FOXBORO -- The Patriots, led by Tom Brady, are looking to stay above the fray when it comes to any sort of extra-curricular back-and-forth with the Bills this week.
The Bills? They appear ready to throw down -- or start a shoving match, or yell and scream at someone -- again at a moment's notice.
Three Buffalo players were fined following their Week 4 win over the Patriots because they were involved in a scuffle with Patriots players and coaches after rookie Patriots quarterback Jacoby Brissett and rookie receiver Malcolm Mitchell ran by a Bills warmup drill.
A few defensive backs took exception to how close Brissett and Mitchell came to their area, and safety Robert Blanton shoved Brissett to get the scrap started.
According to reports out of Buffalo, mulitple Bills players have insisted that they won't hesitate to retaliate if Patriots buzz by their drills again.
Of course, the difference this time around will be that Brady will be the one who might jog by, not a rookie about to make his second NFL start. Would the Bills treat him the same way they'd treat a 20-something kid who is new to the league?
Immediately after the Week 4 loss, Patriots players were not pleased by what happened before kickoff. Not only did what happened with Brissett not sit well with them, the fact that Patriots coaches were shoved by Bills players irked them as well.
New England Patriots
How the two sides will react Sunday remains to be seen, but Ralph Wilson Stadium will surely have one of the more closely-watched pre-games of any venue in the league this week.