‘Allen threw three touchdowns on Sunday, including two to Zay Jones, and ran into the end zone twice on the way to the Bills’ 42-17 victory over the Dolphins. His most notable pass, though, was likely to Bills defensive tackle Kyle Williams. Williams was playing in his final game after 13 seasons, all in Buffalo.’
Archives for January 2019
Joe B: Buffalo Bills All-22 Review – Week 17 vs. Miami Dolphins
‘One last time we saw Kyle Williams take to the field, and if you watched him closely enough, you would have seen the dominant version of himself that was a mainstay on the Bills defensive line from 2010 through about 2016.’
Josh Allen named AFC Offensive Player of the Week
‘In the Bills’ final game of 2018, Allen combined for five touchdowns.’
Bills reportedly part ways with WR coach
‘This is the eighth season in the last nine where Buffalo has not retained the wide receiver coach. Only Sanjay Lal lasted more than one season. He handled the wideouts both years under Rex Ryan.’
Josh Allen named AFC Offensive Player of the Week
‘The rookie QB racked up five total touchdowns, while throwing for 224 yards and rushing for 95 yards as the Bills beat up on the Dolphins at New Era Field.’
Josh Allen becomes the first Bills QB named AFC Player of the Week in 17 years
‘”I think I’ve grown a tremendous amount. I’ve learned about kind of a different side of football, the preparation in which it takes,” said Allen of his lessons learned as a rookie. “The game in the NFL is a lot different. It’s extremely tough. No win is given, it’s all earned. That’s something that I can look back on and say that this is kind of how my rookie year went. It wasn’t great, it wasn’t terrible, but I did enjoy it and I love the game of football.’
5 noteworthy numbers on where Josh Allen and the Bills defense led the NFL in 2018
‘179.2: This was the number of passing yards allowed per game by Buffalo’s defense, good for first in the NFL in 2018. The Bills gave up just under 2,900 passing yards all season (2,867). No other NFL club gave up fewer than 3,100 yards this past season.’
Bills Today: Two Bills among NFL’s Top 25 rookies
‘Edmunds impressed in the 2018 season, as well, effectively serving as the signal caller in a Sean McDermott defense that works best when built around an athletic middle linebacker. The 20-year-old totaled 121 tackles, two sacks, and two interceptions in his rookie campaign, finishing 14th in the league in total tackles.’
Trent Murphy relieved to have fought through ‘duct tape’ kind of season
‘“I think battling through the physical discomfort is one thing but then you kind of have to get yourself mentally prepared to face that discomfort and fight through it every day regardless,” Murphy said. “When they put on the tape, no one sees that. You have to do your job and be your 1 in 11 regardless of how you feel.”’
Report: Bills fire offensive line coach Juan Castillo
‘Castillo’s firing shouldn’t come as a shock. The Bills’ offensive line struggled in 2018, which was to be expected after losing veteran center Eric Wood and Pro Bowl guard Richie Incognito. Replacing those two proved supremely difficult. The combination of Ryan Groy and Russell Bodine at center could not match Wood’s steadiness, and the tandem of veteran Vlad Ducasse and rookie fifth-round draft pick Wyatt Teller didn’t make anyone forget about Incognito. Additionally, left tackle Dion Dawkins did not progress the way the Bills thought he would have.’
Jay Skurski’s final Bills Report Card: Offensive grades lagging behind defense
‘It was tempting to push this grade up to a C after Josh Allen’s five-touchdown performance Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, but that would be putting too much weight into one game. The Bills finished 31st in the NFL in total passing, so it’s impossible to give a passing grade. The entire body of work was not good for the Bills’ quarterbacks. As a group, they completed 270 of 496 passes (54.4 completion percentage) for 3,067 yards, 13 touchdowns and 23 interceptions. Allen had a quarterback rating of 67.9, Nathan Peterman – remember him? – had a 30.7, Derek Anderson had a 56.0 and Matt Barkley had a 117.4 in one quality start against the New York Jets.’
Buffalo Bills: 10 things to watch for before the 2019 season kicks off
‘If I were running the show, I would hit free agency hard in the search for offensive line replacements. Josh Allen is already in place, so the Bills need to surround him with linemen who can immediately start and raise the level of play way above where it was in 2018. Drafting someone means a learning curve, so fill two or three spots, if possible, in free agency.’
Buffalo Bills fire offensive line coach Juan Castillo (report)
‘Castillo, 59, joined the Bills coaching staff in 2017 and also served as the team’s run game coordinator. Buffalo’s offensive line struggled this season after losing Richie Incognito and Eric Wood to retirement in the offseason. Without their two Pro Bowl linemen, Buffalo’s line failed to create running lanes and struggled in pass protection. Although Castillo cannot be faulted for the circumstances that led to Incognito and Wood retiring, Buffalo’s line never gelled or showed signs of improvement in 2018.’
Report: Bills fire offensive line coach Castillo
‘The Bills had a tough time running the football in 2018, finishing 21st in the NFL in yards per-carry with 4.24. They did finish ninth overall in rushing yards per-game at 124.0, however, the bulk of those numbers came from quarterback Josh Allen, who led the team with 631 yards, averaging 7.1 yards per-carry.’
Bills OL coach reportedly fired
‘The Bills offensive line was one of the chief offensive issues in 2018. Although Brandon Beane did not come down hard on their performance last season, he did say the line never really “gelled.”‘