‘The Bills led the league last year with just nine completions for a mere 43 yards on passes that traveled 20 or more yards past the line of scrimmage. Not this year. The Bills gave up 25 completions for 713 yards and seven touchdowns on passes 20-plus yards downfield, according to a Buffalo News analysis. The catches were 11th most in the league, according to Pro Football Focus. The yardage total wasn’t bad – the 11th fewest. The TD total was middle of the pack, 15th most.’
Archives for January 13, 2023
Bills Notebook: Cole Beasley joins active roster, Atlanta to host potential AFC championship game
‘The move could be in response to a hamstring injury to Isaiah McKenzie, who missed his second day of practice Thursday. The Bills could also elevate wide receiver John Brown, who caught a 42-yard touchdown Sunday against New England, from the practice squad to face the Dolphins.’
How we see it: News writers weigh in on Bills-Dolphins wild-card matchup
‘Make Thompson earn everything and the Bills will eventually create stops and takeaways. Bills, 30-13.’
View from Vegas: Even the points aren’t enough to take Dolphins
‘Prediction: Bills over Miami by 14.’
Time to win is now as story of the Bills’ 2022 season has yet to be written
‘Along with that comes a significant amount of expectations – and a couple of big questions entering the postseason. Do the Bills look like a Super Bowl favorite right now? Does that even matter, as long as they’re doing what they’ve done most of the time this season – which is win. The goal – the only goal – is clear: The franchise’s first Super Bowl championship.’
Ryan O’Halloran: Bills’ turnover ways can’t continue if they are to reach Super Bowl
‘Only Indianapolis (34) and Houston (28) – combined to go 7-25-2, started multiple quarterbacks and either fired their coach at midseason (Colts) or hours after the season (Texans) – had more turnovers than the Bills.’
Bills medical and training staffs are in rare spotlight after Damar Hamlin emergency
‘What medical and athletic training staffs do for their teams is often behind the scenes. A critical part of their jobs is preparing for all scenarios, in hopes that those emergencies never come. The response to Hamlin was possible because of thorough planning, incredible expertise from years of training, and decisive teamwork when every second counted.’
Jim Kubiak: How ad-libbing and street football style have fueled Buffalo Bills’ offense
‘In the short term, the victory gave the Bills the second seed in the AFC playoffs. In the long term, the game film will help the Bills study how the Patriots defended Allen. Belichick has a legendary ability to study players skill sets and find ways to neutralize their abilities. Belichick had to choose what to take away from Allen. In doing so, it appeared as if Belichick’s plan was based around the idea that he wasn’t going to let Allen loose scrambling for any big plays. The meant more zone coverage and pass-rush schemes designed to push Allen to the left side of the field.’
Erik Brady: Ex-Bill Terrence McGee was as amazed as anyone by Nyheim Hines’ TDs, and he would know
‘“Just keep doing what you’re doing,” McGee says by way of advice. “Well, maybe slow down a little so I can keep my records. No, keep doing what you’re doing, and I hope you have some more (touchdown returns) in the playoffs.”’
NFL names site for AFC Championship Game if Bills-Chiefs matchup happens
‘This neutral site will only be in play if these two teams get to the title game. If the Bills don’t qualify, Kansas City would host all other teams. And if the Bills do qualify, and the Chiefs lose in the divisional round, Highmark Stadium would host the game.’
NFL unveils neutral site for potential Bills-Chiefs AFC Championship bout
‘The cancellation of that game meant the Bills had played one less game than the Chiefs in the regular season. The Chiefs locked up the one-seed in the playoffs, and a first-round bye. As a concession to the Bills — who could have earned the top seed if they’d beaten the Bengals — the league decided that a potential matchup between the Bills and Chiefs would be played somewhere neutral.’
Rob Gronkowski says in ‘dream world’ he’d be catching passes from Bills’ Josh Allen in playoffs
‘“In a dream world, I’ll go with my hometown team, the Buffalo Bills, once again,” Gronkowski told Adams. “If you just watch Josh Allen go out there and play, he plays the game freely. It also looks like he’s having the most fun out there out of any QB in the whole NFL. And on top of it, he knows how to extend a play. I love watching a quarterback that looks like they’re about to get sacked by three defensive linemen then somehow escapes the pocket and runs around, jukes a linebacker behind the field and then just whips the ball down the field 50 yards for a touchdown. Just his play is unbelievable and electrifying.”’
Family love carries Bills receiver Jamison Crowder through injury-plagued season
‘“I think I speak for all professional athletes — even though it may seem like we make a lot of money and have different perks, at the end of the day we’re all still humans,” Jamison said. “… When you make it to a level like this, you’re still dealing with adversity, challenges and stuff that can test your mental state. People are always going through things.”’
Stinson: A tragedy, a remarkable recovery, and now the Buffalo Bills return to the playoffs
‘It has been 30 years since the Bills lost the last of their four straight Super Bowl defeats. For most of those many years, they were searching desperately, sometimes comically, for a franchise quarterback who could be at least a vague approximation of Jim Kelly. And now here was Allen, transformed after a shaky couple of seasons into a boss-level version of Buffalo’s Hall of Famer, throwing the ball all over the place, making huge completions in high-stress situations, and occasionally running the ball himself like a freight train with failed brakes.’
‘Why not us?’ Canadian Bills fans ready for wild-card weekend after emotional season in Buffalo
‘The Bills Mafia Canada family stretches beyond the GTA as well. Out east in New Brunswick, Brian Pilling has transformed an entire section of his property into what he calls a free-standing headquarters for the East Coast Bills Backers. About 20 people from the area are regulars, but drop-ins are accepted too. Everyone in his family has been Bills fans forever. They would use vacation time in Peterborough (his father’s hometown) to drive down to Buffalo and catch a game.’