The New England Patriots defeated the division rival Buffalo Bills 29-26 in style Sunday, with Efton Chism III reeling in an absurd one-handed touchdown catch from Drake Maye late in the fourth quarter that stood as the game-winner.
PATRIOTS ONE-HANDED CATCH FOR THE LEAD 😮 https://t.co/Mbun5vbrxq
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) October 4, 2026
The Patriots' defense picked off Josh Allen on the ensuing drive to secure the victory.
"When I'm out there and the ball's in the air, I kind of black out," Chism said postgame. "I'm kind of in that little flow state. I saw it in the air. Drake gave me an opportunity. You gotta come down with those opportunities. You don't know how many you get."
Chism's miraculous touchdown was only the second score and seventh catch of his career. He signed with the Patriots as an undrafted free agent out of Washington in 2025 and has primarily been used on special teams.
Bills safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson insinuated that Chism's catch was lucky.
"We not going to get into no bulletin board material. An elevated guy made a hell of a catch. Probably won't hear from him again, respectfully," Gardner-Johnson told reporters postgame, including WGRZ's Jon Scott.
Maye bounced back from an abysmal Week 3 performance in which he committed three turnovers in a 35-6 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. He threw for three touchdowns and 269 yards against the Bills while adding a team-leading 53 yards on the ground.
Allen threw a 34-yard go-ahead touchdown to Keon Coleman in the fourth quarter prior to New England's game-winning drive. After the Patriots responded, the Bills' offense had just under two minutes to march down the field while trailing by three. Their comeback attempt ended as Allen spun out of a sack and attempted to go deep to Joshua Palmer in double coverage before being picked by Craig Woodson.
The result marks the first loss of the season for the Bills (3-1) and their first at the new Highmark Stadium, while the Patriots (2-2) are now back at .500.
