Tag: AFC East

Causes for concern as the Bills take on the Patriots in Week 16

Causes for concern as the Bills take on the Patriots in Week 16

The Buffalo Bills will host the New England Patriots in Week 16 at Highmark Stadium.

The Bills (11-3) and Patriots (3-11) have trended in different directions this season. The Bills have won eight of their last nine games while the Patriots have lost five of their last six.

Even though Buffalo is favored to win the game, there are always a few things that make winning difficult each week. The Bills will need to be wary of them.

Here are three causes for concern for the Bills against the Patriots in Week 16:

Question marks in the secondary

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What would make Patriots rookie quarterback Drake Maye’s day a bit easier on Sunday would be if the Bills are down members of their secondary. Safeties Damar Hamlin and Taylor Rapp, along with cornerback Rasul Douglas, all missed Week 15’s win over the Detroit Lions.

Although the Bills won last week, they allowed almost 494 passing yards from Lions QB Jared Goff to go along with five touchdowns.

Douglas, Hamlin, and Rapp all are listed as questionable heading into Week 16. Buffalo’s linebackers are banged up a bit, too. Matt Milano, Dorian Williams, and Baylon Spector all are carrying the same designation.

Containing QB Drake Maye

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The Bills have yet to face the rookie quarterback out of the University of North Carolina. Maye has been a bright spot on an otherwise dim Patriots season. He has shown poise and instincts as a young signal caller and he can beat you with both his arm and legs.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott has had success going against rookie quarterbacks in his career with an 8-3 record. Maye is one of the more challenging ones. We’ll see how the Bills game plan for him.

Overlooking an opponent

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The Bills are coming off a win over the Lions, whom many consider to be the best team in the NFL. Combine that with a win over the Kansas City Chiefs earlier this year and the Bills have proven they can beat anyone.

What’s difficult is bringing the same intensity for a Week 16 matchup with the Patriots as you did in a “Super Bowl preview” type of game. The Bills’ discipline and execution will be tested by a division rival looking to play spoiler.

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3 keys to a Bills victory vs. the Patriots in Week 16

3 keys to a Bills victory vs. the Patriots in Week 16

The Buffalo Bills will play the New England Patriots at home at Highmark Stadium in Week 16.

The Bills (11-3) are looking to stay hot after beating the Detroit Lions last week, the NFC’s No. 1 seed. The Bills have won eight of their previous nine games. The Patriots (3-11) enter the game on a four-game losing streak.

The Bills are favored by 14 points. It will be the first meeting between the Bills and Patriots this season. The Bills won the last matchup 27-21 in Week 18 of last year.

Even though the Patriots have three wins this year, nothing is guaranteed in the NFL. Buffalo will need to execute its game plan to pick up its 12th win of the year.

With that, here are three keys to a Bills win in Week 16:

Keep Drake Maye in the pocket

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Given that the Patriots offensive line has struggled constantly this year, rookie quarterback Drake Maye has had to be in scramble more than he’d like. Without a consistent push in the running game or protection to get the ball out in the passing game, Maye has done what Josh Allen did at the beginning of his career. He’s putting the offense into his own hands and trying to make something positive happen with his legs.

The off-script playing style that Maye provides works at times, too. From Weeks 6 to 13, Maye has averaged 41.6 rushing yards per game. The Bills would be wise to keep an eye on him leaving the pocket.

Dominate the line of scrimmage

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The Bills’ defensive line has struggled at times against the run. If the Patriots are able to get a running game going, it would make things a lot easier for their rookie QB in a hostile road environment. But even with the Bills’ inconsistencies on their defensive line, that is a tall task for New England.

According to Pro Football Focus, the Patriots have the worst starting offensive line in the NFL heading into Week 16.

If the Bills’ defensive line plays up to its potential, stopping the run and pressuring Maye in the passing game, then the Bills should take care of business in Week 16 by attacking the worst offensive line in the league.

Win the turnover battle

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In lopsided matchups like the one we’ll see in Week 16 (Bills favored by 14), the thing that can hurt you the most is if you don’t take care of the ball. No matter how much better a team is than another, if you give the lesser team a few extra opportunities it can cause issues. One way the Bills can make sure they walk out of Week 16 with a win is by not turning it over.

For the Bills, that means continuing to do what they have all season. They are currently tied with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the best turnover differential in the NFL (+18).

Bills’ Sean McDermott ‘feels good’ about Lions win despite points allowed

Bills’ Sean McDermott ‘feels good’ about Lions win despite points allowed

The Buffalo Bills tamed the Detroit Lions on Sunday on the road 48-42, ending their 11-game win streak.

The Rust Belt squads clashed at Ford Field, with their hopes set on a trip to New Orleans this postseason to compete for and win the Super Bowl.

Two teams from their respective conferences, both playoff-bound with several games left to play in the regular season, and boasting two of the NFL’s best offenses.

The Bills faced one of their greatest tests of the 2045 NFL season in one of the league’s top squads and highest-scoring offenses led by Detroit QB and Connecticut personal injury law firm pitchman Jared Goff.

And while the Lions showed why they are one of the top clubs in the league by fighting to stay in the game on the scoreboard, the Bills piled on the points and never slowed down while their defense held its own.

And that feat has their head coach feeling good about leaving Detroit with the victory.

“Well, I feel good about it, I do, I feel good,” Sean McDermott said to the media postgame.

He is now the fifth coach in NFL history to win 11 or more games in five consecutive seasons, joining Andy Reid and Bill Belichick, Tom Landry, Tony Dungy,

“You gotta celebrate wins in this league,” he added. “I mean, it’s just hard to win, it’s hard to win here. This team… they haven’t lost anything since the second week of the season. We were coming off the (disappointing) game the week before and getting back late, having the snow day, I mean, good Lord. Extremely grateful.”

The Bills’ offense led by QB Josh Allen continued to put up historical numbers, and their defensive unit was looking to bounce back after struggling to stop the Los Angeles Rams’ offensive attack in a loss the week prior.

They did just that, applying pressure to Lions QB Jared Goff and logging three sacks on the day, with last week’s experience serving as motivation.

“I would just say we came out with an attitude and it showed,” said CB Taron Johnson after the game. “We learned from last week and tried to carry that chip on our shoulder. We need to do that every single week, just making sure we do that when it comes to the next games. Yeah, I feel like we took it personal last week and we showed it today.”

The effort on both sides of the ball did not go unnoticed.

“I thought the entire offense and offensive staff did a lot of good things,” McDermott noted. “Coming out and being able to run the football was important for us, credit to our offensive line. It’s everyone, tight ends, wide receivers blocking, and the running backs. I thought Joe did a good job changing some things up and Bobby as well. So great job by the staffs.”

The Bills will next host the Patriots and Jets at home in Orchard Park back-to-back weekends before heading to New England for their final game of the regular season and second against the Pats.

The team is in pursuit of the No. 1 playoff seed in the AFC and home-field advantage as well as a first-round bye.

Those achievements that have alluded them thus far in Allen and McDermott’s tenure may finally be within reach.

Despite 48 points vs. Lions, Bills’ Josh Allen wants to ‘find more’

Despite 48 points vs. Lions, Bills’ Josh Allen wants to ‘find more’

The Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions squared off Sunday in a meeting of two NFL heavyweights who are hoping to contend for the ultimate prize.

They would win this heavyweight bout with a final scorecard of 48-42.

Josh Allen and the Bills came out dominant, attacking on the ground with Allen adding two rushing touchdowns in the first quarter as he continued to solidify his case for the league MVP award.

Just like in their Week 14 matchup with the Rams, the Bills’ offense kept scoring, carving up the Lions’ defense as well.

Allen would go 23 for 34 with 362 yards two passing touchdowns to go with 68 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries rushing. He became the first player in NFL history with 35 or more passing and rushing TDs in four consecutive seasons.

He also threw what appears to be the fastest 50+ pass of the Next Gen Stats era.

“Still, offensively, I think, we need to find some more,” Allen said of the offensive performance after the game. “There’s too many plays we left out there. I know to nitpick a game like that in which we scored 48 sounds kind of dumb, but still feel like we left some out there.”

The Bills attacked the Lions’ poor short-field coverage on the ground and in the air, as Detroit ranked 30th in receiving yards allowed to slot receivers going into the game.

On a day in which the offense was spread out and distributed across the Bills’ offensive weapons’, slot WR Khalil Shakir had a receiving TD with 39 yards, RB James Cook added two rushing TDs and 133 total yards, rookie RB Ray Davis had 29 total yards and a receiving touchdown, and a former sixth-round pick (2019) by the Lions turned Bills RB, Ty Johnson, had a career day with 123 total yards including 114 receiving yards.

The Bills scored 30+ points for an eighth consecutive game to tie a league record, while also becoming only the fifth team to accomplish the streak and first since the 2013 Broncos.

They also scored 40+ points in consecutive games for only the third time in team history (1990 & 2021.)

Allen appears to be solidifying his MVP candidacy in the process.

“It’s the best I’ve seen him play and not surprised,” head coach Sean McDermott said. “When he sets a goal for himself, for a team, I mean, he’s hard to stop.”

Still, the QB sees ways he can be better.

“I think we’ve got guys who are bought in,” Allen added. “And the run game, it sets up the pass game and vice versa. I felt like I missed a couple of throws tonight and we’ll always try to find a way to get better.”

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Bills’ offensive coordinator Joe Brady explains late QB sneak vs. Rams

Bills’ offensive coordinator Joe Brady explains late QB sneak vs. Rams

The Buffalo Bills lost to the Los Angeles Rams 42-44 on Sunday in Inglewood, CA.

The Rams came out swinging, competing in all three phases early to take a sizable lead.

Their offense never took their foot off the pedal, and while the Bills offense kept pace in a scoring shootout their defense and special teams were not able to get meaningful stops.

Near the end of the contest, some questionable playcalling caused a domino effect sequence that has raised game and clock management questions similar to the team’s loss to the Houston Texans earlier this season.

And it started with a failed quarterback sneak attempt at the goal line.

Head coach Sean McDermott would call a timeout after a failed QB sneak and before their last touchdown, which then led to an onside kick the Bills didn’t recover. The Buffalo defense was able to force a punt but needed to attempt a block to have the best chance, but there was no punt rush on the play.

“The highest percentage play at that point was just doing a QB sneak,” OC Joe Brady said about the play call. “At the same time, the cost of not getting it essentially, potentially, and kind of did cost us the game. So I have to do a better job in that situation. At the end of the day, we can’t burn a timeout there.”

Josh Allen rushing is as good a play as any in the red zone. After all, he has more rushing touchdowns at age 28 than some Hall of Fame running backs had in their entire careers. Still, on this attempt, the unsuccessful play proved costly.

“If we’re going to call it, we have to make sure that we know 100% that we can get it. I felt confident in it and felt confident in doing it. But that doesn’t make it right,” he said.

The sequence garnered a strong response from long-time Bills divisional nemesis and UGG spokesman turned FOX Sports analyst, Tom Brady.

“To me, take three shots throwing it—don’t use a timeout. Then you can kick it deep, use your three timeouts to still get the football with good time. That changes the entire complexity of the last 1:02 of the game. I did not like that one bit. That could’ve just cost them the game right there.”

While these statements all ring true, the Bills defense also had some explaining to do after failing to stop much less slow down the Rams offense.

DC Bobby Babich spoke about the grouping of issues that compounded throughout the game after his unit gave up a season-high 44 points.

“When you look at it and you really watch the tape, it’s, and I used this word earlier today, it’s a conglomeration, and I’m including myself, of people not doing their jobs at a high level,” he said. “The recipe to lose a football game is what we did yesterday, and it starts with me, first and foremost, what I did yesterday, and we just got to learn from it. Move on and not let it happen again.”

They’ll face a Lions team next week that has the No. 1 ranked scoring offense in the NFL, and Babich knows they will need to be at their best in the matchup.

“I believe our guys are up to the challenge, and they’re ready to respond.”

Why Bills’ Josh Allen still thinks he needed to play ‘better’ vs. Rams

Why Bills’ Josh Allen still thinks he needed to play ‘better’ vs. Rams

The Buffalo Bills headed West in NFL Week 14 to kick off a two-game road trip, and the first stop was in sunny Los Angeles, CA to take on the Rams at SoFi Stadium.

Buffalo had been on a winning streak since dropping two losses to the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans earlier this season. However, their third loss of the year came on Sunday in Inglewood, 42-44.

Allen, who is in the midst of an MVP-worthy campaign, had another big day with the Buffalo offense as he went 22/37 with 342 passing yards and 82 rushing yards to go with 6 total TDs while becoming the first quarterback in NFL history to throw and rush for three touchdowns in the air and three on the ground.

The Bills defense, however, gave up 44 points.

And while Allen dazzled in the second half to give Buffalo a shot, the defense simply could not get enough stops or limit the Rams offensive scoring enough to make the game winnable.

Even still, his focus after the game was on his responsibility as the offensive leader.

“Hate losing,” Allen said. “If you lose by two or lose by 100, it doesn’t matter, you are still losing. Offensively, we have to find ways to score before and after the half. We didn’t do our part.”

The two teams exchanged blows on offense for four quarters, with Allen and company fighting to keep Buffalo in the game and coming back to bring the score within two points in the final minutes before the Rams recovered a failed onsides kick to run the clock out.

“I have to make one more play than they do. It was a total team loss in three phases. We didn’t play up to our standards,” Allen noted.

“I don’t know how well we did on third down or completion percentage, I don’t know any of that. I just know it wasn’t good enough to win a football game. I just got to find more completions, got to be better for our guys.”

Nonetheless, the QB’s performance was nothing short of historical.

“Incredible,” said Bills head coach Sean McDermott to the media. “Incredible. We’ve got to do a better job around him. If you look at the game, it’s line of scrimmage and being able to run the ball with our running backs. It’s line of scrimmage on defense, it’s special teams giving up big plays.”

In a clash of the league’s top clubs, each with Super Bowl aspirations this season, the Bills will next face one of their biggest tests yet in the Detroit Lions.

“Sometimes this can be as hard as it is, a good reminder of what you need to do every week in this league and how we have to adjust as a football team,” McDermott added. “Next week is a challenging game as well – they’re all challenging – against a really good football team on the road so we have our work cut out for us this week.”

Baldy’s Breakdown: Bills stacking wins using NFL best turnover differential

Baldy’s Breakdown: Bills stacking wins using NFL best turnover differential

Sean McDermott’s Buffalo Bills have continuously beaten their opponents this year by winning the turnover battle, and Sunday night in Week 13 was no different.

The Bills (10-2) forced the San Francisco 49ers (5-7) to turn the ball over three times and had no turnovers of their own in the 35-10 victory.

The Bills lead the NFL in turnover differential at +17. They are second in the league for most takeaways (24) and second in the league with the fewest giveaways (7). They are also second in fumbles recovered (11).

Add all of these components together and you can get a good picture as to why the Bills are 10-2 on the year before even mentioning the team’s points scored and points allowed.

On Sunday, the Bills did what they have been doing all year: they forced their opponent to cough up the ball. Cornerback Christian Benford recovered a fumble forced by safety Taylor Rapp, Jalen Virgil recovered a fumble forced by Cole Bishop on special teams, and pass rusher Greg Rousseau recovered a Brock Purdy fumble.

“One reason the Bills have won seven in a row, and are running away with the AFC East again, is their ability to take the ball away,” said NFL Network and Fox Sports analyst Brian Baldinger in his post-game breakdown. “They are taking it away on average two times per game. You keep doing that, you keep winning.”

Their current turnover differential (+17) is much improved from the previous two years. In 2023, the Bills posted a +2 turnover differential, and in 2022 they broke even (0).

It’s not just the defense causing turnovers that is the reason for their leap over the past two years. A big reason for the improvement is the fact that the offense, and more specifically quarterback Josh Allen, is taking care of the ball.

Last year through 12 games, Allen already had 13 interceptions. This year, he has five.

The offense had zero turnovers in Week 13, and that now makes it six games out of twelve where the Bills have not given the ball away. Last year, the Bills only had three such games over the entire year.

McDermott expressed his pleasure with Allen and the offense taking care of the ball earlier this year, saying, “He’s done a tremendous, tremendous job… he really has, and I couldn’t be more pleased with the way we’ve protected the house on offense. His level of decision-making has increased this season and been very important to our team.”

Taking care of the ball always gives you a chance to win. Add on top of the league-leading turnover differential the fact that the Bills are second in the NFL in points per game, and you can see why they are one of the favorites to win the Lombardi Trophy.

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Sean McDermott discusses celebrating in snow after Bills’ win vs. 49ers

Sean McDermott discusses celebrating in snow after Bills’ win vs. 49ers

In a 35-10 win over the San Francisco 49ers at home in Orchard Park, HC Sean McDermott’s record coming out of the bye week remained perfect and the Buffalo Bills looked the part of a playoff contender.

The team won its fifth straight AFC East crown as only the eighth team in NFL history to clinch a division title with five games still remaining in the regular season.

The club has scored 30 or more points in six straight games and won seven straight since total since early season back-to-back losses against Baltimore and Houston.

The Bills have punched their ticket to the postseason, and head coach Sean McDermott was feeling celebratory while being interviewed on the field after the victory by ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt on SportsCenter.

When quarterback Josh Allen surprised him by trotting up and saying “coach of the year” into the microphone, McDermott replied, “I want to see an angel, a snow angel. C’mon. Let’s go.”

Allen happily obliged him, sharing a wholesome moment with his coach.

“He’s the one who got me to do it,” The QB said to the press postgame. “I was just trying to give him some flowers. He was live on TV and anytime coach asks you to do something you do it. I’m a good soldier. I’m not the biggest snow angel fan because you get cold down there. My toes are freezing right now. I’m just trying to get in the shower, but it was fun.”

McDermott made good on a halftime challenge made by backup tight end Zach Davidson.

“We were coming down the tunnel at halftime and Zach Davidson tapped me on the hip and said ‘Hey, if we win this game you got to do a snow angel.’ I said ‘Alright, you got it,'” The coach shared. “I guess I followed through on my promise.”

By clinching their division the Bills are now guaranteed a home game in the playoffs in Buffalo, though with McDermott and the team’s record coming off a bye week, another one might be in store, as could more home games in the postseason.

The players and coaching staff will next turn their focus to road matchups against the Rams and Lions, in pursuit of the No. 1 AFC playoff seed and first-round bye.

With the heartbreak, the Bills and their fans have experienced at home in the divisional round of the playoffs the last two seasons, McDermott knows all too well what a bye and a win to advance back to the AFC Championship would mean.

“I think this is this place that is starting to become a place around the NFL now that people come and they see this and they’re going, ‘I want to be a part of this.'”

Bills’ Josh Allen breaks down crazy touchdown with Amari Cooper

Bills’ Josh Allen breaks down crazy touchdown with Amari Cooper

The Buffalo Bills beat the San Francisco 49ers 35-10 on the nationally televised Sunday Night Football stage to improve to 10-2.

On a snowy night in Orchard Park, QB Josh Allen and the offense didn’t miss a beat, as he made good on making history in the game.

He even did something no quarterback in history has done before, scoring a receiving touchdown on a pass he originally threw.


Receiver Amari Cooper hauled in a one-handed catch while multiple Niners defenders wrapped around him when he pitched the ball back to Allen.

The QB put on his Superman cape and ran toward the left pylon before laying out to extend and get the ball in for the score as he flew through the air and landed sliding in the snow out of bounds.

“It’s got to be up there. I wish he got credited for something there, an assist or a passing touchdown,” Allen said of Cooper. “I just kind of chased the ball to be there and we made eye contact. … It was dope.”

Cooper noted he made the heads-up play instinctually in a think-fast moment. He saw Allen nearby and thought he wanted the ball.

“I was wondering what he was doing over there,” Cooper said. “I figured he was over there because he wanted the ball, so I gave it to him.”

It was a historical day for the Bills as they won their fifth straight AFC East crown becoming one of the only clubs ever to do so with five games remaining in the regular season.

Allen made more history as well passing Hall of Famer and Bills legend Jim Kelly’s franchise record of 244 total touchdowns with 247 of his own at only age 28.

He would finish 13 of 17 for 148 yards and two touchdowns passing to go with three rushes for 18 yards and a score, and zero catches for 7 yards with a TD.

He is organically making a strong case for MVP candidacy along the way, though his focus is on continuing to pursue and hopefully surpass Kansas City (11-1) for the AFC’s top seed come playoff time.

“It’s a good feeling. This one feels a little bit different this early in the season,” Allen said. “It’s going to be fun, I mean, to go out there and play free and play relaxed and play loose. I think that could be a dangerous team.”

He’ll have plenty of opportunities to do just that with road games against the Rams and Lions up next, followed by home games against the Patriots and Jets before a final road matchup with New England.

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How the Bills could make history after their bye week

How the Bills could make history after their bye week

The Buffalo Bills came soaring into their bye week during NFL Week 13 riding a six-game winning streak to a 9-2 record.

They are preparing to host the 5-6 San Francisco 49ers for Sunday Night Football, a team that has dealt with some injuries to key players throughout the season.

The Niners could be without stars like quarterback Brock Purdy, offensive tackle Trent Williams, and defensive end Nick Bosa.

While their squad is desperate for a win, a Buffalo victory could make history for the franchise.

In more ways than one.

The Bills are four games ahead of the second-place AFC East squad and division rival Miami Dolphins, who will be playing the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on Thanksgiving Thursday. Buffalo beached them in both head-to-head matchups this season and owns the tie-breaker.

If Miami loses to Green Bay and Buffalo beats San Francisco, the Bills will also win their fifth straight division crown.

That would be something that has never previously been accomplished since the team was first founded in 1960.

The franchise did notably win four straight AFC East titles from 1988 to 1991, the final two of which included trips to the Super Bowl.

It’s also worth noting that the club has never lost coming out of their bye week under head coach Sean McDermott. And while a win is never fully guaranteed, the team does have a good prior track record in this situation.

That and their current regular season win streak aren’t the only ones on the line, however. Buffalo has also won six straight matchups against San Francisco.

QB Josh Allen will also have a chance to make more history in this game against a team he rooted for growing up in Firebaugh, CA.

Allen is currently tied with the Bills’ most storied quarterback in the team’s history, Jim Kelly, for the most touchdowns in the franchise’s history (244).

Per Tankathon, Buffalo has the fifth-easiest remaining schedule in the league this season, which means Allen will have plenty of time across the six regular season contests left to add to that number while entering his prime at age 28.

He’ll also have a chance to round out a strong campaign and potential MVP-caliber year just as the Bills will have a chance to bid for the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye in the AFC Playoff picture in facing the Niners, Rams, Lions, Patriots (twice), and Jets.