Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Bills will look to bounce back from a beat down in Baltimore this past Sunday night against the Ravens when they travel to Houston to play the Texans on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET.
That's right! An actual Sunday, 1 p.m. ET kickoff for the Bills! Let's take a moment to rejoice, because there are only seven of these on the schedule, and four of those will come over the next six games.
This is the second of three-straight road games for the now 3-1 Bills, who will end this difficult stretch with a Monday night matchup against the New York Jets in Week 6.
This game will feature a terrific quarterback matchup with one of the top signal callers in the league, Josh Allen, going up against a rising young quarterback in C.J. Stroud.
Through the first four games this year, the Bills rank second in the NFL in points scored per-game, and Allen has 920 total yards and nine touchdowns. He is the only quarterback with 100 or more pass attempts that has yet to throw an interception.
In his second pro season, Stroud has thrown for 1,054 yards and six touchdowns, but has been sacked 13 times in Houston's 3-1 start. The Texans are third-best team in the NFL in passing yards per-game, but the offense has yet to fire on all cylinders. They are averaging just 20 points a game.
There's a receiver for Houston that you may have heard of. His name is Stefon Diggs. The former Bills wideout has caught 25 balls on 33 targets for 233 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
But the Bills can't just concentrate on holding down their former teammate.
Nico Collins leads the league with 489 yards receiving, and is an explosive weapon in their passing game. The Bills safeties have to prevent him from beating the defense over the top.
As for the Bills' passing game, the ankle injury sustained by wide receiver Khalil Shakir in the loss to the Ravens could be a problem. Shakir is the Bills' leading receiver with 18 catches for 230 yards and two touchdowns.
If he can't go, the Bills will need someone else in the wide receiver group to step up.
It would be nice to see more from offseason pickup Curtis Samuel. He has just 48 receiving yards on eight catches, which is a paltry six yards per-catch.
This game will feature two of the league's best red zone offenses. The Bills have scored a touchdown on 11-of-15 trips inside the opponent's 20-yard line, which gives them a 73% touchdown rate, which is third-best in the league. Houston is tied for fourth with a 72% touchdown rate in the red zone.
The Texans' red zone defense has struggled. They've given up a touchdown on nine of their opponent's 12 red zone possessions. That 75% rate is third-worst in the NFL.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Bills won't have Von Miller, who was suspended for four games this week. Miller is tied for the team lead in sacks (3) with Greg Rousseau. No one else has more than one sack so far.
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The Bills' run defense has plummeted to 30th in yards per-game in large part to Baltimore running roughshod over them.
Houston added former Bengals running back Joe Mixon in the offseason, but he's missed the last two games with an ankle injury. Mixon did average a very strong 4.7 yards per-carry in his first two games.
Houston's defense has been better against the pass than the run. They are fourth-best in terms of pass yards allowed per-game, and fifth-best in sacks per-pass play.
The Texans' pass rush is led by former first-round pick Will Anderson and former Vikings edge rusher Danielle Hunter. Former Bills defensive linemen Jerry Hughes and Tim Settle are also a part of their rotation.
Houston already has 14 sacks on the season.
The kicking game matchup is something to keep an eye on.
Tyler Bass has connected on 6-of-8 field goal attempts this season. Bass is 3-for-3 under 40 yards and 1-for-1 from 50-plus yards, but he is just 2-for-4 in kicks between 40-and-49 yards.
Houston's kicker Ka'imi Fairbairn has been deadly from long distance. Fairbairn is 6-for-7 on field goal attempts of 50-plus yards.
This will mark the first time the Bills have played Houston since the 2021 season. The all-time record between these two teams is tied at 5-5.
