The New England Patriots take on the Cincinnati Bengals during Sunday Night Football at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, October 5, 2014.
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87) runs after catching a pass from Tom Brady in the first half of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, in Foxborough, Mass. With the completion, Brady becomes the sixth quarterback in NFL history to throw for 50,000 career passing yards. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Tom Brady, QB --Â There is no doubt that Brady is having a great year despite dealing with the injury challenges to his line and, now, his weapons. No. 12 has had a few turnovers in recent weeks, which is less than ideal, and must clean that up with a surrounding cast that continues to change.
Malcom Brown, DL -Â The Patriots first-round pick has been improving by the week and has impressed Bill Belichick of late. Brown is a key cog in the middle of New England's No. 2 run defense that will be the defensive key in this meeting with Rex Ryan's ground-and-pound Bills.
Ronald Darby, CB --Â Buffalo's rookie cornerback has been on the rise in recent weeks and playing very good, physical football. Tom Brady now has to deal with a pair of impressive corners in Darby and Stephon Gilmore who are allowing the Bills to be a little more aggressive and creative defensively.
Rob Gronkowski, TE --Â New England's all-world tight end almost always has a big game against his hometown team, including 113 yards and a touchdown back in Week 2 in Buffalo. The Bills supposedly have a plan to take Gronkowski out of the game on Monday night. Good luck with that.
Brandon LaFell, WR --Â With Julian Edelman sidelined and Dion Lewis on IR, the Patriots will be looking to diversify the passing attack. After opening the year on PUP, LaFell is working his way into midseason form and could be ready for a bigger role in offensive game plan.
LeSean McCoy, RB --Â The former Eagles star seems to be settling into his role as the centerpiece of the Bills offense. Now healthy, McCoy is coming off his first two 100-yard games in Buffalo and has averaged better than 5 yards per carry in three of his last four games to pace the Bills No. 2 rushing attack that will take on the Patriots impressive rush defense.
Rex Ryan, Head Coach --Â Buffalo's blustery coach is always at the center of attention for every game his team plays. Ryan, who has lost seven of the last eight against the Patriots, got a little snippy with the New England media this week. Ryan's game plans have given the Patriots problems in the past and an upset this week would certainly make waves across the NFL.
Tyrod Taylor, QB --Â Statistically, Taylor is having an incredible season as a first-year starter in Buffalo. But is he capable of making enough plays in the air at key times on the road in New England to lead his team to victory? That's still very much in question.
Sebastian Vollmer, T --Â The veteran tackle was one of three injured linemen to return to practice this week. If Vollmer can get back on the field, likely to play left tackle, it would be a big step toward stabilizing the offensive line in this battle with an impressive Bills front.
Mario WIlliams, DE --Â The Bills only have 14 sacks as a team, but Williams has three of them. The veteran $100 million man challenges the edges with a combination of athleticism and power, an issue regardless of who lines up at right tackle for the Patriots in this prime time battle.
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski celebrates his touchdown catch against the Cincinnati Bengals in the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)
New England Patriots vs Cincinnati Bengals October 5, 2014 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA.
Photo By: KEITH NORDSTROM
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) -- What a turnaround for Tom Brady and the New England Patriots.
Brady finally looked like a quarterback who has 50,000 yards in his career, becoming the sixth to reach that milestone and throwing for two touchdowns as he rebounded from the second worst loss of his career for a 43-17 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday night.
Six days after a 41-14 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, the Patriots' offense broke out of its season-long slump. Brady threw for 292 yards and Stevan Ridley gained 117 of the team's 221 yards rushing against a team that had allowed an NFL-low 11 points per game.
The Patriots (3-2) surpassed that by scoring on their first two possessions on Ridley's 1-yard run and Brady's 17-yard pass to Tim Wright. They led 20-3 at halftime before the Bengals (3-1) cut it to 10 points on Andy Dalton's 37-yard pass to Mohamed Sanu.
But Cincinnati came no closer and became the last team to lose a game. The Arizona Cardinals also began the day at 3-0, but lost to the Denver Broncos.
The Bengals were coming off a bye and had trailed for just 48 seconds in their first three games. But they never led Sunday as Ridley scored just 4:57 into the game.
Stephen Gostkowski added five field goals, the most in his nine-year career.
Brady hadn't thrown for more than 249 yards this season but topped that as he completed 23 of 35 passes. His 27-yard completion to Rob Gronkowski put him over the 50,000-yard mark and he connected for Wright's touchdown on the next play.
The fans then chanted "Bra-dee! Bra-dee!" They shouted it again when the Patriots began a drive early in the second quarter.
Brady boosted his total to 50,232. John Elway is in fifth place with 51.475.
Dalton was 15 of 24 for 204 yards and was sacked for the first time this season when Chris Jones tackled him three minutes into the fourth quarter. His second touchdown pass, a 17-yarder to A.J. Green made it 34-17.
The Patriots were surrounded by doubters after the rout in Kansas City. Was Brady no longer one of the NFL's top quarterbacks? Did he have enough talented players around him - a rebuilt offensive line and mediocre receivers - to help him?
For one night, at least, he did.
Brady was sacked just once and completed his first two passes, 20 yards to Brandon LaFell and 30 yards to Wright, who had his best game since being obtained from Tampa Bay just before the season for six-time Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins.
Not a bad start for a quarterback who had led the Patriots to just 46 points in the previous 14 quarters.
Brady got plenty of help from his defense, which allowed just 121 yards in the first half, and his special teams as Kyle Arrington scored on a 9-yard return after recovering Brandon Tate's fumble on a kickoff. That made it 34-10 6 seconds after Brady's 16-yard touchdown pass to Gronkowski.
