Bills Put Away the Packers, 34-24 : Interconference: Buffalo improves to 9-1 behind Kelly, Thomas and Lofton.

Buffalo quarterback Jim Kelly hurt his lower back and ribs in the third quarter of Sunday’s game against the Green Bay Packers.

The injury forced him out of the game for several plays, but Kelly came back when he felt his team needed him most.

Kelly engineered three scoring drives and, after he was shaken up, ran for a short touchdown as the Bills defeated the Packers, 34-24.

“I know that he has very sore ribs,” Buffalo Coach Marv Levy said of Kelly, who completed 17 of 35 passes for 232 yards. “He’s got to be hurting, but he made up his mind he was was going to play. The gauge is tolerance of pain and the type of player he is. He stayed in there.”

Buffalo running back Thurman Thomas gained 106 yards in 24 carries and receiver James Lofton caught six passes for 114 yards.

The Bills (9-1), who scored on an 80-yard drive in the final minutes of the first half, used their no-huddle offense to move 78 yards after the second-half kickoff for another score and a 21-10 lead.

A 28-yard pass-interference call against Roland Mitchell gave the Bills the ball at the Green Bay five. Kelly had to leave the game when he was hit in the back by Chuck Cecil while releasing the ball.

Frank Reich stepped in and handed off to Thomas, who carried five yards for the touchdown to give the Bills a 21-10 lead.

Packer quarterback Mike Tomczak, starting for the injured Don Majkowski, connected with Sterling Sharpe on a 58-yard touchdown pass play to pull the Packers to within 21-17 with 8:18 left in the third quarter.

That’s when Kelly, who had missed a down and a series, returned from the locker room where he had been examined, took a few hurried warmups and then drove the Bills down the field again for a 38-yard field goal by Scott Norwood with 3:47 left.

Leading 24-17, Buffalo put together a 75-yard, 12-play drive. Kelly carried in from the one on third down--his first rushing score of the season--and the Bills led by two touchdowns with 9:26 left.

“If we had had a bigger lead, I probably wouldn’t have come back in,” Kelly said.

Norwood kicked a 21-yard field goal with 1:58 remaining to make the score, 34-17. And the Packers (2-8) closed out the scoring with a one-yard touchdown pass to Jackie Harris with 38 seconds left.