The Buffalo Bills lost to the Baltimore Ravens Sunday, but the defeat is not deterring some national media from praising the Bills as Buffalo makes their march to the playoffs.
Steve Young and Louis Riddick, commentators on ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown, shared how they believe the Bills are a dangerous team to see in the playoffs.
Young named the Bills as an under-the-radar team to watch for the remainder of the season.
“They [Buffalo] got beat by the great Baltimore Ravens, but it was tight. I think the defense of the Bills showed that if I’m Lamar Jackson, I don’t want to see the Bills defense again,” Young said.
Buffalo’s defense bottled up the potent Ravens rushing attack, limiting Baltimore to 118 yards on the ground.
Young reiterated his praise for the defense, highlighting how the team is “the second-best defense from a scoring perspective.”
When looking toward the playoffs, Young considered, “Could they go on the road in the playoffs and win some big games in some of these places? Yes, I believe they can.”
Louis Riddick also added his vote of confidence for the Bills, highlighting how teams who face Lamar Jackson and the Ravens will play them tougher than the first time around. Riddick also highlighted that it’s impossible to gauge the speed and execution of the offense led by Jackson.
“There are two guys, from the defensive coordinator perspective, from the defensive mind perspective that can deal with that style of offense intellectually are Sean McDermott and Bill Belichick,” Riddick said. “Sean McDermott will have them ready to play if they see Baltimore down the road again, he’ll have them ready-to-go.”
Riddick also added that Buffalo has a team that can get the job done in the playoffs, as Buffalo “play[s] that nasty, grind-it-out style of football, or at least they can.”
“Buffalo, for sure, because of the fact that they can play however you want to play, which means, usually in January, when it’s ugly. It means, ‘Can you last three-and-a-half hours like we can?'” Riddick said.
Even in this loss, the Bills, particularly their defense, is making believers out of audiences nationwide. They have a chance to clinch a playoff berth with a victory Sunday night at Pittsburgh.
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