Do Bills Reflect On History With Patriots After Win? Sean McDermott Explains

The Buffalo Bills have done something for the first time in more than two decades.

Buffalo’s dominant win over the New England Patriots on “Monday Night Football” earned the Bills a sweep over their AFC East rival, and it served as the first time since 2000 that any team swept the Patriots, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Bills, who last swept the Patriots in 1999, already had captured the division title before their trip to Gillette Stadium for a Week 16 game, but it nonetheless served as icing on the cake.

“Well, it feels great. It’s hard enough to win in the NFL regardless of who you’re playing and this is an organization, being the Patriots, that have given the Bills fits over the years and so to win both games this year against the Patriots and then to win the way we did tonight, I think it just speaks volumes about our players and the coaches and again the team that Brandon (Beane) has put on the field,” Bills head coach Sean McDermott told reporters after the game.

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McDermott, from an individual standpoint, defeated Patriots head coach Bill Belichick twice in the same season. The fourth-year coach entered the 2020 campaign having never defeated the Patriots. McDermott’s first victory over New England came Week 8 in Buffalo, albeit in a much different fashion — a mere three-point victory.

The 46-year-old exchanged pleasantries with Belichick after the game, as well.

“Yeah, I mean, listen, I’ve been on the other side of it before. And so he was very complimentary, and I certainly appreciate that,” McDermott said. “And as you mentioned, a lot of respect for what he’s been able to do. So I just think it says a lot about the way we’re doing things as an organization, not just on the field what people see, but off the field…

“He’s a legend in terms of what he’s been able to do and I certainly appreciate that and I’m humbled by it,” McDermott said.

The Bills currently are the No. 2 seed in the AFC Playoff picture, and can cement themselves into that spot with a Week 17 win over the Miami Dolphins.