Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (WGR550) - The Buffalo Bills will try to bounce back from their Week 12 loss at the Houston Texans when they face the Steelers in Pittsburgh on Sunday. In order to do that, here are my three keys to the game, plus notes and stats:
KEYS
Protect Josh Allen!
This is absolutely the most important key and factor in this game for the Bills. They had no answer for the Texans pass rush last week and Allen was hit, tackled, sacked, and beaten up in Houston. Now, he will be without both his starting offensive tackles, Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown, and the Bills are facing some of the best in the game at getting after the passer in Steelers' defenders TJ Watt and Nick Herbig, along with Alex Highsmith and a defensive head coach who loves to put pressure on. opposing quarterbacks. This game might hinge on the Bills offense's ability to protect the reigning league MVP.
Run the ball...and stick with it
One of the best ways to protect Allen will be to have a strong running game. The Bills need to get back to leaning on James Cook, not just early, but throughout the game. The Steelers have been very up-and-down against the run this season. They'll be without rookie defensive tackle Derrick Harmon in this game. They'll make their stops, but the Bills need to commit to Cook, who's run for over 1,000 yards already this season, and is averaging 5.4 yards per carry.
Don't let Rodgers get into a rhythm
Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has the lowest average air-yards-per-completion this season. So, he's already dumping the ball down a lot, not trying to go downfield much. He now also has a broken left wrist. So Pittsburgh coaches won't want him to sit back in the pocket too long and take any unnecessary or risky shots. That means they'll look to continue to throw short passes. When Rodgers is in rhythm hitting his shorter routes, he is extremely efficient and makes it very tough on an opposing defense to get off the field. The Bills can’t let him get into that rhythm by not making things easy for him, especially on shorter routes. Taking away his first read will be a big help.
NOTES AND STATS
