Sports News
Jets Beat Buffalo Bills 26-17
Abram Elam returned an interception 92 yards for a touchdown and Thomas Jones ran for a score, as the New York Jets downed the Buffalo Bills, 26-17, in an important AFC East matchup at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
Jay Feely connected on 4-of-5 field goal attempts for the Jets (5-3), who have won two in a row and pulled even with Buffalo (5-3) in the division standings. The New England Patriots lead the AFC East at 5-2 heading into Sunday night's tilt against Indianapolis.
"A win on the road against a tough division opponent is always a really good thing," said Jets head coach Eric Mangini. "I think it's an incredibly tough division. Whenever you're playing any of our division opponents, it's a challenge -- especially on the road."
Brett Favre completed 19-of-28 passes for 201 yards with an interception that was returned for a touchdown in the victory, while Jones ran for 69 yards on 12 carries.
Trent Edwards was picked off twice and threw for 289 yards while completing 24-of-35 passes with a touchdown for Buffalo, which has lost two in a row -- both within the division. The Bills lost to Miami last week and will try to avoid an 0-3 start within the AFC East next week when they visit New England.
"This was a real disappointing loss," said Bills head coach Dick Jauron. "We made too many errors to overcome."
Buffalo played most of the first half without leading rusher Marshawn Lynch, who was suffering from flu-like symptoms. He came back in the second half and finished the game with just 16 yards on nine carries, while adding three catches for 52 yards.
The Bills managed just 30 yards rushing.
"It's tough to keep their defense guessing if we can't establish [the run]," said Edwards. "Then they obviously know we're going to pass the ball and that puts a lot of stress on our passing game."
New York was clinging to a 16-10 lead late in the third quarter, thanks to the interception return for a touchdown and three Feely field goals, and on its fifth drive inside the Buffalo 20 finally reached the end zone.
Thomas capped the four-play, 60-yard march with a seven-yard touchdown run with 1:07 left in the third to give New York a 23-10 cushion.
The Bills followed with a drive inside the New York 15, but Edwards was sacked twice and Rian Lindell missed a 43-yard field goal try. The Buffalo defense got the team right back in the game on the very next play.
Favre was picked off by Jabari Greer and he returned the interception 42 yards for a touchdown to make it a 23-17 game with 10:53 remaining. It was Greer's second TD return of an interception this season and the third time this year that Favre had a pick returned for a score.
The Jets, though, answered with a 14-play drive that ate up 8:41 -- most of it on the ground -- and Feely drilled a 31-yard field goal with 2:12 remaining to extend the lead to 26-17.
Darrelle Revis then ended Buffalo's last hope with an interception in the end zone.
"We had opportunities, [but] they made the plays," Jauron said about the Jets. "That's usually what it comes down to in these games. They made the plays and we didn't at the times when the play presents itself. It was definitely disappointing."
Leon Washington returned the opening kickoff 40 yards to give the Jets good field position at their own 39, and the speedy running back turned a short pass into a 40-yard gain on the second play from scrimmage. The drive stalled and Feely kicked a 37-yard field goal for a quick 3-0 lead.
Buffalo responded in similar fashion with a three-play drive but scored a touchdown. After Leodis McKelvin returned the ensuing kickoff 44 yards, Edwards threw a short pass to Lynch, who turned it into a 42-yard gain to the New York 15-yard line. Two plays later, Edwards found rookie tight end Derek Fine alone in the middle of the end zone from nine yards away.
The Bills imploded on offense for the rest of the half.
Buffalo's next series ended after just one play, as Edwards was sacked and fumbled. Revis forced the fumble and recovered at the Buffalo six-yard line, but the Jets were unable to punch it into the end zone. Feely came on for a 26-yard field goal to make it a one-point game.
The Bills controlled the ball for the next eight minutes and had a first down at the New York eight-yard line, but on third down, Elam stepped in front of a poorly thrown Edwards pass and returned the interception 92 yards for a touchdown to give New York a 13-7 lead on the final play of the opening quarter.
Edwards again directed a lengthy march on Buffalo's next possession, but on 4th-and-1 from the eight, Fred Jackson was stuffed at the line of scrimmage short of the first down, turning it over on downs with just under eight minutes remaining in the half.
Buffalo had the ball for more than 15 minutes during the two possessions and ran 27 plays for 114 yards, but they were outscored 7-0 in that span.
The Jets responded with a time-consuming drive inside the Buffalo 15 but also came up empty when Feely pulled a 37-yard field goal try wide left with 19 seconds to play before the break.
Feely kicked a 20-yard field goal on New York's initial possession of the second half, and the Bills countered with a 53-yard field goal from Lindell on the ensuing possession to keep it a six-point game.
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