Patriots vs. Bills series history: New England will try to recapture some throwback magic in Week 13

The New England Patriots will face off with the Buffalo Bills on Thursday Night Football, with kickoff at Gillette Stadium slated for 8:15 p.m. ET. The Patriots currently lead the all-time series 77-47-1.

Let’s take a look back on some important games between the division rivals.

First Meeting: The first matchup between these two franchises took place on Sep. 23, 1960. The Bills defeated the Patriots 13-0.

The Patriots did not score in this contest and three separate quarterbacks combined to throw four interceptions. Their most productive player was Dick Christy, who had nine rushes for 93 rushing yards.

Tommy O’Connell started for completed just six passes for 131 passing yards along with a touchdown and interception. Wray Carlton had 41 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. Carl Smith had one catch for 58 yards and a receiving touchdown. A missed extra point led to Buffalo having 13.

Most Lopsided Game: The most lopsided game occurred on Nov. 18, 2007. The Patriots defeated the Bills 56-10, a whopping 46-point margin of victory.

Tom Brady started for New England and threw for 373 yards and five touchdowns. Kyle Eckel and Laurence Maroney each added a rushing touchdown, while Randy Moss had 10 catches for 128 yards and four scores in this game. Benjamin Watson added 43 receiving yards and a touchdown as well. Ellis Hobbs also had a fumble return for a score to give the Patriots an eight-touchdown day.

It was a tough day for Buffalo starter J.P. Losman as he had 173 yards along with a touchdown pass and interception. Roscoe Parish had the one catch, and it went for a 47-yard score, while Ryan Lindell also tacked on a 52-yard field goal.

Most Recent Matchup/Playoff History: The most recent matchup took place on Jan. 15, 2022, in the wild card playoff round. The Bills won 47-17 in an absolute blowout.

Mac Jones started for the Patriots and had 232 yards on top of two touchdowns and a pair of interceptions. Kendrick Bourne had seven catches for 77 yards and both touchdowns. Nick Folk also added a 44-yard field goal.

Josh Allen exposed the New England secondary for 308 yards and five passing touchdowns. Devin Singletary added 81 yards on the ground and two rushing touchdowns. Dawson Knox had 89 receiving yards and two touchdowns while Gabriel Davis, Emmanuel Sanders and Tommy Doyle all had a receiving score as well.

The only other playoff matchup between those two rivals took place on Dec. 28, 1963. The then-Boston Patriots won 26-8 in the divisional round.

Babe Parilli threw for 300 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Larry Garron had 120 receiving yards and caught both scores. Gino Cappelletti added four field goals and two extra points to get to 26.

The Bills started Daryle Lamonica and he had a touchdown and three interceptions. That lone touchdown went to Elbert Dubenion. They also had a two-point conversion.

Most Memorable Matchup: Despite two playoff matchups, the most memorable matchup in these franchises' history took place on Sep. 14, 2009. The Patriots won 25-24 in Tom Brady’s return from a torn ACL, scoring two touchdowns and recovering a fumble in the final 2:06 to pull off the comeback.

Brady had 378 passing yards and two touchdown passes with an interception in this game. Fred Taylor added 25 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground. Watson had 77 receiving yards and caught those two scores in the final minutes to complete the comeback win. Stephen Gostkowski added two field goals as well.

Trent Edwards started for the Bills and had 212 passing yards with two touchdowns. Fred Jackson and Shawn Nelson each had a touchdown catch. Aaron Schobel had a 26-yard pick-six off of Brady in the first quarter as well.

On Thursday night, he Patriots will try to recapture some of the throwback magic that was on display back in September 2009.