Bills at Saints: 3 keys to a Buffalo win

#Bills at #Saints: 3 keys to a Buffalo win:

The Bills head to New Orleans this week to face the Saints in one of this year’s Thanksgiving Day game matchups.

The team and their fans both want to put recent losses to the Colts and Jaguars behind them, so a bounce-back win could them do just that.

And as we know from their last appearance on Thanksgiving Day, a 26-15 win over Dallas in 2019, Josh Allen and company want to be the ones holding Turkey legs in the winner’s circle.

Both teams are looking to redeem themselves after losing games by similar lopsided scores this past Sunday, and Buffalo is aiming to shake off a few rocky performances overall with a short week victory.

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Here are three keys to the game for the Bills (6-4) against the Saints (5-5):

Sean McDermott on Bills’ run defense: ‘We’ve got to get that fixed’

Sean McDermott on #Bills’ run defense: ‘We’ve got to get that fixed’

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The Bills followed up last week’s 45-17 dismantling of the Jets with a taste of their own medicine.

The team fell 41-15 to the Indianapolis Colts at home and out of the division lead in the AFC East on Sunday.

While the Bills had a record day running the ball a week ago, this time around the Colts made some history of their own.

Buffalo was without leaders on the defensive side of the ball in Tremaine Edmunds and Star Lotulelei, leaving them vulnerable to ground attack. And attack Indy did, as RB Jonathan Taylor went off for a career-high game of 185 yards on 32 carries and a franchise-record five touchdowns.

The teams’ defensive leaders knew this type of loss was a call to action, and safety Micah Hyde was one of them.

“We felt like we have been doing pretty well stopping the run all season and obviously going against a guy like Derrick Henry and Jonathan Taylor, two very good backs. We gotta find a way to limit that” Hyde said while addressing the media.

Head coach Sean McDermott also recognized the run defense is in need of repair.

“We’ve got to get that fixed,” McDermott said during his own press session. “There’s a formula to win and there’s a formula on the other end of it too. And when you’re giving up… when we’re getting beat at the point of attack, obviously, I have to do a better job there.”

Next up is the New Orleans Saints, who also experienced a 40-29 loss, and RB Alvin Kamara, the last RB to log a multi-scoring game of Taylor’s kind (six in 2020.) He will look to make things difficult during Buffalo’s visit to the Big Easy in this Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day game.

With a short turnaround, they’ll shake off the loss and look to show they are a different team than the one fans saw on the field this past weekend.

“That’s a good football team but at the same time, we understand we’re a better football team than what we showed today,” said safety Jordan Poyer as he shared the media session alongside Hyde. “So it’s one of those ‘you gotta take a look in the mirror, we’ve got a game on Thursday’, short turnaround so we’re able to come back tomorrow, and obviously the 24-hour rule and get ready to play on Thursday night.”

Buffalo now enters a pivotal remaining stretch of the regular season with high playoff hopes.

Kansas City has not been as dominant this season as in recent years, and the rebuilt New England squad is no longer the practice-filming dynasty that won six championships.

The road to the Super Bowl in the AFC may be more open than it has been in some time.

The club still has the opportunity to once more sweep the division, with a game against the Jets and two against the Patriots.

One thing’s for sure, Buffalo now finds itself back in familiar territory.

A team with something to prove, who may now be viewed as a division and playoff underdog with their rival Patriots once more ahead of them.

In order to win a championship, the Bills and their coaching staff will need to turn things around and find consistency to make another strong playoff run.

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Bills vs. Colts: 3 keys to a Buffalo win

Bills vs. Colts: 3 keys to a Buffalo win

Buffalo bested Indianapolis and effectively retired Philip Rivers in the playoffs last year.

While the Bills defeated their AFC rivals in Buffalo during the post-season, they ultimately fell to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game.

As the Bills square up to face the Colts at home on Sunday, Indy’s last few opponents are familiar to Bills fans- Those being the Titans, the Jets, and the Jaguars.

The Colts have a solid coach and are building a competitive roster, and now have quarterback Carson Wentz.

While landing victories against contenders like the aforementioned Tennessee squad as well as the San Francisco 49ers, they’ve also lost as many games as they’ve won.

With that said, here are three keys to the game for the Bills (6-3) against the Colts (5-5):

National media reacts to Bills’ selections of AJ Epenesa, Zack Moss

The Bills finally got on the draft board on Friday at the 2020 NFL Draft. Buffalo didn’t have a pick on Day 1, but with their two on Day 2, the Bills landed guys for both sides of the ball. Guys who both potentially could leave their mark on game …

The Bills finally got on the draft board on Friday at the 2020 NFL Draft. Buffalo didn’t have a pick on Day 1, but with their two on Day 2, the Bills landed guys for both sides of the ball.

Guys who both potentially could leave their mark on game day.

Those two players are defensive end AJ Epenesa and running back Zack Moss and some took notice of the Bills’ haul.

Here’s what some national football analysts had to say about Buffalo’s picks:

Mike Clay, ESPN

Luke Easterling, Draft Wire

Chris Simms, NBC Sports

Steve Wyche, NFL Network

Thor Nystrom, Rotoworld/ NBC Sports

Austin Gayle, Pro Football Focus

Gil Brandt, NFL.com

Bucky Brooks, NFL.com

Bill Barnwall, ESPN

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