Injury status update to Pittsburgh Steelers WR Juju Smith-Schuster.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are getting some help for their test against the Buffalo Bills.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Steelers will get wide receiver Juju Smith-Schuster back in their lineup prior to their Week 15 meeting with the Bills. The wideout had been missing time with a knee injury.
Steelers’ WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, who has missed the past three games with a knee injury, is eyeing a return on Sunday night against the Buffalo Bills, per source.
The 23-year-old has been limited to 10 games this season and has 38 catches for 524 yards and three touchdowns. The Steelers’ No. 1 target had 111 catches, 1,425 yards and seven scores in 2018.
Backup quarterback Devlin Hodges is the expected starter under center for the Steelers vs. the Bills.
Bills feel they are close to beating the NFL’s best.
Following their 24-17 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, Bills head coach Sean McDermott said that he was, “disappointed” and added that, “there are no moral victories.”
While that may be the case, many people gave the Bills little to no chance entering today’s game and despite suffering the loss, they were able to keep it close in large part to another special showing by their defense.
As McDermott stated, moral victories do not exist in professional sports, but it is hard to walk away from this one feeling to down on the Bills. Buffalo was able to keep it close against the hottest team in the league and make an NFL MVP candidate in Lamar Jackson, look pedestrian for most of the afternoon.
So just how far off are the Bills from going from keeping it close, to actually beating the upper echelon of the NFL? Several players on the Bills feel they are right there.
“The gap isn’t big,” Bills linebacker Lorenzo Alexander told reporters following the game.”You look at today as probably three plays in the game, where this game shifts big time… it’s not like it’s this big reach we’re looking for. We’re right there. I think the thing is just to learn from this. Obviously being in these big type of games, the margin of error is a lot smaller.”
Alexander isn’t the only one who feels like the Bills are close to figuring things out vs. the better teams.
“I think this loss and the Patriots loss rank in the same category, as far as two prestigious teams you’re playing right there with them and ultimately just coming up short,” Bills defensive tackle Ed Oliver said. “That’s what really pisses you off. You know, you go to work every day. You go to work with your guys and we know how good we can be, we just have to finish.”
At 9-4, the Bills don’t have much time to dwell on this loss, as their next test will be facing off vs. the 8-5 Steelers, in Pittsburgh, on Sunday Night Football in front of the entire country.
With a win vs. the Steelers next week, the Bills would clinch a playoff spot and perhaps show they can not only hang with good teams, but beat them as well.
Everything you need to know about the Baltimore Ravens, the Buffalo Bills’ Week 14 opponent.
Dec 1, 2019; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson (8) runs during the second quarter against the San Francisco 49ers at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
The Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens square off this Sunday in a match up of AFC Heavyweights in Orchard Park. The Ravens are the hottest team in the NFL right now, defeating the Patriots and the 49ers over the last month. For the Bills, the chance to hang with a team of this caliber, is one to salivate at.
Here is all of the history that you need to know between the Ravens and Bills to get you ready for Sunday:
Since the Ravens inception in 1996, these two have played the Bills eight times.
They first played on Halloween in 1999, with the Bills getting a narrow 13-10 victory.
Their most recent encounter was the season opener just last year. The Ravens won 47-3 in that game.
Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson both made their NFL regular season debuts in last years game. Allen came in for a struggling Nate Peterman after he failed to move the offense down field, and Lamar was given the opportunity to get repetitions after the Ravens were well ahead.
The Ravens lead the all-time series, 5-3 , outscoring the Bills 180 to 112 in those eight encounters.
2019 So Far
Baltimore is way ahead of what many experts thought that they would be. Lamar Jackson’s growth, combined with excellent coaching from the Ravens staff, has propped the Ravens up as the best team in the NFL currently. Greg Roman, their offensive coordinator, is the dual-threat quarterback whisperer, and has this Ravens offense exciting to watch, and efficient, utilizing well sold trickery and misdirection.
After a good start, which saw them begin the season 2-2 with a blow out victory over Miami, a close victory over the Cardinals, and losses to Kansas City and division rival Cleveland, Baltimore hasn’t looked back since. Garnering eight straight wins, the Ravens have mostly dominated, with seemingly no end in sight.
Their major victories have been giving the Patriots their first loss of 2019 on primetime television, a double-digit victory over the Seattle Seahawks, led by another MVP candidate in Russell Wilson, lopsided victories over the Texans and Rams, and most recently, a strong four quarter effort to defeat the San Francisco 49ers.
It’s safe to say that 2019 has been good for the Baltimore Ravens. They currently sit at second in total offense, behind the Cowboys. Baltimore has accumulated 5,049 yards of total offense this season, with one fewer game than the Cowboys currently. Although they haven’t really needed too, they are the 26th ranked passing offense, with 2,555 yards passing for Jackson. By a long shot, they are the number one rushing offense, with 2,494 rushing yards in total, over 700 rushing yards ahead of the second best rushing offense, who they defeated in last week.
The Ravens also happen to be the highest scoring offense, by nearly 60 points ahead of the 49ers, who come in at number two. Baltimore is tied at first with Seattle for 26 passing touchdowns, and first in rushing touchdowns with 18.
Jackson comes in 18th for passing yard leaders this year, with 2,532 passing yards, just 59 yards behind Josh Allen. His 25 passing touchdowns are good for second in that category, only one touchdown behind Russell Wilson. Jackson is also 11th in completion percentage, with 66.5%. He’s doing well in the interception category as well, throwing only five this year, tied for 23rd with Matthew Stafford, Gardner Minshew, and Joe Flacco.
As for rushers, Jackson is in the top-10 of the NFL, 977 yards for him on the ground, with a good chance of crossing 1,000 this Sunday, averaging 81.4 yards per game. Mark Ingram, the starting running back, is not far behind, sitting at 12th with 837 rushing yards. Ingram has been a complementary and integral part of the offense, not only with yardage and production, but with selling fake handoffs. Gus Edwards sits at 32nd in yardage with 460 yards.
Obviously, with such a run heavy team, receivers aren’t having “career-years,” but it does not matter, they are doing their part to put their team in a winning position. Tight end Mark Andrews leads receiving for Baltimore, with 693 receiving yards, coming in at 32nd in the NFL. Andrews is fourth amongst tight ends however, just behind Travis Kelce, Darren Waller and Zach Ertz.
Marquise Brown is the leading wide receiver for the team. The rookie sensation is 58th in receiving yards with 520 yards by air, and six touchdowns of his own. Willie Snead is the next closest, ranked 125th with only 289 yards.
Historically, Baltimore has always been a defensive heavy team, and this year is no different. Despite losing some talented players, they traded for Marcus Peters and have a very young, and talented defense. The Ravens are currently the seventh ranked defense, allowing 3,881 yards against them. They are the 11th ranked passing defense, giving up 2,742 yards by air, and are the sixth ranked rush defense, allowing 1,139 yards on the ground. Baltimore is also the fourth ranked defense in points allowed, giving up 219 points so far, just behind the Buffalo Bills.
There are picks for Patriots-Chiefs, Niners-Saints, Rams-Seahawks and Bills-Ravens.
Don’t get confident. We were on fire with a bunch of big weeks followed by a great Thanksgiving and then went 1-5 in Week 13. That’s the opposite of good. So it’s time to go back to basics. Hit some home underdogs. Take some unders. Moneyline an obvious favorite here or there.
Finishing .500 isn’t the goal because that means lost money. There’s a reason that books take a vig. It’s their fee for taking a bet. That’s why finishing .500 is bad. That vig isn’t made up. It’s not a lot of lost money, but it’s 10 percent of a unit lost generally. So we need some winners. Let’s get some winners.
As usual, the home teams are in CAPS, and we are using Bet MGM for our odds. Games will be listed at -110 unless denoted otherwise.
The Ravens are one of the most perplexing offenses in the NFL currently. Their style of a run heavy offense with a dual-threat QB in Lamar Jackson is not uncommon, but the way that it’s executed has never quite been seen before. The way that the …
The Ravens are one of the most perplexing offenses in the NFL currently. Their style of a run heavy offense with a dual-threat QB in Lamar Jackson is not uncommon, but the way that it’s executed has never quite been seen before. The way that the team sells it’s trickery, misdirection, and plays in general has challenged and confused every team in it’s way so far.
Buffalo is an enigma, though. A resilient team that has been in an uphill battle all season, on and off of the field. Facing criticism from many for a schedule that’s out of their control, doubts about Josh Allen, coaching, and more. They’ve risen to the occasion, and are one of the best teams in the AFC and NFL currently. They are certainly chomping at the bit for this opportunity to cement their place along with the greats in 2019.
Joining host Matt John for this episode, are the Managing Editor of Billswire, Nick Wojton. Secondly, a friend and colleague of Nick’s from college, Sean Grogan, who covers the Baltimore Ravens for Cecil Whig via cecildaily.com, to discuss the various aspects, story lines, and more for this huge AFC match up:
This Sunday has a big game feel to it. Sure, the Bills just defeated the Cowboys on Thanksgiving, with the National Spotlight firmly on them, but there is something special about this game against Baltimore.
This Sunday has a big game feel to it. Sure, the Bills just defeated the Cowboys on Thanksgiving, with the national spotlight firmly on them, but there is something special about this game against the Ravens.
How do you gameplan for a team of the caliber and level that the Ravens are playing at right now? It’s not as easy as it would seem. The Ravens offense is unique, and it’s key piece, the sophomore sensation Lamar Jackson, is having an MVP-caliber season. His speed, combined with his growing passing ability, and the offensive units ability to sell fake out plays, has stumped the best defensive coordinators across the NFL, including one of the greatest minds in pro football history, Bill Belichick.
The challenge is one that the Bills are certainly up for, and another opportunity to prove that they’re for real. The coordinators and players have their work cut out for them. In this episode, podcast hosts Matt and Jeremy examine what they believe that the Bills have to do to try and slow down one of the fastest offenses running in the NFL.
The AFC playoff picture got a little bit more interesting with the Patriots loss. There are races for the AFC East, South, and Wild Cards.
It might be time to talk about the Patriots but we will know more after this week against the Chiefs. It’s definitely time to talk about the Ravens and how they’ve looked like an unstoppable force. Even with the Texans’ impressive victory, there’s a challenger lurking in the South. The AFC West is still the Chiefs to lose.
Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
AFC East
New England Patriots 10-2
New England had to go 2-2 in their stretch of games that started with the Eagles and ended with the Chiefs. That’s exactly what was said last week. It still stands. Of course, winning against Kansas City is probably in their best interest. They still have the inside track at winning the AFC East, but a victory against the Chiefs may also assure them a bye.
The Bills have a legit shot at winning the AFC East. Of course, they will have to beat the Ravens and Steelers first and then beat the Patriots in New England. They could enter Week 17 needing a win to get to the playoffs.
The Buffalo Bills won big on Thanksgiving, landing their first “statement win”, against the Dallas Cowboys with the world watching. Buffalo, for the last 20 years, has been a team that collapsed when the national spotlight was placed on them, but …
The Buffalo Bills won big on Thanksgiving, landing their first “statement win”, against the Dallas Cowboys with the world watching. Buffalo, for the last 20 years, has been a team that collapsed when the national spotlight was placed on them, but this was different.
The Bills delivered in a big way, and embarrassing the Cowboys, in their home stadium, and in a game that they have played in every year, since the 1960’s. I’ll admit, that it was strange to watch the Bills in a scenario like this, and a player in a Bills jersey eating a turkey leg to close out the game.
The offense fired on all cylinders, with Josh Allen moving the ball efficiently, by air, connecting with Cole Beasley, who was out for revenge against his former team. Devin Singletary caught a touchdown pass himself, as well as dominating on the ground. Allen looked like the franchise quarterback that Buffalo has long awaited, for the first time. It was certainly a defining game.
The Bills defense handled itself well. Giving up touchdowns to Dallas on their first and last possessions only, they did well, disrupting the number one ranked offense in the NFL. Dak Prescott, in an important contract situation this season, turned the ball over several times. He had defenders in his face all night, and even Ezekiel Elliott couldn’t get anything going.
Buffalo looked good when the lights shined bright, but what lays in front of them is another challenge, in the form of the red hot Baltimore Ravens. It’s hard to not try and enjoy this win against Dallas on a special occasion. With 10 days to prepare for the offensive onslaught that Lamar Jackson has brought against the best of the NFL, there is a lot more work that has to be done before the real celebrating can commence.
Billswire Podcast host Matt Johnson explores the win and outlook towards Baltimore in Week 13:
Following their biggest win in recent history, the Bills feel it’s time people take notice.
Entering Thursday’s Thanksgiving showdown vs. the Dallas Cowboys, the Bills were not receiving any respect.
Despite being 8-3, the Bills were 7.5-point underdogs to start the week against the 6-5 Cowboys, and the talk was mainly surrounding their weak schedule and unimpressive wins vs. bad teams.
Following their 26-15 win on the national stage, that saw the Bills improve to 9-3 for the first time since 1996, several players on the Bills felt it was time people start paying them their due.
As the clock wound down on one of the biggest wins in recent Bills history, defensive end Shaq Lawson had plenty to say on the sideline.
“Bills back. If we don’t got y’all respect now, we got this [expletive] for real,” Lawson said.
“They gonna respect Bills Mafia.”
Lawson wasn’t alone. As the team made it’s way down the tunnel towards the locker room, following the victory, passion was oozing out of the players.
Jon Feliciano directly behind him added, “are not you entertained?!”
While being the underdog provides a certain ‘chip on your shoulder’ that drives players, at some point everyone wants acknowledgment for their hard work and success.
“The film spoke for itself today,” Bills defensive tackle Jordan Phillips told reporters. “We came out and did our thing. Showed the world what we got. Put the world on notice. We were the worst 8-3 team in the NFL, now hopefully we get a little respect. We’ll see how that goes.”
Bills safety Jordan Poyer was asked if this win can be classified as a statement win for Buffalo.
“I believe so,” Poyer said at his locker. “The world believed that we couldn’t come in here and do what we did today and you know, we showed what we could do. Everybody doubting us. Everybody, but the people in this locker room, believing that we couldn’t win… but the guys in this locker room, the coaches in this locker room, the organization, we believed that we were going to come in here and win and it showed today. ”
While many players and coaches on the Bills are often tight lipped regarding their feelings towards being disrespected by those outside the organization, Thanksgiving felt different.
Many of the players on the team shared pictures to their Instagram accounts of network analysts picking the Cowboys to win, adding fuel to the growing sense of being disrespected.
In many ways Week 13 felt personal. Perhaps it was being on national TV, it being Thanksgiving, or just the fact that after 12 games the Bills have the third-best record in the conference and have no control over who they face on their schedule. All they can control is beating the teams they face.
Next up, the Bills get to take on the hottest team in the NFL, in the Baltimore Ravens. If they find a way to get that win, then absolutely no one will be denying the Bills the respect that they feel they deserve.
Sep 15, 2019; Landover, MD, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Gallup (13) runs after a catch against the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports For the first time since 1996, …
Sep 15, 2019; Landover, MD, USA; Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Gallup (13) runs after a catch against the Washington Redskins during the second half at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
For the first time since 1996, the Buffalo Bills are 8-3, and for the first time since 1994, they are playing football on Thanksgiving. Dallas has been a regular host of the Thanksgiving Day series since 1966, and the Cowboys have a rich history against the Buffalo Bills. It is one of the most anticipated games of Thanksgiving this year.
Here is everything that you need to know about the history of the Cowboys and Buffalo Bills, including their respective Thanksgiving Day stats:
The Bills and Cowboys first met on September 17, 1971, in Buffalo. The Cowboys won that game 49-37.
They met in two Superbowls, 27 and 28, with Dallas winning both encounters.
Their most recent encounter took place on December 27, 2015, and the Bills won that encounter 16 – 6.
The Cowboys lead the all-time series, including the two Super Bowl games, 8 games to 4 and have outscored Buffalo 280-181 over those 12 encounters.
The Cowboys played their first Thanksgiving Day game on November 24, 1966, defeating the Cleveland Browns 26-14.
Dallas would hold that tradition annually, with the exception of 1975 and 1977, in an effort to help out the St. Louis (Arizona) Cardinals boost stadium ticket sales.
Dallas is 31-18-1 on Thanksgiving.
Buffalo started playing Thanksgiving Day games while in the AFL. They played their first against the New York Titans (Jets) in a 21-14 loss.
The modern iteration of the Buffalo Bills have never hosted a Thanksgiving Day game, but played in five during their AFL years when no team had that home game guaranteed.
The Bills are 3-4-1 on Thanksgiving.
2019 So Far
Coming off of a 10-6 season and winning the NFC East for the second time in three years, the Cowboys are having a interesting year to say the least. Dallas lost in the Divisional Round of the playoffs to the Los Angeles Rams, and there were very high expectations coming into this season.
The Cowboys are currently 6-5, narrowly sitting atop the NFC East with Philadelphia only one game back at 5-6. As close as the race for the NFC East has been, both Philadelphia and Dallas are not being viewed as very competitive amongst the entire NFL, and are currently the worst team by record in the NFC Playoffs. A rather disappointing year that has many of the Dallas fan base calling for Jason Garrett’s removal as head coach, again.
2019 has been rocky from the start, as star running back Ezekiel Elliott held out for a bigger contract, a few years short of the expiration of his rookie deal. Considering the workload that has been put on “Zeke” over his very young NFL career, it was relatively fair, considering the toll that running back’s endure. However, the hold out led to some awkward moments and uncomfortable statements between Owner Jerry Jones and Elliott.
Also, a looming question heading into 2019 was quarterback Dak Prescott’s contract situation. Prescott has played relatively well in his tenure, sporting a 38-21 record as a starter with 14,309 yards passing, 88 touchdowns and 35 interceptions. He will most likely be extended with Dallas, as he’s given stability at his position that the Cowboys didn’t have during the latter years of Tony Romo’s career. Whether or not Dak has performed well in clutch moments, has been the question of his biggest detractors, and that is an area that he has lacked in.
Dallas began the season with three straight wins, defeating the New York Giants, Washington Redskins and Miami Dolphins. A great start, and Dallas looked like a top tier team and a definite Super Bowl contender, granted the strength of schedule. Prescott was having some of his best numbers, and the team, as a unit, was a well oiled machine.
However, it was the three games after that win streak that gave the Cowboys a stigma for 2019 that they “couldn’t beat good teams”. Losing to the New Orleans Saints 10-12, Green Bay Packers 24-34, and even a massive upset by the New York Jets, left Dallas feeling like an average team that couldn’t compete against the class of the division.
Since then, they’ve defeated the Eagles 37-10, completed the sweep of the Giants by winning 37-18, lost to the Minnesota Vikings 24-28, beat Detroit 35-27 and fell to the New England Patriots 9-13.
Dallas currently ranks first in “Team Offense” earning 4,767 yards over their first 11 games. They are the number one passing offense as well, with 3,339 passing yards. They are the eighth ranked rushing offense with 1,428 rushing yards, nearly 1,000 yards behind the Baltimore Ravens who sit at first.
Dak is currently the number one passer in the NFL, with 3,433 yards passing, tied at fourth in passing touchdowns with Kirk Cousins at 21 and tied for fifth in interceptions at 10 with Jimmy Garoppolo, Matt Ryan, Sam Darnold and Ryan Fitzpatrick.
“Zeke” is ranked seventh in rushing with 919 yards on the ground and tied at seven rushing touchdowns with Nick Chubb, Josh Jacobs, Todd Gurley and Bills QB Josh Allen. Dak Prescott has 197 rushing yards to his credit, good enough for 60th in the NFL, as well as three rushing touchdowns of his own.
Amari Cooper comes in at sixth in receiving, amassing 886 yards and he’s tied for fifth with touchdown receptions, at seven. Michael Gallup is the next best receiver, sitting at 21st in the NFL with 733 receiving yards. Randall Cobb at 39th with 581 yards.
As a defense, Dallas sits sixth in the NFL, allowing 3,503 yards against them and the seventh most points scored against them at 210. They are sixth in passing defense, giving up 2,350 yards by air and 12 touchdowns. The weakest aspect of their defense is against the rush, with 1,153 yards ran against them, good enough for 15th in the NFL.
How they match up with Buffalo?
There is certainly some intrigue with this game. Both Dallas and Buffalo are teams with stigmas. They can beat who they are supposed to beat, but can’t get the job done against winning teams. It rings true, as Dallas has not yet defeated a team with a winning record as of Week 13. The only team that Buffalo has defeated with a winning record currently, is the Tennessee Titans.
The Bills rush defense is at great risk this week, although it has improved the last few weeks. Ezekiel Elliott is one of the best running backs in the game, and an excellent pass-catching back. We all watched the defense that New England brought forth on Dallas last week, limiting the best passing offense to no touchdowns. The Bills have a tough defense as well, and it will be interesting to see if the Bills can duplicate or come close to New England’s performance.
Offensively, the Bills moved the ball effectively against Denver, who is ranked in the Top 10. Smart, calculated football to keep moving the chains with more usage for Singletary and Gore. The Cowboys weak rush defense should be a target for Buffalo in this game. Also, Cole Beasley is making his big return to the team where he had spent many years at. Beasley was excellent in the short to mid-range passing game last week, and it would be a good idea to continue to build off of that.
The Cowboys obviously have home field advantage on their side, and that typically bodes well with teams on short weeks. Traveling teams are 5-7 on the year, which aren’t terrible odds for the Bills.
Enjoy this game, and the other two throughout the day, with family and friends, the best way to enjoy football. Happy Thanksgiving from myself and the rest of the Billswire staff to you and yours!
