The Bills' decision to carry rookie quarterback J.P. Losman on their active roster instead of placing him on season-ending IR is looking shrewd.

After breaking his leg in practice on Aug. 24 in a collision with cornerback Troy Vincent, Losman was expected to miss eight games or more. Now he may miss only four or five.

X-Rays this week showed that Losman's left broken fibula is healing faster than even what doctors first thought and Losman believes he could be cleared to play in as little as three more weeks.

"I'm way ahead of schedule," Losman said on Wednesday at Ralph Wilson Stadium. "The swelling is more down than they thought it would be at this point, the bone is growing back more than they anticipated. I could see it myself on the X-ray."

Losman is jogging and taking drops at half speed. Next week, he's schedule for work in team 7 on 7 drills.

"It was exciting, it's the only way to say it, can't play it cool. It was fun," said Losman about getting back on the field.

In two preseason appearances, the former Tulane star and first-round pick went 9 of 11 for 78 yards and gained 80 yards on seven carries. While he's still a long ways off from being ready to take a snap in a regular season NFL game, Losman - sooner than later - will be an option for Buffalo's coaching staff to turn to in the near future were the team to still be floundering under veteran Drew Bledsoe.

Coach Mike Mularkey didn't portray quite as rosy a recovery schedule for Losman, chalking it up to Losman's youthful exuberance.

"The way he's walking around you would think that and he probably thinks that, but we're trying to take this in stages with him," Mularkey said. "I think he's ahead of where we estimated him being right now, but I don't think it's fair to put a time frame on it. I know if he had to walk around in the game he could do it right now."

--QB Drew Bledsoe didn't have to do much when the Bills beat New England 31-0 at home a year ago, passing for 230 yards, 1 TD and 1 interception. In the rematch, a 31-0 Patriots win, he was held to 83 yards and a 34.7 rating.

--RB Travis Henry has 13 career 100-yard games and needs one to pass Joe Cribbs to move into third place on the club's all-time list. Henry has led the Bills in rushing 42 of his 46 games.

--WR Eric Moulds, who has a catch in a team-record 96 straight games, used the bye week to help a sore hand heal. He was stepped on during the season opener against Jacksonville and is fully recovered.

--WR Lee Evans' 65-yard catch against Oakland is the second longest in the NFL this year. The rookie could be an X-factor against New England; the Patriots have never faced him or his speed.

--SS Lawyer Milloy, as expected, has been ruled out of Sunday's game with a broken right forearm. He had hoped to return against his old team but it now looks like he'll be out a lot longer.

--DT Sam Adams had one of Buffalo's four interceptions the last time the Bills played host to New England, rumbling 37 yards for a touchdown. The interception came off a perfectly executed zone dog stunt.

--SS Coy Wire, who has started two games in place of Lawyer Milloy (arm), leads the Bills in tackles with 20. He's notched 10 in each game so far. GAME PLAN: Even with two weeks, the Bills can't be 100 percent prepared for the Patriots because coach Bill Belichick is famous for changing his schemes game-by-game and year-by-year. Toss in the aspect of dealing with RB Corey Dillon, the club's first bona fide running threat in years, and the Patriots are more unpredictable than ever. But it starts with shutting down Dillon for Buffalo, forcing QB Tom Brady to pass, and getting him to deal with their crowd noise and well-timed blitzes. The Bills secondary will need to be physical, because each of New England's receivers are great run-after-the-catch players. On offense, the Bills have got to run, run, and run some more because putting any game in QB Drew Bledsoe's hands these days is asking for trouble. That goes double against Belichick. In four games since The Trade, Bledsoe is 1-3 against the Patriots with four TDs, seven interceptions, 11 sacks and a 65 rating. The Bills feel they can run on New England, which is giving up 127 yards per game on the ground. If so, they can avoid the third-and-long situations that New England thrives on, using all of the creativity that the 3-4 scheme offers. With a chance to make history by winning their 18th consecutive game, the Patriots are going to be focused. It's up to the Bills to create the big plays - on offense, defense or special teams - to get the early momentum and deny New England its destiny, and themselves an 0-3 hole.

MATCHUPS TO WATCH
Bills SS Coy Wire vs. New England TE Christian Fauria - Patriots are without Ben Watson (knee) but Fauria is solid and overdue to get on track as part of Tom Brady's versatile arsenal of targets.

Bills LBs vs. New England RB Corey Dillon - Takeo Spikes can't wait to crash into his old Bengals teammate. Dillon is a load and is averaging 5.2 yards per carry.

Bills WR Eric Moulds vs. New England CB Ty Law - Classic rematch of two classy pros. Moulds caught 11 passes for 136 yards in last season's two meetings but was held out of the end zone.

Bills OL vs. New England DL - There's no Ted Washington to deal with in the middle anymore, and Buffalo feels it can get Travis Henry on track.

INJURY IMPACT
Starting right guard Chris Villarrial, who injured a nerve in his leg against Oakland, is nursing an abdominal injury suffered in practice this week. He did not practice on Wednesday and appears very questionable for the Patriots. Ross Tucker, who has logged 12 NFL starts, would take Villarrial's place and there shouldn't be much of a drop off against a New England team the Bills feel good about running against. The real problem comes if Tucker were to go down during the game, because second backup Mike Pucillo is also questionable with a bad back.

Reserve RB Shaud Williams, meanwhile, is out with a knee injury.

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