The Patriots will not have the No. 1 pick of the 2025 draft.
New England won Sunday’s game over Buffalo 23-16, giving the club four wins on the season. That takes the Patriots out of contention for the top pick, as the Browns, Titans, and Giants ended the year with just three victories.
While Drake Maye started the contest at quarterback, he was on the field for just the first possession — which lasted just three plays. Joe Milton then came in and played well for the majority of the contest, albeit against many of Buffalo’s backups.
Milton finished 22-of-29 passing for 241 yards with a touchdown. He also rushed for a touchdown.
Many of his passes went to receiver Kayshon Boutte, who finished the contest with seven receptions for 117 yards with a TD.
While the Bills went up 16-14 with James Cook’s 1-yard touchdown in the third quarter, Patriots kicker Joey Slye hit field goals of 41 and 42 yards in the third and fourth quarter to give his team the lead.
Slye then connected from 50 late in the fourth quarter to finish it out.
Cook’s score tied O.J. Simpson’s single-season franchise record with 16 rushing touchdowns.
Having locked up AFC’s No. 2 seed, the Bills started quarterback Josh Allen to continue his streak, but he played just one snap — handing off to Cook — before making way for Mitchell Trubisky. Mike White came in to finish the contest at QB.
Von Miller also reached his $1.5 million incentive by sacking Maye on the third play from scrimmage.
With the win, the Patriots will select no later than No. 4 in the 2025 draft. But the team has plenty of improvements to make in the offseason.
The Bills will face the AFC’s No. 7 seed next weekend, which will be one of Denver, Miami, or Cincinnati, depending on Sunday afternoon’s results.
