Kelly Guns Down New England : But 21-point Win Is Still Not Enough for Buffalo Quarterback

Jim Kelly wasn’t satisfied after throwing three touchdown passes Sunday, but Buffalo could do no better than a 31-10 victory over New England.

“One thing I want to do sometime is beat somebody 44 or 45 to nothing,” said Kelly, who has thrown eight touchdown passes in the last two games.

Kelly completed 12 of 17 passes for 278 yards. Andre Reed caught four passes for 114 yards and Thurman Thomas scored two touchdowns for the Bills (3-1).

New England was hoping that Doug Flutie could come in for a benched Tony Eason and do the same thing Kelly did for Buffalo.

“I was trying to do too much and we got ourselves in a couple of three-and-out situations,” Flutie said after New England (1-3) lost its third straight game.

Flutie redeemed himself after a lackluster first half by leading New England on an 80-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass to Cedric Jones.

Bills Coach Marv Levy said he was impressed by the way Flutie hung in despite trailing 24-3 at halftime.

“With five minutes to go, they were moving the ball,” Levy said. “With all the excitement Flutie was creating, they kept us on the edge of our seats.”

But the big plays Flutie sought happened on the Bills’ offense.

Kelly hit Thomas for the day’s longest play, a swing pass that Thomas ran 74 yards for his second touchdown of the day. Thomas scored earlier on a four-yard run.

“I think after having some tough times last year, Jim is starting to realize he can go to his tight end and his running backs,” said Thomas, who had 105 yards in 21 carries and four receptions for 99 yards. “It’s making life easier for him.”

Kelly’s other scoring tosses went to tight ends Pete Metzellaars and Keith McKeller.