Ridley scores twice, Pats rout Bills 52-28
Published 12:01 am Monday, October 1, 2012
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — There’s nothing wrong with Tom Brady and the New England Patriots that a game against their familiar AFC East patsies — the Buffalo Bills — can’t fix.
Not even after Brady and Co. spotted them a 14-point, third-quarter lead.
Brady responded by directing six straight touchdown drives in the second half on Sunday en route to a 52-28 blowout.
Natchez native Stevan Ridley scored twice and tallied 106 yards in Sunday’s win. He scored the Patriots’ opening touchdown on a 6-yard carry with 6:49 left in the first quarter. His second touchdown came on a 2-yard run with 11:42 left in the fourth quarter.
It was a game in which the Patriots (2-2) produced 580 total yards, forced six turnovers and avoided their first three-game losing streak in 10 years.
“Down 21-7 and on the road, backs against the wall, and I thought we showed a lot of heart,” Brady said. “That’s what this team is made of. And we’re going to battle until the end, I know that.”
Brady finished 22 of 36 for 340 yards and three touchdowns, plus one rushing. The 580 yards was the fourth-most in team history.
Cornerback Devin McCourty had two interceptions in keying a defense that forced six turnovers and had three sacks.
Wes Welker had nine catches for 129 yards, and tight end Rob Gronkowski had five for 104 yards and a touchdown as both players bounced back from first-half fumbles.
“You can’t panic,” Gronkowski said. “When you panic, nothing good happens from there. We just stuck to the game plan.”
The comeback began immediately after Ryan Fitzpatrick hit Donald Jones for a 68-yard touchdown pass on the Bills first possession of the second half.
Brady responded with an eight-play, 80-yard drive by hitting Danny Woodhead for a 17-yard touchdown. After tying the game with a 4-yard run, Brady capped a five-play 63-yard drive by hitting Gronkowski with a 28-yard touchdown pass.
The Patriots scored 35 points in a span of 12:41 in building a 42-21 lead on Brandon Bolden’s 7-yard run.
“We just played and executed better,” coach Bill Belichick said. “It’s no magic.”