01:00 AM EDT on Tuesday, September 28, 2004

BY KEVIN McNAMARA
Journal Sports Writer

FOXBORO -- Get ready for an overdose of Drew Bledsoe publicity leading up to Sunday's Patriots-Bills game.

Bledsoe is in his third year with the Bills, but he'll likely remain a hot topic in New England until he retires, especially since he toils in the AFC East. Bledsoe spent nine seasons with the Patriots, led the team to Super Bowl XXXI in 1996 and played in three Pro Bowls. Bledsoe, statistically speaking, is the greatest quarterback in Pats' history. He holds franchise records for passing yards (29,657), completions (2,544) and attempts (4,518) and is second to Steve Grogan in touchdowns.

Bledsoe ultimately lost his job with the Pats due to a combination of a severe chest injury suffered in 2001 against the Jets, and the subsequent emergence of Tom Brady.

Bledsoe played to mixed reviews against the Pats in two meetings last season. In a 31-0 Buffalo win to open the year, the Bills' defense stole the show with four interceptions of Brady. Bledsoe threw for 230 yards and one TD. The 31-0 score was reversed in Week 16 in Foxboro as the Patriots defense swarmed their ex-teammate and limited him to a mere 83 yards passing.

While the Bills have other weapons besides Bledsoe, he is clearly the key to his team's offense.

"Every starting QB in the NFL is dangerous. All of them can beat you," said Pats safety Rodney Harrison. "It's just a matter of which Drew shows up. I don't think it's about him. It's about us. It's about us going out there and playing good, tight coverage against the receivers. When they catch it, we hit them and be fundamentally sound."

Veteran linebacker Roman Phifer played with, and respects, Bledsoe's skills, but isn't hung up on the old days.

"We look at it as just an opponent," he said. "We know it's Drew Bledsoe and he has some certain skills that other guys don't have, but everyone's different. It's just an opponent and we have to make plays."

Streak a hot topic

The second subject du jour will be the Patriots' chase of the NFL's consecutive victory record. The Pats have won 17 in a row stretching back to a defeat against the Redskins last year on Sept. 28. The NFL's record for consecutive wins, including playoff games, is 18 held by six different teams, the most recent being the 1997-98 Denver Broncos.

Of course, the players insist they don't care about setting any records, other than number of championships.

"I did not even think about the streak. I'm telling you, guys are not even thinking about the streak," said Harrison. "We're thinking about going up there and beating Buffalo. It's going to be a tough environment. They'll be pumped up and it'll be loud. They play well at home. If we win and that continues the streak, that's fine. But we're just trying to win that one game in the division that's going to get us to 3-0."

Even if winning 19 in a row was a goal, the players wouldn't admit it. The one-game-at-a-time focus coach Bill Belichick preaches goes against any such claims. Even so, the players are bound to appreciate the achievement if they can pull it off.

"It's something we really don't want to put an emphasis on," said Phifer. "If it happens, that's great. Obviously we'd love to be a part of history but it's not really going to make a difference as far as us achieving our goal, which is to win championships. That's the bottom line. If we get a record along the way with a streak, that's great. But the main thing around here is just to win."

Two goals in sight

Ironically, the Pats are chasing two different consecutive game win streaks. They are one win away from tying the 18 in a row counting playoffs, and three away from equaling the record 17 straight regular-season victories set by the Chicago Bears over the 1933-34 season. The regular-season mark is the one that is acknowledged in the official NFL record books.

If the Patriots beat Buffalo this week, they'll have the chance to smash both records at home. New England's next three games come at Gillette Stadium against Miami, Seattle and the New York Jets.