2000 Week 16 · Sun, Dec 17, 2000 · Ralph Wilson Stadium
New England PatriotsWinner
13
at
Buffalo Bills
10
BUF -4.5 upsetU 39 ✓25 mph wind
New England Patriots 13–10 — decided on the final possessions. Played in 25 mph wind — weigh that when reading the passing lines.
Pre-2018 game — box score & context only; play-by-play visuals start in 2018
Who moved the needle
Top performers
Full stat lines
Box score
New England Patriots
Passing
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drew Bledsoe | 13/26 | 156 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -0.3 |
Rushing
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.R. Redmond | 20 | 66 | 3.3 | 0 | -3.1 |
| Kevin Faulk | 14 | 52 | 3.7 | 1 | -1.1 |
| Tony Carter | 9 | 34 | 3.8 | 0 | -4.4 |
| Troy Brown | 2 | 23 | 11.5 | 0 | -0.4 |
| Drew Bledsoe | 2 | 14 | 7.0 | 0 | 1.5 |
| Lee Johnson | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | -3.7 |
Receiving
| Player | Rec | Tgt | Yds | TD | Tgt share | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terry Glenn | 6 | 11 | 70 | 0 | 46% | 0.9 |
| Jermaine Wiggins | 3 | 4 | 42 | 0 | 17% | 2.2 |
| Tony Carter | 1 | 2 | 21 | 0 | 8% | 0.9 |
| Troy Brown | 2 | 3 | 15 | 0 | 13% | 0.6 |
| Kevin Faulk | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 4% | 0.2 |
| Curtis Jackson | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 13% | -2.3 |
Defense (top contributors)
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Otis Smith | 9 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chad Eaton | 7 | 1 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Lawyer Milloy | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Hamilton | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Ted Johnson | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Willie McGinest | 3 | 1 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Slade | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Garrett Johnson | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tebucky Jones | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Antonio Langham | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Buffalo Bills
Passing
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Doug Flutie | 15/25 | 193 | 1 | 0 | 3 | -6.2 |
| Rob Johnson | 1/3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | -3.3 |
Rushing
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shawn Bryson | 19 | 82 | 4.3 | 0 | -2.1 |
| Doug Flutie | 9 | 50 | 5.6 | 0 | -5.3 |
| Sammy Morris | 11 | 43 | 3.9 | 0 | -0.2 |
| Antowain Smith | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 0.2 |
Receiving
| Player | Rec | Tgt | Yds | TD | Tgt share | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peerless Price | 3 | 6 | 68 | 0 | 21% | -8.7 |
| Jeremy McDaniel | 3 | 4 | 38 | 0 | 14% | 3.5 |
| Shawn Bryson | 3 | 4 | 34 | 0 | 14% | 1.9 |
| Eric Moulds | 2 | 6 | 26 | 0 | 21% | 0.2 |
| Jay Riemersma | 1 | 4 | 19 | 0 | 14% | -1.8 |
| Sammy Morris | 3 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 11% | -1.0 |
| Sheldon Jackson | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4% | 0.9 |
Defense (top contributors)
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jay Foreman | 6 | 5 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Holecek | 8 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Marcellus Wiley | 4 | 5 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shawn Price | 1 | 6 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Keith Newman | 3 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Travares Tillman | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Henry Jones | 1 | 4 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Watson | 1 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Raion Hill | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daryl Porter | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
Closing number vs result
Betting context
- Closing spread
- BUF -4.5
- Closing total
- 39
- NE moneyline
- —
- BUF moneyline
- —
Bills closed -4.5 and lost outright — an upset against the closing number.
Total closed 39; the game landed 23 — under by 16.0.
Conditions and crew
Game environment
- Venue
- Ralph Wilson Stadium
- Roof / surface
- outdoors · astroturf
- Kickoff weather
- 35°F, wind 25 mph
- Referee
- Phil Luckett
- Rest
- NE 7 days · BUF 6 days
- Coaches
- Bill Belichick vs Wade Phillips
Division game — familiarity tightens these matchups; closing numbers tend to be sharper.
Wind at 25 mph is the kind that drags passing depth and kicking range — weigh it when reading the splits.