CBS Sports

‘Freeman spent the bulk of the 2020 season with the New York Giants, signing a one-year, $3 million deal with the club back in late September. He played in just five games for New York as a depth piece and totaled 172 yards on the ground and a touchdown. He also caught seven balls for 58 yards. The 28-year-old was limited throughout the year due to an ankle injury and then finished the season on injured reserve before being waived by the club last week.’

‘Moss suffered the injury early in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s matchup after a player landed on him and forced him down awkwardly. Moss was then carted off the field and held out for the rest of the contest. The rookie finished the game with 21 yards on the ground and caught four passes for 26 yards through the air.’

‘But notice the run-pass splits. Buffalo finished this regular season with nearly 10% fewer rushing yards than the NFL average, but had a whopping 20% more passing yards than league average. While not pictured in the table, this year’s Bills had 17.7% more passing first downs than league average, the 1990 iteration was exactly at the NFL average with 161 passing first downs. There’s your difference in offensive philosophies over 30 years of NFL football.’

‘While Rivers quickly got his offense back to the line-of-scrimmage, the Bills were awarded a timeout just before the Colts snapped the ball. The timeout gave the officials time to review the play, which surprisingly was not overturned. What was more surprising was the Bills not losing a timeout after the officials reviewed the play.’

‘Play of the game: No question about it: Allen’s first TD, a pass to Dawson Knox to put Buffalo up 7-3, was his best improvised play in a while. What began as a designed QB run turned into an under-duress scoring toss that set the tone for the Bills’ offense early.’

‘Josh Allen has garnered 2020 MVP consideration not only for his production, but for the way he produces. And Saturday’s Super Wild-Card Weekend kickoff was a prime example. At the end of the first quarter of the Bills’ opening-round matchup with the Colts, the star quarterback flashed his trademark athleticism and play-making ability to help give Buffalo its first touchdown — dropping jaws on both sides of the ball in the process.’

‘There are a couple things that may actually be working in the Colts’ favor here. The first is that the Colts are an extraordinarily zone-heavy team, and the Bills found their most passing success against man coverage. Indianapolis played zone on 77.7 percent of opponent dropbacks this season, per Pro Football Focus and Tru Media, one of the highest rates in the league. Meanwhile, take a look at these passing numbers for Allen.’

‘That playoff failure where Allen had a bad throw percentage of 21.4% showcased where the Bills quarterback needed to improve. Allen is looking to eliminate the demons from last postseason in a year where he’s improved across the board.’

‘Specifically, Beasley’s situation is probably the one worth paying close attention to considering he was held out of Week 17. Head coach Sean McDermott noted on Monday that there was “no real update” on Beasley as he remains week-to-week and continues to rehab. As for Diggs and McKenzie, it will be interesting to see how their statuses evolve throughout the week, but it’s worth pointing out that neither left Sunday’s win due to injury. Diggs played 48% of the offensive snaps and was taken out for essentially the entire second half after Buffalo pulled most of its starters. Meanwhile, McKenzie played 91% of the offensive snaps.’

‘In one half of action, Allen completed 18 of his 25 passes for 224 yards and three touchdowns while also throwing an interception. Two of those passing touchdowns fell into the arms of receiver Isaiah McKenzie, who had three total scores on the day and in the opening half. The other came courtesy of an 84-yard punt return that helped put Buffalo up by 18 points with just over five minutes to go prior to the half. Matt Barkley ended up relieving Allen in the second half, but Buffalo’s B Team continued to pour it on the Dolphins, outscoring them 28-20 over the final two quarters.’

‘The Bills crushed the Dolphins 56-26 in a game Miami needed for their playoff hopes. And maybe we didn’t see a 30-point win coming, but it’s in line with what the Bills have been doing to teams in recent weeks.’

‘It remains unclear if the Bills will play their starters against Miami, with a postseason berth already secure. Either way, Brown’s official return is welcome news for a wide receiver corps that just lost Cole Beasley to a “week-to-week” leg injury. Buffalo hosted veteran free agent Kenny Stills for a visit this week, with intentions of reportedly adding the former Texans standout as emergency depth. But Brown is a proven commodity who already owns chemistry with Allen — a deep threat whose presence alone makes the Bills even more dangerous entering the playoffs.’

‘The Buffalo Bills are looking for added help at wide receiver in time for the playoffs, despite their offense putting up near record-setting numbers for the franchise. Buffalo is expected to sign free agent wide receiver Kenny Stills after a scheduled visit, per Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle. Stills, a deep-ball receiver by trade, struggled in his 10 games for the Houston Texans this season, catching only 11 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown. He was released by Houston in November.’

‘Diggs is clearly one of the top two wide receivers in football — depending on which fan base is asked is No. 1 — in 2020, showcasing how dominant he’s been at the position. Diggs only had over 100 catches in a season once before the trade to Buffalo and his highest receiving yardage total was 1,130 last season (he’s had two 1,000-yard seasons prior to the trade).’

‘Stills was used sparingly this season and never saw over 50% of the offensive snaps during the 10 games he played with the Texans. He played in just four offensive snaps in Houston’s Week 11 matchup against New England, which proved to be his final game in a Texans uniform. He was targeted just 19 times and caught 11 of those passes for 144 yards and a touchdown.’