Tom Brady uses “Rex Ryan” as audible call vs. Bills

Receiver Danny Amendola, who had been stepping up in the absence of Julian Edelman, left the game with a knee injury.

In 10 games played this season, the 30-year-old has 49 receptions for 520 yards and two touchdowns. “Rex Ryan!” Asked if there was a message in it, Brady struggled to suppress a smile. “I think there are advantages to being outside, in that slot area, or inside, if you will – depending on what you’re trying to do, who you’re matched up against, what you’re trying to run”.

Next up, just a few days from now, are the Broncos, and the potential denouement of another rivalry, the one between Brady and Peyton Manning.

Ryan was less troubled about any personal slight than losing to his longtime nemesis for the 11th time in 15 games. Someone named Chris Harper dressed at wide receiver for the Patriots last night, and if you say you’d heard of him before a week ago I’d call you a liar.

For the Bills, Tyrod Taylor went 20-36 for 233 yards.

Sammy Watkins caught a pass inbounds and lunged towards the sideline, going out of the field of play with two seconds left.

“We’ll see how Osweiler holds up vs. New England”, NBC Sports’ Tony Dungy said. So we’ve got to get creative and think of different things.

RUNNING AWAY: The Patriots lead the AFC East by five games with six to play.

In the end, the Patriots were the better team and deserved the win. “That’s what championship teams do”. At one point, Rex said, “Why are you even talking to me?”

In that case, the refs wound the clock, declining to stop it, essentially awarding the Patriots a 20-13 victory that New England certainly earned but, well, you get the idea. Stephon Gilmore picked Brady off – just the fourth interception of the year for the reigning Super Bowl MVP; another interception was negated by offsetting penalties. It’s pretty obvious that Amendola did not have the ball when the whistle was blown, so it makes you wonder if the refs fudged the rule to make it a bit more equitable.

Fumbled punts didn’t help either. The Bills were at their own 48-yard-line as time expired. New England’s Jonathan Freeny picked it and rumbled 5 yards before he lost the ball and it bounced out of bounds. He picked up 8 yards on a third-down draw and a 6-yard touchdown on a quick run near the goal line.

Even the referees were sloppy.

Long story short: National Football League rules are stupid, and referees don’t seem to have a better idea of how to enforce them than the game’s highly-confused fans do.

The play had been blown dead because Bills head coach Rex Ryan had interfered with the side judge on the sideline (which was the only fair part about how the call unfolded).

An inadvertent whistle came in the third quarter on a 14-yard pass to wide receiver Danny Amendola when the official apparently thought quarterback Tom Brady stepped out of bounds.

Up until last night, the Pats had a record 38 consecutive quarters where they scored.

And another streak was snapped, too. Because of New England’s missing pieces, the Bills were able to devote a safety to shade over Gronkowski for most of the game, limiting his effectiveness. It was his first miss since November 30, 2014, and his first miss at home since Week 2 of the 2013 season. He added only one more reception, but it went for 27 yards.