5 Important Things From Yesterday's "Meaningless" Bills Game

The Buffalo Bills lost to the New England Patriots yesterday in what many called a "meaningless" game. But there was more to it than people thought.

It was a game between the 13-3 Buffalo Bills and the 3-13 New England Patriots. Seeding wasn't going to change. The Bills had already wrapped up the division and the #2 spot in the playoffs. On the surface, there wasn't much that could be changed because of the outcome of the game.

But there were a bunch of things that happened during the game that definitely mattered.

1. Incentives were met

There were a bunch of players that needed to be in that game yesterday. One of them was Von Miller. In the offseason, he restructured his contract with the Buffalo Bills and took a much more incentive-based contract. He agreed to a $1 million bonus if he got 2 sacks during the regular season. He got to that number early. Yesterday, he needed just one more to get to 6 and cash in on $1.5 million. He got it on a sack that he was given in the first series of the game.

Punter Sam Martin was another that had a bonus up for grabs. He just needed one more punt inside the 20 to earn an extra $100,000. Thanks to a little help from Jamarcus Ingram, he was able to get to his number as the Bills punted from the Patriots 35-yard line.

Mack Hollins only needed 2 receptions to earn an extra $50,000 and he got there.

2. James Cook record

James Cook needed 2 touchdowns to own the single season touchdown record for the Buffalo Bills. OJ Simpson held that record on his own with 16. Now he's tied with Cook who was able to score his 16th in yesterday's game.

3. Patriots didn't get the #1 overall pick in next year's draft

The Patriots were easily one of the worst teams in the league this year. With a loss yesterday, they would have locked up the #1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and gotten to choose any player that was eligible. However, with a win, they dropped 3 places and will now pick 4th. So even though the Bills lost the game, they kind of won.

4. The Bills didn't get a team record

It's hard to believe that the Buffalo Bills have never won more than 13 games in a season. A win yesterday could have made this the most wins in a single season for them, but they didn't get there.

They were also trying to get a 14th person a receiving touchdown this year. The Bills are tied for a record with 13 different players receive touchdown passes this year. Their two touchdowns were by James Cook and Ray Davis who have already notched receiving touchdowns.

5. Josh Allen kept his starting streak alive

One of the most important things to Josh Allen is to have his starting streak in play. He has the current longest starting streak of games in the NFL and is 13th when it comes to quarterbacks of all time. He's currently sitting at 115 consecutive starts for the Bills, a streak that began back in 2018.

Another thing that happened following the game yesterday was the firing of Jerrod Mayo, the Patriots former head coach. Following the statement from Robert Kraft, it appears as though it wasn't a result of the game because they won. But Kraft just didn't like the "trajectory of the team." They've already got a talented young quarterback, now Bills fans are left hoping the Patriots don't find the next big thing at coach.