Patriots quarterback Mac Jones threw just three passes in New England’s 14-10 win over Buffalo on Monday night in Orchard Park, New York. The Patriots play the Bills in Week 16 and the game plan could look a little different. Adrian Kraus/Associated Press

The Patriots have another go-round with Buffalo in three weeks, this time in Foxboro.

Given the success they enjoyed with the run game Monday night, will they once again ground and pound the Bills into submission?

During his appearance on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show” Bill Belichick hinted there could be something else in store for the next duel.

Asked if there was anything he could use from his team’s 14-10 win in wind-swept conditions Monday night for the next meeting, Belichick teased he might have a new wrinkle up his sleeve for Round 2.

“We can use our whole passing game,” Belichick said, chuckling at the thought. “All the pass plays that we have, they haven’t seen. We can use all of them the next time we play them.”

Given the Patriots rushed the ball more than 40 times, with quarterback Mac Jones attempting just three passes in the game, Belichick found some humor in the breakdown. So essentially, the Patriots revealed nothing in terms of a passing game for next time.

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The overwhelming success of the run game in victory, however, with the Patriots pounding the rock to the tune of 222 rushing yards against the Bills, suggests they might keep doing it until Buffalo can stop them.

Belichick, of course, didn’t want to tip his hand. He said with completely different conditions likely, it’s hard to just dial up the same game plan against the same team.

“Any time you play a team twice in three weeks, you just have to be careful and realize that while it’s the same two teams, it’s not the same game,” said Belichick. “They’ll be players that’ll play in the next game that didn’t play in this one. And probably vice versa. The game will take a different course. The conditions may be a lot different, too, so that may have something to do with it.

“We’re starting all over at that point . . . we just can’t assume things will go as they did last night. It’ll be a completely different game.”

Between how well the Patriots defense was playing, the weather conditions, as well as playing with the lead, Belichick said all of that factored in to so few pass plays Monday night.

“Again, I think if it had been a different type of game and we would have needed to throw there in the fourth quarter then we would have thrown,” he said. “We were able to manage the game the way we did and that worked out all right for us.”

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Belichick said whatever they plan they hatch for the Week 16 game, they believe they’ll have success.

“We believe in the process,” said Belichick. “If we follow through with our preparation and practice and film study and all those things, we have a pretty good chance of having a good result.”

BILLS COACH SEAN McDERMOTT isn’t one for controversy or getting handled at home.

Both happened Monday night.

After losing 14-10 to the Patriots, McDermott turned heads by telling reporters not to credit Belichick for his team’s win more than was necessary.

“Let’s not give more credit than we need to give credit to Bill Belichick in this one,” he said. “Whether it’s Bill or anyone else.”

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McDermott continued by pointing out the Bills’ superior average field position and three additional trips into the red zone.

“If you give me that ahead of time, I’m saying, ‘I like my chances,’ ” he added.

McDermott’s comments seemed to indicate he believes Buffalo wasn’t out-coached Monday so much as it stopped itself. McDermott repeatedly used the phrase “sloppy football.” The Bills also averaged 4.0 yards per play to the Pats’ 4.9.

“I don’t think, with all due respect, it’s a Bill Belichick-type thing,” McDermott said. “It’s what you do with the opportunities you’ve got.”

The Bills dropped to 7-5 this season with their second straight home loss. McDermott, who also comes from a defensive background, supervised a defense that allowed the Patriots to rush for a season-high 222 yards. He is now 2-7 all-time against Belichick, with his only wins coming last season when the Patriots finished below .500 with Cam Newton at quarterback.

As for coaching against Belichick, a surefire first-ballot Hall of Famer, McDermott said: “I’m very comfortable in that situation.”

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WHEN BELICHICK GETS some free time, which could be a while thanks to the Patriots current run, he plans on tuning into Tom Brady’s “Man in the Arena” series, which is being shown on ESPN+ with installments running weekly.

During his appearance on “The Greg Hill Show,” Belichick was asked about the series, which takes a look back at Brady’s 10 Super Bowl appearances, channeling each through his perspective.

While Belichick indicated he hasn’t seen any of the episodes, he was looking forward to watching it at some point.

“I am sure Tom did a great job, like he always does,” Belichick said of the Buccaneers quarterback. “He was such a centerpiece in obviously all those games. I can’t wait to see it.”

Told Brady was very complimentary of him in the series, Belichick returned the favor.

“I definitely will (watch it) and as I have said many times, nobody deserves more credit for our success here than Tom does,” he said. “He’s a great player, great person, great leader. Just a tremendous opportunity for me to coach. Probably the greatest player in NFL history and on defense with (Lawrence) Taylor, the greatest offensive player with Tom and greatest defensive player with Taylor. It’s been a tremendous opportunity for me as a coach.

“I certainly learned a lot from Tom. He helped me develop as a coach, as did Taylor. I am very thankful for my opportunity to have over 30 years coaching those two guys.”


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