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The Buffalo Bills had two surprises appear on a list from Pro Football Focus.
According to the football analytics outlet, only Nik Needham of the Miami Dolphins played in more coverage snaps without allowing a touchdown in 2021 than two players from the Bills.
Needham led the way, but when put into context, the pair of Bills players in Tre’Davious White and Dane Jackson is even more impressive.
First, the numbers from PFF:
Most coverage snaps played without allowing a touchdown last season
1️⃣ Nik Needham: 414
2️⃣ Tre’Davious White: 403
3️⃣ Dane Jackson: 390 pic.twitter.com/MGv7mCwRGK— PFF BUF Bills (@PFF_Bills) April 13, 2022
Needham’s stats are impressive, no doubt. But he’s a traditional slot cornerback.
In Buffalo, Taron Johnson plays that position and is considered as starter on the Bills defense.
Most times, the nickel cornerback role is a rotational one on game day. Considering that, Needham was not always guarding the top playmakers.
When White and Jackson were on the field, they did exactly that. Essentially every snap.
Naturally, one has to wonder the “what if” for Buffalo here.
White is the Bills’ shutdown cornerback, but what if he played the entire season and did not suffer a knee injury? Same question for Jackson. What if he was playing the entire 2021 year? He did not start until White went down.
But since that is the case, one can say we can kind of combine White’s and Jackson’s numbers. That certainly makes for an impressive feat by these two.
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