In the final game of the NFL season, the Buffalo Bills lost to their divisional rival, New York Jets, 13-6. A rainy day in Orchard Park led to sloppy performances from fringe players on the Bills roster.
Thankfully, it was a meaningless loss due to Buffalo locking the fifth playoff seed in the AFC with their victory over the Steelers.
With the final report card of the regular season, let’s see how the backups performed against the New York Jets:
Quarterbacks: D
We’ll get Josh Allen out of the way first. He played just two series and threw the ball five times. He completed three of those passes for five yards, but it wouldn’t be fair to add his performance to this grade.
Backup Matt Barkley started the game under pressure, getting hit on his first throw that looked like a fumble but was called an incomplete pass. On his second drive he found more momentum, finding running back T.J. Yeldon, and receiver Duke Williams. Ultimately, it didn’t lead to any points, which was a common theme for the Bills offense in this game.
Barkley also had issues with turning the ball over. Barkley threw two interceptions, both of them were ugly, and he fumbled the ball. He never found a rhythm throughout the game either, so he could never develop a chemistry with his receivers. This led to balls to being under-thrown, overthrown, and a really bad night from the backup.
His final stat-line was 18/35, 232 yards, two interceptions, and one lost fumble which should’ve been two. Oof.
We'll take it! @arthurmaulet_ with the pick!#NYJvsBUF | #TakeFlight pic.twitter.com/UbUclNio8x
— New York Jets (@nyjets) December 29, 2019