Bills Go to Work Early in a 27-10 Victory : AFC: After three games of having to rally for victories, Buffalo shuts down Patriots quickly by building a 24-point lead.

Buffalo didn’t need any miracles against the New England Patriots.

The Bills, who won their previous three games with improbable fourth-quarter comebacks, were cruising by that time Sunday to a 27-10 victory over the Patriots.

“We had to come from behind even though we played well (in the last three games),” Buffalo Coach Marv Levy said. “We knew we had to get off to a good start (against New England.)”

Don Smith scored on a one-yard run to give the Bills a 7-0 lead on their first possession. Thurman Thomas, who rushed for 136 yards, scored on a three-yard run midway through the second quarter and Buffalo (6-1) had a 14-3 lead at halftime.

The Bills put the game away by scoring on three consecutive possessions in the third quarter to make it 27-3.

The Patriots (1-6) have lost their last five games and are off to their worst start since 1970.

“It serves no purpose (to discuss the poor start),” New England rookie Coach Rod Rust said. “(The Bills) did what they wanted to better than we did what we wanted to.”

For the first time in six games, the Bills never trailed. They outgained the Patriots, 353 yards to 262.

The memory of last year’s 33-24 loss in which a poor Patriots’ team scored 20 points in the last nine minutes at Foxboro spurred the Bills.

“This team was very aware that last year’s game slipped away,” Levy said. “We’re not taking anything for granted.”

Jason Staurovsky’s 32-yard field goal 12 seconds before intermission cut the lead to 14-3, but the Patriots didn’t score again until they trailed by 24 points.

“We’re asking too much of the defense,” New England tackle Bruce Armstrong said. “We’re asking them to stop the other team time and time again and that’s not fair.”

Thomas, who missed most of a 30-27 victory over the New York Jets last week with a right knee injury, returned to the lineup and picked right up where he left off.

“Thomas had a very good game,” said quarterback Jim Kelly, who completed 14 of 20 passes for 208 yards and a touchdown. “The offensive line gave me time to throw.”

Leading, 14-3, the Bills punted on their first possession of the third quarter, then scored on two 35-yard field goals by Scott Norwood and a 20-yard pass from Kelly to Keith McKeller.

The Patriots made it six consecutive games with just one offensive touchdown when quarterback Steve Grogan, who missed the previous four games with a neck injury, threw a 19-yard scoring pass to Sammy Martin with 3:19 gone in the fourth quarter.

For the fourth time in five games, a New England opponent scored on its first possession when Kelly led the Bills on a 12-play, 68-yard drive lasting 7:08. Kelly completed all five of his passes for 60 yards, with Smith’s touchdown capping the drive.