Tag: Zack Moss

Bills at 49ers: 5 things to watch for and a prediction

Things to watch for in Week 13 plus a prediction against the San Francisco 49ers for the BIlls.

The Buffalo Bills will travel back to the scene of the crime on Monday as the San Francisco 49ers await.

Last weekend, the 49ers (5-6) won on a last-second play, which actually will make this one a bit more fun, won’t it? The Bills (8-3) also continued their march toward their first AFC East title since 1995. Huge and obvious playoff implications for both sides here.

Plus, the primetime lights on Monday Night Football will be shining bright.

With that, here are five things to watch for and a prediction ahead of Week 13’s Bills-49ers meeting:

8 storylines to watch for during Bills vs. 49ers

Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers storylines for Week 13 on Monday Night Football.

It’s Wednesday so the Buffalo Bills are now turning their attention to their next opponent. After a post-bye week win against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Bills will head to another team’s home away from home where the San Francisco 49ers (5-6) await them.

With that, here are eight storylines to follow as the Bills are set to face the Niners in Week 13:

PODCAST: Is the Bills defense back after Chargers performance?

Buffalo Bills defense back after Week 12 win vs. Chargers? Podcast.

Another week, and another W for the Buffalo Bills, as they defeated a rebuilding Chargers team on Sunday, 27-17. While it wasn’t the prettiest victory, the game was a lot closer than the score would tell you. It was a gritty win for the fresh Bills (8-3) coming off their bye.

Buffalo has it’s strongest defensive performance of the year, holding the Chargers (3-8) run game to 76 yards, which is significant with all factors considered. The return of running back Austin Ekeler wasn’t enough for the Bolts. The Bills defense hasn’t had too many games as good as this one.

Offensively, the Bills showed that it could move the ball effectively, with or without John Brown. Rookie wideout Gabriel Davis stepped up, hauling in a touchdown reception from Cole Beasley, and leading in receiving yards on the team for the first time this season. Davis’ future appears bright, and it’s another testament to how deep this roster is that Brandon Beane has created.

The Bills play the 49ers (5-6) on the road next week, although the location is uncertain at this point. San Francisco will be the team without a home going forward in 2020, and the Bills can’t underestimate this depleted, yet passionate football team.

Following the Bills’ win, check out this week’s Wagon Wheel podcast with host Matt Johnson and contributor David De Cristofaro below, and be sure to subscribe:

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PFF’s Top-7 graded players on the Bills offense at bye

Pro Football Focus’ top-seven players on the Buffalo Bills’ offense at the bye week.

The Buffalo Bills have the next couple of days off as their 2020 bye week has emerged in Week 11.

Buffalo enters it with a 7-3 record and despite recent disappointments, the team has surprised many, both locally and nationally. Perhaps the most notable for some in terms of the latter is Pro Football Focus.

The football analytics outlet has long been a lightning rod of attention for Bills fans, or at least in terms of quarterback Josh Allen it has. But thanks to the Bills’ strong play this season, even PFF had to acknowledge in their grades that Buffalo has got something good going on through 10 games.

But since the Bills don’t have an upcoming opponent to look forward to on Sunday, let’s take a look at their top-seven player grades so far this season via PFF, starting with the offense:

Bills want improved run game post-bye: ‘It takes all of us’

Buffalo Bills’ Brian Daboll, Sean McDermott address running game struggles in recent games.

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Prior to Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals, the Bills’ running game appeared to finally be showing some signs of life. The rushing attack has been slow to develop this season for Buffalo, but in Week 8, it had a 190-yard outing against the New England Patriots. 

But instead of growing on that, the work on the ground has stalled again. 

Bills quarterback Josh Allen led all rushers with 38 yards in the Bills’ Week 10 32-30 loss to the Cards. He was followed by rookie running back Zack Moss with 20 and back Devin Singletary with 15. Suffice to say this is not the run offense the team imagined when they added Moss to a backfield with Singletary and Allen. That has not gone unnoticed by the coaching staff and with the weekend off en route for the Bills, the ground game will be something Buffalo’s offense will be focusing on. 

“We need to do a better job,” offensive coordinator Brian Daboll while addressing the media on Monday. “Starts with me. We need to do a good job of designing things for those guys… It takes all of us to get that job done, we’re not where we need to be in regards to the running game, we acknowledge that and we look forward to working on it particularly in this bye week and getting ready for the Chargers.”

The Bills are currently among the worst teams in the NFL at rushing the ball at 29th overall in terms of rushing yards per game (97.6). A year ago, the Bills averaged the eighth-most (128). 

“It’s something we have to take a look at, particularly this week as a staff, and work hard to correct the things that we know we can correct,” added Daboll.

Much of the playmaking that has moved the ball downfield for the Bills offense this season has been in the air. Buffalo averages 278.9 yards per game via the pass attack, the fifth-most, but being a one-trick pony is not a good thing in the NFL. 

While Daboll is calling the shots on offense as Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott has a background as a defensive-minded coach, the bench boss still feels similar. McDermott has often said during his tenure that finding a franchise quarterback is among the most important things for a club, but complementing a QB with an established run game is of the upmost importance to McDermott currently. 

“It certainly hasn’t been good enough, for us to move forward as a football team and continue to evolve and grow, and try to win the games that we have to win, going forward here we’ve got to make sure that we get that better,” McDermott said. 

The Bills will have the week to re-evaluate the run before facing a former Buffalo coach and running back in his own right, Anthony Lynn. He returns to Bills Stadium as head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers where Buffalo will look to bounce back from a loss in Arizona in Week 12. 

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What we learned from Bills’ Week 9 win over Seahawks

What We Learned, Buffalo Bills vs. Seattle Seahawks, NFL Week 9

For as many advancements as the Buffalo Bills have made since Sean McDermott took over in 2017, signature wins have been hard to come by. The Bills have been to the playoffs twice since McDermott took over, but have largely feasted on a schedule of lesser opponents. When facing some of the best teams in the NFL, the Bills have often struggled. In 2020, the Bills were defeated easily by Tennessee and Kansas City, two teams with a combined 14 wins.

Buffalo needed to prove it could win against one of the league’s best. They got the opportunity Sunday against a true Super Bowl contender – the 6-1 Seattle Seahawks.

The Seahawks came in with the perhaps the leading MVP candidate in quarterback Russell Wilson, who had a league-high 26 touchdown passes. The Bills had a monumental task ahead of them to slow down the league’s best passer and the explosive receiving duo of DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett.

The Bills passed the test with flying colors and secured their long-awaited signature win.

In perhaps their most impressive win since McDermott arrived, the Bills were unstoppable in a 44-34 shootout victory over the Seahawks. The Bills needed a great performance from quarterback Josh Allen to have a chance in this game and got it and then some. Allen put up one of the best passing performances in team history as he threw for 415 yards and three touchdowns, and added a touchdown run as well.

Meanwhile, the much-maligned Buffalo defense rose up to neutralize the Seahawks in the first half and put the game away with two huge turnovers in the fourth quarter, part of four total turnovers forced by Buffalo. Even though they gave up 34 points, it might have been the most impressive performance of the season for the Bills defense.

For a Buffalo team entering the toughest portion of its schedule, it was as good a performance as you could have hoped for. The win vaults the Bills to 7-2 and keeps them 2.5 games ahead of the 5-3 Miami Dolphins for first place in the AFC East. It was also much needed as the Bills saw all the teams around them in the AFC standings win on Sunday.

Still, with this win, the Bills put a little legitimacy around their 2020 resume as they have now beaten one of the league’s best. It makes it easier to take the Bills seriously as a contender in the AFC knowing they can go toe to toe with one of the league’s best.

Here are four things we learned from an impressive Bills’ win on a beautiful afternoon in Orchard Park:

Josh Allen Back To Premier Level

Heading into Sunday, the quarterback discussion mostly centered around Wilson, who headlines the list of MVP candidates. He was the center of attention for this game. And while he turned in another impressive performance with 390 passing yards and two touchdowns, as well as a rushing touchdown, it was the other QB in this game that stole the show.

Allen turned in one of the best games of his career, which, in turn, makes it one of the best passing performances in Bills history. Allen was the best player on the field and was in total control of this game from the start. Allen moved the Bills offense up and down the field and was on point. Offensive coordinator Brian Daboll designed the game plan around Allen and let him cook, so to speak, having attempt 28 passes in the first half as the Bills called just two designed run plays in the first 30 minutes.

For Allen, it was a return to the form from the first four games of the season, when Allen was routinely throwing for over 300 yards. That high level of play had mostly disappeared since that 4-0 start. There was some question whether Allen would get back to that elite level of play, or if that hot start was just an anomaly.

Allen left nothing to doubt on Sunday. He was on fire right from the get go, leading the Bills to scores on each of their first four drives. By halftime, Allen had completed 24 of 28 passes for 282 yards and three touchdowns. Those are great numbers for an entire game; for one half, it’s sensational. At one point late in the first half, he had more touchdown passes than incompletions in the game.

What made this performance even more amazing was that Allen did it despite playing with a heavy heart. Sean McDermott revealed in his post-game press conference that Allen’s grandmother died on Saturday and that he talked with his quarterback about whether or not he wanted to play. Allen went ahead and played and delivered a masterpiece.

If you were wondering whether or not Allen could play at the high level he displayed back in September, you learned that he certainly can. You also learned that he can be counted on to carry this team in a big game. Allen and the Bills have left plenty to be desired in games against some of the league’s best over the past couple of years. That was not the case today as Allen looked like an MVP candidate against Wilson and the Seahawks.

This is one of those performances that eliminates any doubt about whether or not Allen is the Bills’ man going forward. Allen put the team on his back and kept them an arm’s length away from the Seahawks at all times. He outdueled the consensus league MVP head to head from start to finish. We will find out how often Allen can play like this going forward and what his level of consistency will be from here on out, but this type of performance cements Josh as the unquestioned franchise quarterback in Buffalo.

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7 fantasy football waiver wire targets ahead of Week 9

Fantasy football wavier wire claims and targets ahead of Week 9.

Fantasy football has hit the middle point of the regular season and now, more than ever, a waiver wire pickup could make all the difference for your team. That’s especially the case with a couple of tough injuries that occurred in the NFL this past week.

With that, here are seven wavier wire claims to make in fantasy football ahead of Week 9:

9 waiver wire targets in fantasy football for Week 9

Waiver wire pickups for Week 9.

It’s November and one thing is on everybody’s minds: fantasy football. It’s that time of the season to either hit the panic button or make that addition that will take your team to a championship.

With more injuries piling up with big-name players, you might think that all is lost. When you take a closer look at the waiver wire, you can see there is still a lot of value out there.

Here are eight players you should consider adding to your fantasy roster for Week 9:

PODCAST: Bills fend off pesky Patriots

Buffalo Bills podcast from Bills Wire following 24-21 win over the New England Patriots in Week 8.

It was seemingly a moment that everyone affiliated with the Buffalo Bills at any point over the last 20-plus years had clamored for. The unofficial end of the New England Patriots’ stranglehold over the AFC East, and it came via a 24-21 win for the Bills. While this New England squad looked much, much different from last year, they still admirably battled the Bills with the same tenacity that they always have, and didn’t roll over for Buffalo.

Aside from the game-sealing fumble from quarterback Cam Newton in the final seconds, the Patriots played smart football, never being too overly aggressive with their play calling. Their offense, outside of Newton, running back James White and maybe running back Rex Burkhead, was made up of players that you would probably never have in your starting fantasy lineup. They were impressive, but that’s the genius of New England coach Bill Belichick.

The Bills came out and played gritty football, and came out on top in a nail biter. It wasn’t pretty by any means, but there were certainly some positives to come from it. The running game finally got some traction, which is something that many have been clamoring for. The defense continues to tighten up, and their “bend, don’t break” style of play has led to the most crucial defensive stands happening when needed most.

There’s a lot to build off of for this game, as the Bills prepare for their tougher stretch of schedule, starting with the Seattle Seahawks in Week 9.

But before seeing the Seahawks, Bills Wire podcast host Matt Johnson and contributor David De Cristofaro breakdown the week that was.

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Tunnel Vision of Week 9

Tunnel Vision – a look back at Sunday for fantasy free agents, injuries and notable performances.

SUNDAY SALUTES
Quarterbacks Pass-Rush TD
 Patrick Mahomes  416-0 5
 Russell Wilson 261-23 4
 Matthew Stafford 336-10 3
 Justin Herbert 278-21 3
 Aaron Rodgers 291-9 3
Running Backs Rush
Receive		 TD
Dalvin Cook 30-163
2-63		 4
Alvin Kamara 12-67
9-96		 0
DeeJay Dallas 18-41
5-17		 2
Giovani Bernard 15-62
3-16		 2
Nyheim Hines  5-8
3-54		 2
Wide Receivers Yards TD
DK Metcalf 12-161 2
Davante Adams 7-53 3
Robert Woods 7-94 2
Corey Davis 8-128 1
Tyreek Hill 4-98 2
Tight Ends Yards TD
Travis Kelce 8-109 1
Jared Cook 5-51 1
Eric Ebron 4-48 1
Jack Doyle 2-18 1
Ross Dwelley 16 1
Placekickers XP FG
Mike Badgley 3 3
Will Lutz 2 4
Cairo Santos 2 3
Younghoe Koo 1 4
Sergio Castillo 0 3
Defense Sck-TO TD
Dolphins 2-4 2
Steelers 4-4 1
Colts 5-2 1
Eagles 4-2 1
Seahawks 3-2 0

Bumps, Bruises and Bowouts

WR Adam Humphries – Concussion
WR T.Y. Hilton – Groin
WR Kenny Golladay – Hip
RB Darrell Henderson – Thigh
RB Tevin Coleman – Knee
QB Jimmy Garoppolo – Ankle
TE George Kittle – Foot

Chasing Ambulances

Nothing seemed too serious this week. although Monday checkups can surprise.

RB Tevin Coleman – Left in the first quarter and never returned when he re-injured the same knee that held him out for most of the year.   Raheem Mostert is on injured reserve with a high-ankle sprain. Jerick McKinnon suffers from “tired legs” and only had three carries in the loss. James Hasty is still the only healthy man standing. He only carried 12 times in Seattle but scored once and the 49ers abandoned the run.

TE George Kittle – Left the game with an ankle injury. If he cannot play, HC Kyle Shanahan said that Jordan Reed is expected back this week and would take his place again.

QB Jimmy Garoppolo – Hobbled by his ankle again, he gave way to Nick Mullens who was sharp with 238 yards and two scores against a defense that had stopped caring. Hosting the Packers this week isn’t that attractive if Mullens gets the start.

RB Darrell Henderson – Injured his thigh at the start of the second quarter after running for 47 yards on eight carries.  Malcolm Brown (10-40) and Cam Akers (9-35) shared the workload for the rest of the game. The Rams head onto their bye, so Henderson likely has time to heal unless the injury is worse than expected.

WR Kenny Golladay – Injured his hip and left without a catch in the loss to the Colts. Marvin Jones only caught three passes for 39 yards but two were touchdowns. Marvin Hall replaced Golladay with four receptions for 113 yards thanks mostly to a 73-yard catch.

Free Agents, Flops and Other Notables

QB Philip Rivers – After posting only four touchdowns over his first five starts, Rivers has thrown for three touchdowns in each of the last two weeks. He finished with 262 yards and three scores at the Lions this week and heads to Minnesota this week.

Chargers backfield – The committee approach now includes three running backs – Justin Jackson (17-89), Troymaine Pope (10-67), and Joshua Kelley (7-32). Austin Ekeler is expected to be back in Week 10 at Miami but this week hosting the Raiders will again use all three backs. Jackson is the only safe start with the most usage. Pope only had one carry on the year until showing up on Sunday. In the end, they probably have just one more week before Ekeler takes most of the workload back.

QB Drew Lock – He threw for 248 yards and three touchdowns in the win over the Chargers though all three scores happened in the  fourth quarter. It’s likely just a blip on his season, but the Broncos will face the Falcons this week.

RB Jordan Wilkins – He only had one carry in the two games prior to Sunday, so it was a surprise to see him lead the Colts with 20 runs for 89 yards and a touchdown plus catch a 24-yard pass. Jonathan Taylor was limited to 11 carries for only 22 yards in that game. Wilkins provided the hot hand and took over the game in the second half, helping the Colts to their win over the Lions. Taylor remains the starter but the team won’t be shy about giving Wilkins a chance to contribute if Taylor is struggling.

Ravens backfield – Mark Ingram missed Week 8 with an ankle injury and never practiced despite coming off their bye. Facing a Steelers defense that allowed just 68.8 rushing yards per game, the Ravens used Gus Edwards (16-87, TD) and JK Dobbins (15-113) with great success even in a loss. The Ravens play at the Colts this week but Edwards and Dobbins are pairing for much better production than the average backfield.

RB Giovani Bernard – He has minimal involvement while Joe Mixon is healthy, but starting for the last two weeks, he’s been productive. After totaling 96 yards and a touchdown against the Browns in Week 7, Bernard ran for 62 yards and a score versus the Titans and caught three passes for 16 yards and another touchdown. The Bengals head onto their bye and Mixon should be back for Week 10, but Bernard was a big part of the Bengals win over the Titans.

WR Jarvis Landry – It was very windy and rained in the Browns loss to the Raiders. Baker Mayfield only completed 12-of-25 for 122 yards in that contest but Landry dominated the throws with 11 targets and four receptions for 52 yards. No other receiver was thrown more than three passes and this was the first game without Odell Beckham. It was a bad weather game, so it’s harder to draw conclusions, but Rashard Higgins (1-14) did little to replace Beckham.

RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire – The rookie is now splitting the carries and catches with Le’Veon Bell. The impact was softened when  Edwards-Helaire ran in a score in Week 7, and his eight runs for 46 yards were matched with six runs for 39 yards from Bell. Against the Jets – who Bell would have a chip on his shoulder about – the rookie only ran for 21 yards on six runs while Bell gained seven yards on six carries as well. Both had three catches.  This is nothing but a negative for Edwards-Helaire and yet not enough so far to justify a fantasy start for Bell.

QB Tua Tagovailoa – The No. 2 overall draft pick debuted with a win over the Rams though he was mostly there while it happened, rather than being an instrumental part. The rookie only completed 12-of-22 passes for 93 yards and one touchdown while running twice for a net of no yards.  He’ll need to do more this week in Arizona.

RB DeeJay Dallas – The rookie from Miami ran for 41 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries plus caught five passes for 17 yards and another score in the win over the 49ers. Chris Carson was a game-time decision that was inactive, but chances are that he’ll be active for this week at the Bills. But Dallas’ only start resulted in two touchdowns.

WR Jalen Reagor – The Eagles 1.21 pick returned after missing  five games with a thumb injury and caught his first NFL touchdown when he ended with three receptions for 16 yards in the win over the Cowboys. He also gained six yards on his first NFL run. Travis Fulgham (6-78, TD) remains the primary wideout but Reagor is getting back on track.

TE Dallas Goedert – The Eagles tight end was active this week after coming off injured reserve but only caught one pass for 15 yards. It was only his first game since Week 3 but he was quiet in the two games after his productive season opener. The Eagles may finally be turning away from being a tight-end heavy attack to using their wideouts more.

RB Zack Moss – He’s starting to look more like Devin Singletary of last year. In 2019, Frank Gore would typically get the highest number of carries even though Singletary would do much more with his fewer touches. Now, Singletary is the less productive runner and Moss was finally given the same 14 rushes that Singletary had in the win over the Patriots. Singletary ran for 86 yards on 14 carries while Moss gained 82 yards on his 14 runs and scored his first two rushing touchdowns in the NFL. This is a committee backfield but Moss is getting a bigger share of the workload.

Huddle player of the week

Dalvin Cook  –  The Packers had no answer for Dalvin Cook who rushed for 163 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries and added a 50-yard score on his two receptions for 63 yards as the leading receiver as well. The Packers kept the game close enough that the Vikings never bothered to let the other backs handle the fourth-quarter mop-up duty.  Cook cranked out 48.6 fantasy points in a PPR league and 46.6 without receptions points.

Salute!

Drama 101 – Somebody has to laugh, somebody has to cry

Comedy Yards TDs Tragedy Yards TDs
QB Philip Rivers 262 3 QB Josh Allen 177 1
RB Nyheim Hines 62 2 RB Johnathan Taylor 31 0
RB DeeJay Dallas 58 2 RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire 31 0
WR Corey Davis 128 1 WR Kenny Golladay 0 0
WR Mecole Hardman 96 1 WR Diontae Johnson 6 0
WR Marvin Jones 39 2 WR Calvin Ridley 42 0
TE Eric Ebron 48 1 TE George Kittle 39 0
PK Mike Badgley   3XP   3 FG PK Robbie Gould 3  XP
Huddle Fantasy Points = 143 Huddle Fantasy Points = 28

Now get back to work…