Bills now beasts of the East

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Time to Bill-ieve? Ryan Fitzpatrick and the new-look, resilient, win-in-the-clutch Buffalo Bills are showing they're for real after producing their second straight stunning comeback victory -- this time against their AFC East nemeses, the New England Patriots.

Rian Lindell hit a 28-yard field goal as time expired to cap a 34-31 win over the Patriots in which the Bills overcame a 21-0 second-quarter deficit and snapped a 15-game losing streak against New England.

It was a win for the new generation of Bills, who don't know any better. And the victory was particularly cherished by senior members such as linebacker Chris Kelsay, one of four Buffalo players still on hand since the team's last victory over New England, in the 2003 season opener. "It's the biggest win of my career. I can't think of any bigger," Kelsay said. "To beat these guys at home, in front of our fans, with the way they're behind us despite being down early, it's huge. I'll never forget it."

Former Bills lineman Ruben Brown hugged Buffalo players as they ran up the tunnel. Running back Fred Jackson ran around the field carrying a Bills flag. And stadium workers took no chances, first guarding the goalposts before lowering them before fans got any ideas.

It was that kind of euphoric win for a team attempting to turn around a dreadful past in which it has gone 11 seasons without making the playoffs.

The Bills (3-0) won courtesy of yet another Fitzpatrick-led rally. And it was reminiscent of what the Bills did in a 38-35 win over Oakland a week earlier, when they scored touchdowns on their final five possessions to overcome a 21-3 deficit.

Fitzpatrick was 27-for-40 passing for 369 yards and two touchdowns. Jackson once again provided a spark with 72 yards rushing and a touchdown, and 87 yards receiving, including a 38-yard catch that set up Lindell's deciding kick.

The Patriots (2-1) had a 10-game regular-season winning streak snapped and suddenly find themselves looking up in the standings at Buffalo. Aside from their 15-game win streak, third longest in NFL history for one franchise against another, the Pats had won 20 of the previous 21 over the Bills.

"Obviously, it was a disappointing loss for us today," Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. "We've just got to do a better job."

Wes Welker had 16 catches for a franchise-record 217 yards and two scores, and Rob Gronkowski also scored twice. Tom Brady was 30-for-45 passing for 386 yards and four scores for New England, but uncharacteristically unraveled.

Brady set a league record for most yards passing over a three-game stretch, but also matched a career worst with four interceptions. That included Drayton Florence's 27-yard interception return for a touchdown with 10:22 left that came 14 seconds after Jackson tied it at 24 with a 1-yard run.

Brady, whose four interceptions matched the number he had all of last season, said: "We played a good football team and made too many mistakes."