but was held without a touchdown for the first time in seven games against the Bills. Gronkowski had appeared to extend the streak, but his 18-yard touchdown catch was negated by a holding penalty to guard Jordan Dewey.

No matter.

''Everyone was clicking on all cylinders,'' Gronkowski said. ''It's great to come to the hometown, in front of my friends and family and get that victory.''

PEGULA-VILLE: Led by Terry, the entire Pegula family - and dog Sidney - took the field for a pregame ceremony. Pegula made a brief speech and paid tribute to his predecessor, Bills founder and Hall of Fame owner Ralph Wilson, who died in March.

''There aren't too many times in life where I'm happy with being second in anything,'' Pegula said. ''But to follow Ralph Wilson, I'll accept that.''

SIDELINES: The Bills squandered a chance to have four wins through six weeks for only the third time since 2000. ... The Patriots, who lost their season-opener against Miami, have never started a season 0-2 against AFC East rivals since the NFL realigned its divisions in 2002. ... Chandler led Buffalo with six catches for a career-high 105 yards, becoming the team's first tight end to surpass 100 yards since Pete Metzelaars had 113 on Sept. 13, 1992.

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AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL

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