They've won 15 in a row against Buffalo, so you'd have forgiven the Patriots if they listened to, acknowledged, but didn't quite believe those who told them these Bills were different.
But the Bills are proving it this Sunday.
Buffalo came back from a 21-0 deficit, scoring 17 consecutive points to cut New England's once-comfortable lead to four points. A Stephen Gostkowski field goal pushed the lead back to seven and that's where it stands -- Pats 24, Bills 17 -- after three quarters.
An interception by Leodis McKelvin -- the second interception thrown by Tom Brady on consecutive pass attempts -- early in the third quarter sparked a seven-play, 39-yard drive that ended with a three-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick to Scott Chandler and made the score 21-17 with 9:34 to play in the third quarter.
The Pats answered with a 10-play, 81-yard drive of their own that stalled on the Buffalo 4, which brought on Gostkowski for a 23-yard field goal and a 24-17 Patriot lead.
No one would have guessed the outcome would be in doubt after the first 25 minutes, as the Pats completed dominated the proceedings in building a 21-0 lead.
But the Bills showed signs of life with an efficient 7-play, 96-yard drive late in the second quarter and closed the gap to 21-7 on an 11-yard touchdown from Fitzpatrick to Stevie Johnson.
New England Patriots
Then an interception by Bryan Scott on the Bills' 10-yard with a minute left in the half stopped a Patriots drive that seemed destined to produce yet another touchdown. And Buffalo sliced the Pats' defense with a near-perfect two-minute offense, going 66 yards in 10 plays and getting a 42-yard field goal from Rian Lindell with three seconds left.
The Patriots offense got a pair of Brady touchdown passes -- one of 14 yards to Wes Welker and the other of one yard to upstate New York native Rob Gronkowski -- and the Patriots defense got a pair of drive-killing interceptions by Kyle Arrington as New England jumped out a 14-0 lead after one quarter.
They made it 21-0 with six minutes to go in the second quarter when Brady hit Gronkowski for another TD, this one of 26 yards. It was set up by a 21-yard Brady-to-Gronkowski completion on the play before.