Orchard Park, N.Y. — The Buffalo Bills offense struggled for a second week in a row but their defense forced four turnovers to carry them to a pivotal 27-21 victory over the New England Patriots on Sunday at Highmark Stadium.
The Bills improved to 10-6 on the year and could clinch a playoff spot if the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals lose later today.
The Miami Dolphins lost to the Baltimore Ravens, setting up a huge game in Week 18 to finish off the year. The winner between the Bills and the Dolphins next week wins the AFC East.
Here are some observations from Sunday’s game.
Rasul Douglas breakout game
The Bills traded for Douglas on Halloween and the former Green Bay Packers cornerback has been solid ever since. Tre’Davious White suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in Week 4 and the Bills needed a true No. 1 to replace the former All-Pro.
Douglas took a few games to settle in but he’s looked the part for most of his stretch in place of White. He had his biggest game of the season on Sunday, picking off Patriots quarterback Bailey Zappe two times in the first quarter to help the Bills take the early advantage. On his second interception, Douglas fell to the ground while securing the catch and then popped up and ran it back for a touchdown. He had to zig and zag through Patriots players on his way to the endzone.
With Douglas cemented as the team’s top cornerback and Christian Benford now locked in at CB2, the Bills will likely keep second-year cornerback Kaiir Elam on the inactive list the rest of the way. He was activated off injured reserve this week but was a healthy scratch. He’ll be cornerback depth for the Bills in case Benford, Douglas, or Dane Jackson suffer an injury.
Josh Allen’s struggles continue
Something seemed off with the Buffalo offense last week in Los Angeles. A Chargers team that had been abysmal against the pass – allowing an eye-popping 63 points to the Las Vegas Raiders one week before playing the Bills – gave the Bills and Josh Allen fits.
Allen’s woes continued this week against the New England Patriots. He didn’t complete a single pass for most of the first quarter and finished the first half with only 46 yards through the air. Allen missed on several throws and wasn’t helped by a few key drops, either. Protection up front wasn’t good and he was navigating a messy pocket for most of the first half.
Allen was better in the second half and threw for more yards on the first drive after halftime (66 yards) than he did in all of the first half (46 yards). He made a few nice throws from the pocket and it seemed the protection held up a bit better and allowed him to sit and go through his reads on a few throws.
Ed Oliver continues to lead interior unit
Oliver inched closer to a double-digit sack season by taking down Zappe in the first quarter on a 3rd and long to force a punt. The Patriots offense was a mess in the first half and Oliver led the charge up front by applying consistent pressure.
He also turned in a highlight reel play when Douglas came up with a pass breakup and tipped a Zappe pass into the air. Oliver came flying into the play and made a one-handed interception to give the Bills the ball in the Patriots red zone. It was the first interception of Oliver’s career in the pros and he never had one in college, either.
The Bills re-signed Oliver to a contract extension in the offseason that was met with some criticism because the former first-rounder had never even sniffed 10 sacks. He’s quieted all of the noise with his performance this season as he’s led a Bills interior defensive line that lost DaQuan Jones early in the season to a torn pectoral muscle, only to get him back for the final push on Sunday against the Patriots.
Dalton Kincaid finally hauls in a deep ball
Kincaid got open deep down the field and found himself locked in one-on-one coverage with Patriots safety Kyle Dugger. Kincaid entered the game with a season-long reception of just 22 yards, but Allen uncorked a deep ball to him that went for 51 yards on the first drive of the third quarter. Kincaid led all Bills receivers with four catches for 87 yards. If offensive coordinator Joe Brady can get him going in the deep passing game, the Bills offense could tap into something they haven’t been able to do consistently all season long.
Special teams debacle and punter redemption
On the first play of the game, Patriots returner Jalen Raegor took the opening kickoff back for a touchdown. It was reminiscent of last year’s final regular season game between the Bills and Patriots when former Bills returner Nyheim Hines took it to the house on the opening play of the game. The Patriots aren’t a good team and are going to end up with one of the top draft picks in next year’s draft. Getting away with that kind of special teams blunder can happen against a team like this. But if the Bills blow it on special teams against a playoff team, it could be the difference in a game.
Sam Martin had his best game of the season, pinning the Patriots inside the 20-yard line on all six of his punts in the game. He’s had some brutal games this season with some short punts that have been unexplainable. But he was dialed in on Sunday.
Ty Johnson needs to keep Latavius Murray on the sideline
Latavius Murray was stuffed on one 3rd and 1 in the second half, forcing the Bills to punt in a one-score game. He also dropped a pass on 3rd down earlier in the game. The Bills love Murray’s experience and leadership. But when they brought in Ty Johnson late in the game, the running game operated more efficiently. Johnson ran it four times and averaged four yards a carry. He should be getting the snaps Murray received in this game in every game the rest of the way.
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