AP photo Patriots lineman Isaiah Wynn hoists up receiver Julian Edelman in celebration of Edelman's two-point conversion catch during New England's 24-17 AFC East-clinching win over Buffalo on Saturday.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Clinching the AFC East was never more difficult for the New England Patriots.

But they got the job done Saturday night, surviving with a 24-17 win at Gillette Stadium when Josh Allen’s end zone pass to Cole Beasley was broken up by corner J.C. Jackson with 1:05 left.

“Yes sir, it’s a good feeling here today, this football team competed hard, they did a great job here today,” said Patriots coach Bill Belichick, wearing an AFC East Champions hat, the team gaining its 11th straight divisional crown.

“They competed for 60 minutes, a great fourth quarter drive offensively and great defensive stop at the end.

Good to see the fruits of a lot of hard labor, a lot of hard work. … There’s a lot of guys with mental toughness in that locker room, and they showed it today.”

The Bills had driven down to the Patriots 9 yard-line for a first-and-goal, but Allen (13-of-26-208 yards, two TDs) took a 1-yard loss, and later overthrew an open Dawson Knox in the end zone.

“When we get it down there, we’ve got to get it in the end zone,there’s no doubt about that,” Allen said. “That’s on my shoulders.”

Trailing 17-16, the Patriots took a 24-17 lead with 5:06 left on Rex Burkhead’s 1-yard TD run and battle weary Julian Edelman’s two-point conversion catch. Edelman had been taken out earlier for concussion protocol, missing about a quarter, but finished with five catches for 72 yards.

“That’s Julian’s style, it’s what makes him a good player,” Belichick said of Edelman’s toughness.

Burkhead also had four catches for a team high 77 yards.

Patriots quarterback Tom Brady completed 26 of 33 passes for 271 yards, and one TD, while the Patriots, led by Sony Michel’s 96 yards on 21 carries, rushed for 143 yards.

“A good offense, everyone has to be able to produce,” Brady said. “We did a good job of that today, you’ve got to make them defend everybody.”

New England grabbed a 13-10 lead on Nick Folk’s 51-yard field goal with 9:54 left in the third quarter, but the Bills took a 17-13 lead into the fourth quarter thanks to Allen’s 53-yard TD strike to John Brown with 7:25 left in the third.

The Patriots closed to 17-16 with 10:45 left on Nick Folk’s 20-yard chip shot.

With New England up 10-3, the Bills tied the game at 10 just before the half thanks to a fourth down stop at the Buffalo 41. Kevin Johnson’s tackle of Patriot N’Keal Harry at the Bills’ 41 with 33 seconds left in the half gave the Bills a chance. Allen didn’t wasted it, hitting Dawson Knox on a 34-yard pass to set up a 1-yard flip to tackle-eligible Dion Dawkins with one tick left, helping to tie the game.

“It didn’t go the way we wanted it to go,” Belichick said of that sequence. “We’ve got to do a better job on that.”

Trailing 3-0, the Patriots on their second possession drove 75 yards in 11 plays to take a 7-3 lead. Brady hit tight end Matt LaCosse on an easy 8-yard TD flip with 1:50 left in the period as the drive took over seven minutes.

That was the theme of the half for the Patriots, as their next drive that resulted in a 36-yard Folk field goal and a 10-3 lead took nearly nine minutes, going 81 yards in 17 plays, chewing up 8:58 for the third longest march in team history.

A Burkhead fumble on the Patriots’ first possession not only negated a long passing gain but also led to a Stephen Hauschka 30-yard field goal nearly six minutes in.

“We ran the ball, we threw it, converted some big plays, played defense,”Belichick said. “…It was just a great team effort.”

“It’s a great step for us,” Brady said.