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Bills put four-game winning streak on line vs. Patriots

Nov 18, 2007 - 11:27 AM New England (9-0) at Buffalo (5-4) Sunday 8:15 pm EST

ORCHARD PARK, New York (Ticker) -- The New England Patriots are not the only team in the AFC East on a roll.

The Patriots put their unbeaten record on the line when they visit the surprising Buffalo Bills on Sunday night.

Buffalo, which opened the season with three consecutive losses and a slew of season-ending injuries, slowly has crept back into playoff contention, running off four consecutive victories.

Only New England and the Green Bay Packers are riding winning streaks that long.

The Bills certainly aren't winning in the spectacular fashion of the Patriots, who have won all but two of their games by 21-point margins.

However, since a 38-7 loss at New England in Week Three, Buffalo's only loss was a 25-24, Monday night home defeat to the Dallas Cowboys, who scored nine points in the final 20 seconds to escape with the win.

Instead, the Bills have shown great resolve, winning their past three games despite not having led entering the fourth quarter.

Rookie running back Marshawn Lynch is having a solid season for the Bills. However, he injured his ankle late in Sunday's 13-10 victory over the Miami Dolphins and was scheduled to undergo an MRI exam Tuesday.

Against the Dolphins, Lynch scored on a three-yard run and also added the game-tying two-point conversion before setting up Rian Lindell's game-winning 34-yard field goal with 48 seconds remaining.

In the previous week, Lynch rumbled for a career-high 153 yards and a TD in a 33-21 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

The only thing that has stopped the Patriots was last week's bye. New England got its first test the previous week, rallying from a 10-point deficit in the final nine minutes to upend the defending Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts, 24-20.

It was the only time the Patriots have scored under 34 points this season. In the first meeting with the Bills, New England trailed, 7-3, after one quarter, but Tom Brady threw a pair of TD passes in the final 5:08 of the first half to start a run of 35 unanswered points.

New England has won the past eight meetings and 13 of the last 14 in the series.