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          Patriots' Jalen Reagor scores 98-yard TD on opening kickoff

          • Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff WriterDec 31, 2023, 06:10 PM
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              Mike Reiss is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the New England Patriots. Reiss has covered the Patriots since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2009. In 2019, he was named Massachusetts Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. You can follow Reiss on Twitter at @MikeReiss.
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          ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Jalen Reagor gave the New England Patriots' upset hopes an early spark on Sunday, returning the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown to put the Buffalo Bills in an early hole.

          Reagor's spin move, bouncing off kicker Tyler Bass, put the exclamation mark on a return where he was barely touched.

          His return was made possible by the blocking in front of him from Chris Board, Marte Mapu, Adrian Phillips, Christian Elliss, Mack Wilson Sr., Jahlani Tavai, Josh Uche, Brenden Schooler, Matthew Slater and Pharaoh Brown.

          Reagor became the fourth player in Patriots history to return the opening kickoff for a touchdown, joining Allen Carter (99 yards at Baltimore in 1975), Sammy Martin (95 yards at Indianapolis in 1988) and Bethel Johnson (93 yards at Cleveland in 2004).

          Last season, the Patriots gave up a touchdown on the opening kickoff to the Bills in the season finale at Highmark Stadium.