Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Shocker: Patriots Stun Bills In Primetime, Win 23-20

Starting point is 00:00:00 Holy crap, oh my goodness, I can't believe what I just saw, the Pats level up, stock the football world, and end Buffalo's 14-game home winning streak. Let's break it down. This is Lockdown Patriots. You are Locked-on Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcasts. Your team every day. What's happening? Can you actually believe it?

Starting point is 00:00:36 Can you actually believe what we witness tonight? Patriots stunned the football world. They beat the Buffalo Bills in Buffalo in prime time. We're going to get to it. But of course, I got to ask you first, what's happening? I have Nick Cattles born and raised in New England. I am your host. I've been covering the Patriots for the past 16 years.

Starting point is 00:00:56 I'm also the co-host of the Greg Bedard Patriots podcast with Nick Cattels. and a sports talk show host veteran. The Pats go into Buffalo and beat the heavily favored bills, 2320. I thought it'd be competitive, but I did not think we would see the Patriots beat the bills in prime time, Sunday night, national television in front of that chaotic home crowd. But that's precisely what happened, the Patriots with their biggest win in years. And we've got all the reaction coming up as we look at Drake May's, biggest moment as an NFL quarterback. We appreciate you joining the show, making us your first listen

Starting point is 00:01:35 and for being an everyday lockdown Patriots podcast, a proud part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. And this live stream and show is brought to by Mazda. Like our players, Mazda sweats every detail because when you make every move count, pulling off the unexpected is only the beginning. Stay tuned later for highlights in this week's moving the game forward. Mazda move and be moved. And during that read, I cannot find a more apropos read for tonight's football game than that Mazda read I just gave to you. When you make every move count, pulling off the unexpected is only the beginning. And we have to ask the question, is this only the beginning of what Mike Vrable is going to bring to the New England Patriots franchise as its head coach?

Starting point is 00:02:25 But before we get to Vrable, because we are going to talk about the coach, the coaching staff, you've got to start with the quarterback, don't you? Drake May officially arrived tonight. This was his moment. This was his opportunity to show the football world who he is, what he's made of, his talent. Patriots fans watch Drake May every week. They understand the strengths. They understand the weaknesses.

Starting point is 00:02:51 They see the growth from the quarterback. But don't get it twisted. There were literally millions of people watching on. Sunday night who don't watch Drake May, don't understand what he brings to the table, might not know how good he is becoming. And now those millions of people watch that football game and they now clearly understand that the Patriots have a franchise quarterback by the looks of it. This was the biggest moment of Drake May's young career, hands down unequivocally, absolute nails in the second half. The game winning drive.

Starting point is 00:03:28 Let's start with the game-winning drive. The poise. The poise from a second-year quarterback, somebody who has barely played a full season of games at this professional level, showing the poise in that moment during that drive, the command. Mike Vrable said during his halftime interview with NBC, he wanted to see command from his quarterback.

Starting point is 00:03:56 You saw command from Drake May in that. that final drive, start with the first play. The Rabbit Out of the Hat. Absolutely absurd play by Drake May. Defensive line busts through. May is running for his life immediately. That's a drive killer. If Drake May gets sacked, it's a drive killer. You're looking at second and 20. You're probably running the football, playing it conservative, going to punt it to Josh Allen. tie game, Josh Allen drives down and probably beat you and it's a heartbreaking loss. But that very first play from scrimmage and that final drive where somehow some way may initially escapes the pass rush, does the Heisman trophy stiff arm to the Bill's

Starting point is 00:04:45 defensive lineman holds him off and as he's going to the ground doesn't only get rid of the football, but he finds Stefan Diggs, who in turn moves the chains. The very first play of that drive is a gigantic play by your young quarterback, a play that not many guys in the league can make. There's not many quarterbacks that can make that play. That can escape, that can have the strength and hold off the defensive lineman, to be able to make that throw as you're going to the ground and have enough control on the throw to hit digs for that first down.

Starting point is 00:05:24 So the rabbit out of the hat on first down, huge play. Then Drake May follows that up by hitting Kishan booty down the right sideline. And that's not the easiest throw in the world. As Chris Collinsworth highlighted, Drake May has to rip that throw in that particular spot. He's got to put it over the defensive back. He's going to put it over the cornerback. He's going to put it before the safety, drop it in that hole, rip it. it because if you don't put enough, if you don't put enough gas on that throw, it's going to be a

Starting point is 00:05:56 pick. It's going to be broken up. He has enough on that throw. He fits it into the hole right to Kisham Booty, first down chunk play. And then the play. The third down scramble. Many may overlook this play from Drake May. I'm not going to. It is a very intelligent play by your second year quarterback. The clock is ticking. Buffalo has no more timeouts left. Drake May has three options on that third down play right before the kick from Andy Boragallis. He can either throw the football away, which would stop the clock, no bueno. He can take a sack the worst possible scenario, because now you're out of field goal range, or you can do what May did. Escape the pressure, buy some time, turn it upfield, get back to the line of scrimmage so you don't lose any yardage since you're

Starting point is 00:06:51 staring at a 52-yard field go to begin with, get back to the line of scrimmage, stay in bounds, get down, let the clock keep ticking. Very, very smart play, huge play. In what was the most telling aspect of this game, I actually thought that Drake May began the game a little jittery he was leaving the pocket a little bit too early from time to time but i thought he got through that he got through that he went into that locker room during half time he came out in the second half and he was so much better and i'm not saying he was bad in the first half again he just looked a little jittery but he goes out there in the second half and he gets over that quickly because the very first drive of the third quarter was a fantastic drive by Drake May.

Starting point is 00:07:47 It's a first and 10, fake jet sweep, 16 yards to Stefan Diggs. First and 10, shotgun, split back. Kisham Booty, comeback route, 16 yards. First and 10. Josh McDaniels calls for a little trickery, flea flicker. May extends the play, he throws it away, again, smart, bills, illegal contact. And then he has that second and nine under center play action bootleg with the most

Starting point is 00:08:17 ridiculous throw that you will see as he's running towards the sidelines. He rips it downfield in that end zone view from NBC where you're looking from behind Drake May as he uncorks that throw downfield, the Stefan Diggs, who makes a tremendous catch, awesome body control, somehow grab. it with his hands, stays in bounds, and you're set up for a first and goal. Next thing you know, Matt Collins throws a tremendous block. Ramandre Stevenson runs it in for a touchdown. New England goes up 13 to 10, and that followed a touchdown from Buffalo.

Starting point is 00:08:57 Buffalo went up 10.6, and immediately that first drive in the third quarter, Drake May responds. And he drives his team down the field with the help of that tremendous throw and catch to digs, and then all of a sudden you're in the end zone and you're back up 1310. That's the type of response that you wanted to see right out of the half. Smart decisions, and you saw the special about Drake May's game, didn't you? He makes plays that not every quarterback can make it, and that's why we talk about the elite ceiling.

Starting point is 00:09:30 That's why you live with some of the mistakes. That's why when he tries to keep plays alive, you say to yourself, you'll live with the one or two bad plays. You'll live with a turnover because just around the corner could be four or five terrific plays that not every quarterback can make. And we saw that time and time and time and time again. How many times tonight during this game did Drake May escape pressure and make something out of nothing? So many times. Extending plays on the run throws, the arm strength, the intangibles. This was Drake May's moment. a game-winning drive in Buffalo, loud atmosphere, young football team,

Starting point is 00:10:16 primetime against Josh Allen, and Drake May showed out. And he led you to a win against a team that had not lost a home game in 14 straight freaking games. I'm jacked how can you not be excited you have to be excited but drake may wasn't the only patriot who showed out in buffalo stephan digs got his revenge game talk about that next this is lockdown patriots part of the lockdown podcast network your team every day this episode is brought you by square your favorite neighborhood spots run on square There are certain businesses that make the neighborhood, the neighborhood. These are the places that become an extension of home, whether it's the sports bar dedicated to your team's fan base, the spot with the best wings in town for game day, or that beloved local chain that's been rooted in your community for years. These businesses are what bring people together.

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Starting point is 00:11:48 You can go to square.com slash go slash lockdown NFL to learn more. But before you do, go support your favorite neighborhood spot. You'll be happy you did. Square, see you in the neighborhood. This episode is brought to by Mazda's moving the game forward. For those who believe it's not just about playing the game, it's about redefining it. There are moments that do more than put points on the board. They move crowds.

Starting point is 00:12:10 They move culture and keep moving the game forward. This week's moment that moved the game forward. Well, it's Drake May's final drive in the fourth quarter in Buffalo. Drake May showed out in his biggest drive as an NFL quarterback leading the Patriots to a game-winning field goal. And winning in Buffalo, 23, 20. whether it was with his arm or his legs or both, May kept the team's offense moving down the field to score enough points and shock the NFL.

Starting point is 00:12:37 Meanwhile, rookie kicker Andy Boragallis also moved the team forward by drilling the game-winning 52-yard field goal all in primetime May. And Boragallis absolutely helped the pads move forward in their biggest win in years. When you follow what moves you, the unexpected is only the beginning. And just like there's more to every highlight, there's more to a Mazda vehicle. Mazda, move, and B move. You know, last week after Stefan Diggs had the great game against Carolina, I said,

Starting point is 00:13:09 we can't expect that every week from Stefan Diggs. He's coming off in ACL. He's in his 30s. And then tonight, 10 catches, 146 yards, yak all night long. yards after the catch, Stefan Diggs absolutely dominated the Buffalo Bill's secondary in this game. He was tremendous. Before I give you more thoughts on Stefan Diggs, don't forget to help a brother out, don't forget to help a podcast out. Don't forget to help a live stream out.

Starting point is 00:13:43 It's about quarter of one in the morning on the East Coast, and we are here with all of you. And we do this every single day of the week, lockdown Patriots. Don't forget to throw that thumbs up. Give us a like. Throw your comments in. I see there's over 80 comments already. Don't forget to like. Don't forget to comment.

Starting point is 00:14:00 And don't forget to subscribe trying to push up to 7,000 subscribers. We need to show up. Patriots fans need to show the Lockdown Network that they are as passionate as any other fan base that is out there. So like, comment, and subscribe. I appreciate every single one of you. Stefan Diggs has made it so. obvious that when you need a play in the biggest moments, he still has a knack to make that play. He might not have the same explosivity that he had in Minnesota. He might not have

Starting point is 00:14:34 the same explosivity that he had when he was a Buffalo bill. But he still, in the biggest moments, can make a huge play. That first play of the final drive that I mentioned, not only was it spectacular from Drake May, but the fact that's the first. Diggs got open. The fact that Stefan Diggs can make that catch and then turn up field and move the chains. Stefan Diggs was about it on Sunday night. The ridiculous throw-in catch that I mentioned in the first segment when I was

Starting point is 00:15:08 breaking down Drake May's best plays, that absolutely ridiculous catch down the sidelines. That's all hands, baby. I mean, he's going down to the ground and somehow he just plucks it. And he not only plucks it, he stays in bounds, body control. I mean, a spectacular play, proving that you don't have to run a 4-2-40 to make a play down the field. Stefan Diggs still has legitimate elite wide receiver traits. Now, don't get it twisted. I'm not telling you he's one of the top 10 receivers in football.

Starting point is 00:15:45 He's probably not that guy anymore, right? But he still has the traits. He still has crazy hands. I was talking to my friend Jim during camp, and he said the one thing that stood out to him the most was Stefan Diggs's hands. He said when you watch Stefan Diggs, it's like when the quarterback throws the football to Stefan Diggs, it's like he's catching it with a pillow, ridiculously soft hands. And that's what you see on that play down up against the boundary. Pilloy soft hands, the ability to just let the football just enter right into those hands, right into those myths. He still has elite hands.

Starting point is 00:16:30 He still has an elite understanding of where to be and when to be there. The soft spots in the zone, he understands. He understands leverage against corners if they're trying to play man to man against him. He is still a tremendous route runner. So you don't have to have. the Justin Jefferson natural upper tier, top tier talent level kind of game to still be a very effective receiver. Savvy, understanding of the game, route running, great hands, all of those things Stefan Diggs has. And when the game needs it, in the biggest moments, he shows up

Starting point is 00:17:14 sure-handed. How many times through the first five weeks? have we seen Stefan Diggs come up with a third down catch, fourth down catch, big catchdown field, just the last two weeks, how many times have we seen it? Third and fourth down, Drake May has played tremendous football. I'll keep pumping that over and over and over again because it's the truth and it's critical. Drake May has been tremendous on third and fourth down. A big part of that is Stefan Diggs getting open, finding those spots, being there for his quarterback.

Starting point is 00:17:51 And what about the leadership? I'm old enough to remember people wanting to kick off, kick Stefan Diggs off the team because of a video on a yacht somewhere. People thought he was going to be suspended. People were freaking out. What's going to happen with Stefan? Remember those days? It was a couple months ago, wasn't it?

Starting point is 00:18:11 But what about the leadership? I mean, the leadership on the sidelines, the leadership. before games. I tweeted out at Nick C. Radio tonight. I quote tweeted the video the Patriots released on their social media channels earlier tonight where Stefan Diggs is firing up the entire team offense, defense. He's in the middle of the circle and he's screaming the passion that he has. That leadership level, you see him after the touchdown in the second half. And he's, he's standing there after the big play he made down the sideline. He's, you know, he's there greeting every single one of his teammates, motivating them, staying in their ear, telling him that he believes

Starting point is 00:18:54 that they can get this done, they can make this happen, that leadership level. And the leadership from Stefan Diggs, from somebody who's been there and has been one of the best receivers in football, that brings confidence to the rest of the team. That brings the swag. How about the toe drag swag? Speaking of swag, how about that catch on the sidelines when his body is laid out? And he has that toe drag working, that confidence, that swagger. He lifts other boats around him. And right now, you've got to say the Stefan Diggs signing was so impactful for this football team and especially impactful for this quarterback.

Starting point is 00:19:42 And if he keeps playing like this, and I don't know if it's going to happen. Again, last week I said we can't expect this every week from Stefan Diggs, but that is back-to-back 100-yard games. He put up almost 150 receiving yards after what he did against Carolina last week. And if he continues to produce like this, if he continues to look like this, guess what? You do have a guy who you could consider a number one receiver on your team. And you can't overlook that.

Starting point is 00:20:11 You can't overstate that in what that means to Drake May in this offense. Stefan Diggs was absolutely thrilling tonight. He was wonderful for the second straight week. Ten catches, a buck 46. There is plenty of more to discuss about this game, including what this game does for the program moving forward, what it does for Mike Vrable, what it means for Mike Vrable and this coaching staff,

Starting point is 00:20:43 we'll get to all of that next as we continue with the live stream. Tonight's episode, live post game of Lockdown Patriots, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day will have more on Vrable in about 60 seconds. The NFL season is here,

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Starting point is 00:22:00 VisitFandul.com to download the Fandul app today and get started. I'm still not sure if this win has fully registered in my brain just yet. Am I the only one? Like, we're close to 1 a.m. and I'm not sure still. I'm still not sure if I, if I witnessed what I witnessed. That's the best win from the Patriots in years. In years. That's not hyperbolic. It's the biggest win in years. And what a win like that does. It creates belief. It creates belief in Mike Vrable. It creates belief in the entire coaching. staff it creates a belief from all 53 cats in that locker room it creates belief in the vision in the possibilities you go back after that Pittsburgh Steelers loss when you turn the ball over five times in front of your home crowd and how tough that loss was look at how this team has bounced back we can now look at the Miami win

Starting point is 00:23:15 We can now look at the Carolina win, and those wins are more believable that, no, the Patriots just didn't beat teams that aren't very good. The Patriots now officially five games into this season by beating the Buffalo Bills in Buffalo, guess what? Through five weeks, the Patriots, they're a good football team. They don't do everything flawless. They make plenty of mistakes. Hello, Durden. hello farmer in the fourth quarter hello gibbons with those penalties they're not perfect not even close but when you go into buffalo and you beat the super bowl favorite says a lot about your

Starting point is 00:23:59 program and it builds a belief and now all of these guys can look they can look towards this year and say we're just getting started that Pittsburgh lost that was brutal But we found a way. We turn the ball over five times. We lose a heartbreaker at home, but we bounce back. We absolutely dominate the Carolina Panthers. And then we go on the road and we win prime time. We win in prime time against the Super Bowl favorite against the best quarterback in the league.

Starting point is 00:24:33 The defense held the Buffalo Bills and Josh Allen to 20 points in Buffalo. And yes, some of that, as I almost not, knock my mic over. That would have been great. Some of that is Buffalo shooting itself in the foot. But that's what happens in football games. The Patriots shot themselves in the foot as well. In the second half, the Patriots had a number of flags. I just mentioned three of them, which were just killers. They gifted Josh Allen on the offense 30 yards on back-to-back personal fouls on defensive linemen. But this kind of win, it creates the belief in Rabel, it creates the belief in the staff, it creates belief in the vision, and it creates

Starting point is 00:25:14 belief in the possibilities of what could happen, not in 2026, but this year, you've got New Orleans coming up next weekend. You've got Tennessee. You've got some games on this schedule. If you can continue this progress and you can continue this momentum, if this thing starts to roll down the hill, now you're talking about possibilities, and I'm not going to say it. I'm not going to say it. It's too early. I'm not going to do it. You're all going to get mad at me if I sit here and say what you want me to say. I'm not going to say it, but you know what I'm

Starting point is 00:25:48 getting to. This type of win opens eyes. This type of win builds belief and confidence in that locker room. And let me say this. Remandre Stevenson, after that fumble in this game, I said he's got to sit down. And I do believe he would have sat down for the majority of this game if Antonio Gibson didn't get hurt. That didn't look good. It stinks for Antonio Gibson, knee injury. He was ruled out very quickly, which is usually a bad, bad sign. But Antonio Gibson gets hurt. Now you need Remandre Stevenson because you're not going to play Trayvion Henderson 50 snaps. We've discussed this before. I'm not going to go down that road right now. This is a good night. It's a great night. But Mike Vrable stands by Ramandre Stevenson. Remandre Stevenson ends up getting

Starting point is 00:26:38 two touchdown runs. He's out there returning kicks, doing what he's got to do to help the football team. You think that makes Ramandre Stevenson feel good? That his head coach stood by him when I even questioned it and said, you know, do you really want to stand by Ramandre Stevenson with these fumbles? And I certainly wouldn't have played him. But Antonio Gibson, the injury opens a door.

Starting point is 00:27:03 You stand by him. You get him out there. You give him the football. And he rewards you with a couple of touchdowns. How about Andy Boragalus? How many of us, including myself, I'm a guilty party. Raise my hand. When Boragallis, Andy Boragallis was missing extra points, I said, uh-oh,

Starting point is 00:27:17 Patriots might have a kicker problem. Mike Vrable gave him a game ball at the end of the day, right? Gave him that game ball in the locker room. Went out there in front of the media and said, I believe in Andy Boragalus. I believe in our kicker. He's been pretty much flawless ever since those missed extra points. He goes out there and drills a 50,

Starting point is 00:27:38 two-yard game winner in Buffalo, prime time, and that kick would have been good from like 70. He smoked that, split the uprights, it hit the top of the net. Brable standing by some of his guys and his guys giving the response, that builds belief. That builds belief in the head coach. And this is when we talked about Mike Vrable, when he was hired by the Patriots,

Starting point is 00:28:05 how he would get more from his teams in Tennessee than he should have gotten from those teams. And he would have these games against really good teams. And somehow, some way, Tennessee would remain competitive. They'd stay in the game. Sometimes they would win the game. This is a perfect example. Sunday night in Buffalo. This is a perfect example. This is the type of Tennessee Titans win, be competitive type game that Mike Vrable lives for. This is what he gets out of his guys. He is a motivator. He knows how to get. get through. Look at the defense. The defense held, I can't, I can't believe it because I thought for sure, because he's been so good this year. I talked about it preview in the game, but I said,

Starting point is 00:28:50 you've got to stop James Cook. You're going to try to slow him down. James Cook had 49 yards on 15 carries, 3.3 yards of carry. They shut James Cook down. They shut the cut back lanes down. very disciplined against the run. Josh Allen had his. 253 completed 71% of his passes, had a couple of touchdowns, but he also threw a gigantic interception, great play by Marcus Jones in the red zone

Starting point is 00:29:18 to undercut the route and come up with a spectacular pick. This defense played, you know, given the circumstances, they played good football. I know the penalties. The penalties in the fourth quarter, If the Patriots lost this game, if, if, if.

Starting point is 00:29:35 But if they lost this game, we would look back at those penalties and go, oh, my God, how could. But they stopped James Cook. They didn't get eviscerated by Josh Allen. They came up with a couple of stops in the red zone against the best offense in football. And at the end of the day, they created turnovers and they only gave up 20 points. Christian Gonzalez, two huge. past breakups late in the fourth quarter. The defensive backs had solid coverage for most of the night when Alan was extending

Starting point is 00:30:11 plays. Alan, he could have had a sandwich in the pocket a number of times, but the coverage was there. Yes, they had trouble with Dalton Kincaid, but they didn't give up a ton of yak to Khalil Shakir. They didn't get killed by Shakir. They didn't get killed by James Cook. So you're going to give up some Kincaid plays, but I'd rather give up some plays to Dalton Kincaid, then give them up to James Cook all night long.

Starting point is 00:30:35 I'd rather give up a 15, 20-yard played a Dalton Kincaid than getting ripped apart by Khalil Shakir all night with yards after the catch. You're not going to stop everything from the Buffalo Bill's offense. That's not going to happen. They're going to get you a few times. Best offense in football coming into the game. The Patriots, I said, the question was, could they level up? That was the biggest question heading into this game.

Starting point is 00:31:00 could they level up against the Buffalo Bills in prime time? They leveled up. They were not afraid of the moment. They were not afraid of prime time. They were a young football team, one of the youngest teams in the entire league. And they were not overwhelmed. They got past their mistakes. They made enough plays.

Starting point is 00:31:20 And they just gave the Patriots fans the biggest win from this football team in a number of years. Jacked and pumped like Pete Carroll after this one, and you should be too. That wraps up this edition of Lockdown Patriots. Thank you for joining us live or on demand and for being an everydayer. Reach out to me on Twitter at Nick C. Radio. Don't forget to throw a comment in on the YouTube channel. Don't forget to throw a thumbs up. Hit us with the like.

Starting point is 00:31:51 Subscribe as well. And for your second listen, I get a double dose of Lockdown NFL podcast with Tyler the Madman Roland and Tony Wiggins. find locked on NFL on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts. It's going to be a fun week, isn't it? Have a great day. We will see you tomorrow. Man, oh man, best win in years from the Patriots as they beat the bills in Buffalo,

Starting point is 00:32:14 Sunday night football, Drake May with the biggest drive of his NFL career. What a win. Thank you.

Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Shocker: Patriots Stun Bills In Primetime, Win 23-20

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