Bills’ Josh Allen was proud of Ray Davis in win vs. Jets

Bills’ Josh Allen was proud of Ray Davis in win vs. Jets

The Buffalo Bills were without James Cook against the New York Jets. Even though he’s a Pro Bowl running back, you would not have known.

The Bills (4-2) topped the New York Jets (2-4) in a 23-20 win on “Monday Night Football.'” Fourth-round rookie Ray Davis stepped up in a big way.

Davis had 152 yards from scrimmage, the most of any first-year pro so far in 2024. Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen was more than happy for Davis

“It was awesome to see, that’s why we drafted him,” Allen said. “Very proud of him for stepping up.”

Of all of his plays, Davis catching a 52-yard pass from Allen impressed the most. Davis said he was confident in his quarterback the play was not over.

“When you have a quarterback like Josh, things can happen,” Davis said. “I mistimed it terribly, but I was able to come down with the catch.”

For more from Allen on Davis, see the attached Batavia News clip below:

Bills QB Josh Allen connects with Ray Davis for 42-yard gain vs. Jets

Check out this highlight-reel play that helped the #Bills regain their lead over the #Jets on “Monday Night Football” in Week 6.

The Buffalo Bills took control of their Week 6 matchup against the New York Jets when star quarterback Josh Allen connected with wide receiver Ray Davis for a 42-yard gain in the second quarter on “Monday Night Football.”

The big play happened after New York gained an early lead with an Aaron Rodgers touchdown pass to Garrett Wilson, and helped spark the Bills to score a touchdown that gave Buffalo a 13-10 advantage over the Jets.

However, Buffalo was unable to extend its lead to four points when kicker Tyler Bass missed the extra point try after the touchdown.

Take a look at the game-changing connection between Allen and Davis in this video, which was posted to Twitter by the NFL’s official account:

 

Heading into halftime, the Bills held a three-point lead over the Jets.

Expect Allen and Buffalo’s high-octane offense to continue impressing fans with more outstanding plays in the second half of this AFC East showdown.

‘Everybody eats’ philosophy has Bills scoring most points in the NFL

‘Everybody eats’ philosophy has Bills scoring most points in the NFL

The Buffalo Bills coined the phrase “everybody eats” as the theme of their offense for 2024, and the team’s 47-10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on “Monday Night Football” was the latest representation of it.

To say that everybody ate on Monday would be an understatement.

Six Bills scored a touchdown in the game, 10 players caught a pass (nine in the first half), and five players recorded three or more catches.

James Cook, Ray Davis, Khalil Shakir, Dalton Kincaid, Ty Johnson, and Keon Coleman all found the endzone. Davis and Coleman both recorded their first-career touchdowns on a special night in Orchard Park.

Josh Allen had one of the most efficient games of his career, and he was able to conduct the offense by spreading it around and keeping the defense guessing. And, if Allen is the conductor of the orchestra then offensive coordinator Joe Brady is the one writing the music.

“Everybody eats” isn’t just a phrase for Brady, it’s all he wants for the offense. Because there is trust in the offensive line, and because Josh Allen is at quarterback, Brady is free to use his multitude of skill players in different and creative ways. The creativity and simplification of the processing for Allen have him as the MVP favorite through three games. Brady is putting everyone in positions to succeed.

In a post-practice press conference Wednesday, Josh Allen spoke on the ability of the offense being elevated because they have so many different options to beat defenses:

“I think we’ve shown the ability to be in big personnel and run it and throw it, we’ve shown small personnel to run it and throw it, the run game, play action, drop back… there’s just a lot of opportunities for us to do a lot of different things throughout the game. We have different chess pieces that Joe [Brady] is using really well right now… and they are doing a great job of understanding what everybody’s role is. The ability to at any different time throw it to somebody else and they be our first read… it’s very fun. It’s easy on me and Joe’s been doing a great job of calling plays.”

Sure, the Bills lost their top two receivers from last year, but what they have now is depth at skill positions across the entire offense. And the skill position players all offer multiple flavors themselves. The running backs are threats through the air and on the ground, Curtis Samuel and Khalil Shakir can be lined up anywhere, and Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox can give you everything you need at the tight end position. Throw in some big-bodied boundary receivers and you’ve got a well-rounded offense.

After three weeks, the Bills (3-0) are leading the league in points per game (37.3) but the road gets tougher ahead for the Bills. Next up is a three-game road stretch (Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans, New York Jets). It will be a grind through the next few weeks, but when things get tough for Allen and Brady, they know they’ll have someone in the supporting cast to lean on, because you can’t cover all of them.

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Bills’ Sean McDermott ‘very impressed’ with rookie Ray Davis

#Bills’ Sean McDermott ‘very impressed’ with rookie Ray Davis

The Ray Davis story was always going to be a feel good one after the Buffalo Bills selected him at the 2024 NFL draft.

Davis, a fourth-round pick, is now using that as a sort of motivation… and it’s working.

Fresh off an solid 58 rushing yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Buffalo’s 9-3 preseason win last week, head coach Sean McDermott noted the positive impact Davis is having.

“Very impressed,” McDermott said via video conference. “You could feel him. On TV, it was different. Offensive line was coming off the ball and Ray was making some big-time runs. They were physical. He was physical and almost looking for contact, squaring his pads up to the line of scrimmage. I respect that.”

For those uncertain on his story, Davis, who attended the University of Kentucky, was raised through the foster care system. He began that journey at the age of 12 and said it makes your grow up much faster.

Davis recently reflected on his past and said being in the NFL is all he wanted as a kid. It drives him during those tough workouts.

“When the days are hard, you’ve just got to look at yourself. smile in the mirror and say ‘if this is truly where you wanted to be? Be where your feet are and be glad,'” Davis said.

Davis’ next chance to impress will be in Buffalo’s preseason finale on Saturday against the Carolina Panthers. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.

For more from Davis, see the attached “One Bills Live” clip below:

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PFF: Bills’ Ray Davis amongst highest-graded Day 3 rookies in preseason

PFF: #Bills’ Ray Davis amongst highest-graded Day 3 rookies in preseason:

Pro Football Focus is raving about Buffalo Bills rookie Ray Davis.

Buffalo’s fourth-round pick at the 2024 NFL draft, Davis is proving plenty of analysts who praised his selection right.

The Bills are fresh off a 9-3 preseason win against the Pittsburgh Steelers. In the outing, Davis stood out thanks to his aggressive running style which netted him 58 total yards.

That was the second-most among all rookies in the NFL last week and helped factor into why PFF is praising him.

The football analytics outlet released a list of the best-graded Day 3 selections from the 2024 NFL draft so far this preseason. Davis finds himself near the top.

Overall, Davis’ grade of 79.2 has him as the sixth-highest graded rookie via PFF’s metrics. In terms of rookies who play on offense, Davis is the second-best.

The Bills might have finally found their 1-2 punch alongside Pro Bowl running back James Cook.

PFF’s full list of the highest-graded Day 3 rookies can be found below:

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WATCH: Every touch by Bills rookie RB Ray Davis at Steelers

The rookie looked good:

The Buffalo Bills look like they might have a budding contributor on offense so far this preseason despite the team failing to score a touchdown in two exhibition contests.

Specifically during a 9-3 win against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ray Davis stood out.

Davis, a fourth-round rookie, turned the tide for the Buffalo offense. After the rushing attack looked poor in the team’s first preseason contest, Davis found space to work with in Pittsburgh.

In total, Davis mustered up 58 yards on the ground through eight carries.

Check out all of his touches can be found in the highlight reel below:

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Fantasy football: 3 rookie breakout candidates for 2024

Taking a look at three rookies with the best chance of breaking out for fantasy football in 2024.

Though summer break is upon us, fantasy football managers know the quest for a championship never rests. 

Getting value and hitting on some draft picks that break out relative to average draft position (ADP) is what it’s all about. Those selections truly make a difference, and focusing on rookies can be an easy way to get there.

We won’t be looking at the bigger names in this rookie class like Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers or Jonathon Brooks. But there are still plenty of rookies who have the chance to become staples in fantasy lineups.

Here’s a look at three rookie breakout candidates to keep an eye on going into the 2024 season:

Bills’ Ray Davis lands on 2024 All-Rookie Team projection

#Bills’ Ray Davis lands on 2024 All-Rookie Team projection:

The Buffalo Bills are going to lean heavily on their rookies in 2024 after all the roster turnover the team has had this offseason.

So that must mean Buffalo’s top draft pick, Keon Coleman, was projected to be on the NFL’s All-Rookie Team… nope.

So then it’s second-round rookie Cole Bishop… no again.

NFL.com put together a projected 2024 All-Rookie squad. Bills rookie Ray Davis is the name that appears.

Davis, who could be in a tandem in Buffalo’s backfield with James Cook, could see important playing time right away in the pros. That’s how NFL.com sees it going for him.

Here’s the full breakdown on Davis:

Drafted: Round 4, No. 128 overall

Davis could be the thunder to James Cook’s lightning in the Bills offense, giving Buffalo a more powerful one-two punch than it had with Cook and Latavius Murray in 2023. The rookie will thrive in the red zone, taking some of the pressure off quarterback Josh Allen, who ran for 15 scores last season (Cook had just two rushing touchdowns). Defenses filling the box against Davis on early downs could be surprised by his ability as a receiver out of the backfield.

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Assessing the Buffalo Bills’ backfield for fantasy purposes

Will Buffalo rely heavily on the run with a shaky WR corps?

Heading into last season, the Buffalo Bills made the decision to let running back Devin Singletary (now with the New York Giants) depart for greener pastures. That thrust RB James Cook into the lead role. He responded. After rushing for 507 yards while splitting time with Singletary as a rookie, Cook carried the ball 237 times for 1,122 yards last year. That’s solid production from a lead back, especially with a capable running quarterback factoring in.

Things didn’t go as smoothly further down the depth chart. Damien Harris, signed from the New England Patriots to serve as RB2, suffered a severe neck injury in Week 6 and missed the rest of the season. He retired in March. With Harris lost, the team tried its luck in playing veteran Latavius Murray and even brought RB Leonard Fournette onto the practice squad in late October. While Murray (79-300-4) was the best of the bunch, the overall lack of production from that spot was an issue.

General manager Brandon Beane hopes he has addressed that with the selection of Ray Davis in the fourth round, and perhaps even via the signing of undrafted free-agent RB Frank Gore Jr. With major changes at receiver in Buffalo as well, let’s take a look at the Bills’ backfield to see who holds value in 2024.

Buffalo Bills rookies give their video game takes (video)

What is your pick?

NFL players often love their video games, especially rookies. While fine-tuned athletic machines, guys who leave it all out on the field are allowed to have their down time, too.

And on top of that, it’s actually a pretty healthy and trouble-free way to let loose… and many of these players have their favorite picks.

What is the favorite video game choice of this current crop of 2024 NFL draft rookies?

The likes of Cole Bishop, Ray Davis, and others answered exactly that in the clip below:

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