Orchard Park, N.Y. (WGR 550) - The Buffalo Bills earned their fourth-straight win on Sunday, 27-21, over the New England Patriots and moved closer to a playoff spot.
Here are my Arrows Up and Down from the game, starting Up for a fourth-consecutive week:
ARROW UP:
Rasul Douglas
Douglas may win AFC Defensive Player of the Week after his performance on Sunday, collecting two interceptions - returning one for a touchdown - deflecting another pass that tuned into an interception, breaking up two more passes, and finishing with a pair of tackles.
He was the best player on the field for either side.
Ed Oliver
Oliver made a great hustle play to intercept the ball on the Patriots' very first offensive play of the game. He finished the game with a pair of tackles, a sack, the interception, and a pass breakup.
Terrel Bernard
Bernard filled the stat sheet with 10 total tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss, and three quarterback hurries.
Four takeaways
Douglas and Oliver combined for three interceptions, and then Christian Benford had a strip and recovery, as well, to give the Bills defense four total takeaways, all of which occurred in the first half and on the Patriots' first six offensive drives.
Sam Martin and punt coverage unit
Martin punted six times, with every single one of them being downed inside the Patriots' 20-yard line.
The starting field position for New England following Buffalo punts was their own 18, 16, 5, 8, 16, and 3-yard line. Their average drive start overall was their own 17-yard line.
An absolutely terrific job by Martin and the punt coverage unit.
Halftime adjustments in the passing game
After an abysmal first half of passing, the Bills offense did a much better job in the second half.
Offensive coordinator Joe Brady and the unit found easier throws, and protected quarterback Josh Allen better.
Allen was just 7-of-20 for 46 yards in the first half, but went 8-of-10 for 123 yards in the second half.
Dalton Kincaid
Kincaid caught the biggest offensive play of the game for the Bills, a 51-yard catch-and-run on the first series of the second half.
Overall, Kincaid finished with four catches for 87 yards to lead all players in the game. He also set a new franchise record on Sunday with the most receptions for a rookie, breaking Sammy Watkins' record in 2014.
Khalil Shakir
It wasn't the volume why Shakir is on this list, but rather when he caught his four passes for 39 yards. This included a couple huge third down conversions, and another for a first down on 2nd-and-14.
Tyler Bass
Bass was a perfect 5-for-5 on the day, nailing both of his extra points and all three of his field goal tries.
The final drive
Leading 27-21 with 5:02 remaining, the Bills got the ball at the Patriots' 49-yard line. They needed a long drive to seal the game and got it done, running 11 plays, including two kneel downs.
Related
ARROW DOWN:
Opening kickoff
It was a horrible start for the Bills, as Patriots returner Jalen Reagor took the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown, giving New England a seven-point lead just 12 seconds into the game.
Josh Allen/Passing game
The Bills struggled in the passing game once again, gaining only 154 total net yards through the air.
Allen finished by going just 15-of-30 for 169 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception.
Dropped passes
Even when Allen did make a few throws that could have gone for good yardage, there were several dropped passes by the likes of James Cook, Latavius Murray, and Trent Sherfield.
Pass protection
The Patriots blitzed quite a bit and impacted Allen's throwing, because they were getting close too easily, too often. They only sacked him once, but were credited with eight quarterback hurries.
Latavius Murray
Murray had a big dropped pass, and also ran the ball just once for no gain.
Red zone offense
The Bills were just 2-for-5 (40%) scoring touchdowns once they got inside the Patriots' 20-yard line.
Not taking advantage of turnovers and field position
Aside from Douglas' pick-six, the Bills offense converted only one of their three turnovers into touchdowns. That was despite starting those other two drives drives from the Patriots' 21- and 30-yard lines.
The average starting field position for the Bills was the New England 40-yard line, but the offense still only scored 20 points.
3rd-and-1, and not going for it on 4th-and-1
Leading 27-14 to start the fourth quarter, the Bills faced a 3rd-and-1 from their own 37-yard line. They ran the ball up the middle with Murray for no gain.
Then on 4th-and-1, head coach Sean McDermott elected to punt.
Just one quarterback sneak there may have gained the first down. Instead, they gave the ball back to New England, who scored a touchdown seven plays later to pull within six points.
