Patriots vow not to dwell on missed opportunity against Bills with division title still in reach

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — The New England Patriots were a half away from ending Buffalo’s five-year reign atop the AFC East.

But after allowing Josh Allen and the Bills to score touchdowns on five straight possessions, the postgame message Sunday following a 35-31 loss centered on the Patriots not making the same mistakes with three games still to play.

“Move on to next week and learn from it,” said quarterback Drake Maye, who rushed for two touchdowns but also threw an interception in the third quarter that proved costly when Allen led the Bills to score that put Buffalo up 28-24.

The Patriots remain at the top of the AFC East standings with three games remaining, They have a one-game lead over the Bills.

“We know we have some football that’s still very important. Keep your head up, knowing that we had a chance. We were there. They made more plays and credit to them,” Maye said.

After scoring on four of their first five possessions to build a 24-7 halftime advantage, the Patriots were outscored 28-7 in the second half. New England possessed the ball just 7:20 seconds in the final two quarters.

A win over Buffalo would have resulted in a season sweep of the team that’s sat atop the division for the balance of the decade. It also could have kept the Patriots on pace with Denver, the top challenger for this year’s top seed in the conference.

Now, it’s about looking ahead after Buffalo snapped New England’s 10-game winning streak.

“It was a long stretch where we were feeling good about ourselves,” Maye said. “Now it’s about responding from losing to a good team.”

Over the final two quarters, the Patriots' lone touchdown of the second half came on a one-play drive, as rookie TreVeyon Henderson ripped off a 65-yard touchdown run that helped New England regain the lead in the fourth quarter at 31-28.

“We knew that Buffalo was going to come in and give it their best. The biggest thing is to see what we can learn and just continue to grow from here,” said Henderson, who added a 52-yard touchdown run in the first half as part of his strong day on the ground (148 yards on 14 carries).

A pass-interference call on New England’s Carlton Davis helped set the stage for James Cook's 11-yard touchdown run that would put the Bills up for good.

“At the end of the day, you’ve got to keep your foot on the pedal and keep it going, and don’t let them dictate,” said Maye, whose final pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage by Buffalo All-Pro Joey Bosa.

Cornerback Marcus Jones said their confidence remains high.

“It’s nothing that we haven’t been through before. We just have to get back to the things we need to get corrected and not look too far into the future, and just get ready for next week,” he said.

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New England Patriots running back Treveyon Henderson, middle, stiff arms Buffalo Bills cornerback Maxwell Hairston (31) during the first half of an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel speaks at a news conference after an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, middle, is sacked by Buffalo Bills outside linebacker Matt Milano, left, as linebacker Dorian Williams follows the play during the second half of an NFL football game in Foxborough, Mass., Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

DENVER (AP) — A Frontier Airlines plane hit and killed a pedestrian on the runway of the Denver International Airport during takeoff, airport authorities said, sparking an engine fire and forcing passengers to evacuate.

The plane, on route from Denver to Los Angeles International Airport, “reported striking a pedestrian during takeoff at DEN at approximately 11:19 p.m. on Friday," the airport's official X account wrote.

A spokesperson for the airport said the pedestrian, who jumped a perimeter fence, has died. They said the unidentified person was hit two minutes after entering the airport. The person is not believed to be an airport employee.

“We're stopping on the runway,” the pilot tells the control tower according to the site ATC.com. “We just hit somebody. We have an engine fire.”

The pilot tells the air traffic controller they have “231 souls” on board and that an “individual was walking across the runway.”

The air traffic controller responds that they are “rolling the trucks now" before the pilot tells the tower they “have smoke in the aircraft. We are going to evacuate on the runway.”

Frontier Airlines said in a statement flight 4345 was the one involved in the collision and that “smoke was reported in the cabin and the pilots aborted takeoff.” It was not clear whether the smoke was linked to the crash with the pedestrian.

“The Airbus A321 was carrying 224 passengers and seven crew members,” the airline said. “We are investigating this incident and gathering more information in coordination with the airport and other safety authorities.”

Passengers were then evacuated via slides and the emergency crew bused them to the terminal. The airport spokesperson said 12 passengers suffered minor injuries and five were taken to local hospitals.

Denver Airport said the National Transportation Safety Board had been notified and that runway 17L, where the incident took place, will remain closed while an investigation is conducted. It is expected to open later today.

The pedestrian death came a day after a Delta Air Lines employee was killed while on the job at the Orlando International Airport. In a statement, the airline said the employee was killed Thursday night without providing details of the incident nor the name of the employee.

“We are focused on extending our full support to family and taking care of our Orlando team during this difficult time,” the airline said. "We are working with local authorities as a full investigation gets underway to determine what occurred.”

FILE - A Frontier Airlines jetliner taxis down a runway for take off from Denver International airport on Nov. 25, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)