Two Bills Drive

‘The full Josh Allen experience – good and bad – was on display Saturday at SoFi Stadium. The Buffalo Bills’ quarterback started slow. Then he got hot. Then he threw a bad interception. Then he used all of his size to run for a much-needed touchdown. Then the offense almost gave the game away, only for Allen to lead a go-ahead drive in the final minutes, producing a much-needed 24-22 victory. In addition to not ruining Christmas for the team’s passionate fans, the win improved the Bills to 9-6 on the season and moved them into a playoff spot in the AFC with two games remaining in the regular season.’

‘Aside from the individual play of defensive tackle Ed Oliver and receivers Gabe Davis and Khalil Shakir, the product put forth at SoFi Stadium was subpar. Good enough to beat an interim coach and a backup quarterback, but that’s it.’

‘The Bills tallied five sacks on the night. They did so at a point in the season when defensive tackles Jordan Phillips and DaQuan Jones are both on injured reserve. Floyd said Oliver’s first sack was a culmination of the work of a few pass rushers, and it came at an important time.’

‘You lose the turnover battle 3-0, and there’s more than a 90% chance you lose the game. Last season, teams that were minus-3 or worse in turnovers were 2-37. The Bills’ offense got off to a slow start, in part, because the Chargers had a good game plan to defend the Bills’ tackle-pull run plays. Offensive coordinator Joe Brady adjusted and went to inside zone runs, which worked better.’

‘The Bills needed a jolt trailing 10-0 in the second quarter and got it. Quarterback Josh Allen was flushed out of the pocket to his right, but extended the play for 5.50 seconds before throwing deep to receiver Gabe Davis for a 57-yard touchdown. Davis had 20 yards post-catch, and it was his longest reception of the season (previous high was 40 against Las Vegas in Week 2).’

‘On a third-and-4 play with 2:34 left, the Chargers rushed six, and the Bills kept only five men to pass protect. Chargers edge rusher Khalil Mack came unblocked off right tackle because the Chargers stacked the middle, and Spencer Brown turned inside to block blitzing linebacker Tuli Tuipulotu. But Brown missed Tuipulotu, who raced toward Allen just a half-step behind Mack. Allen retreated 7 yards to his own 41 and used his big arm to throw a pass about 35 yards in the air to the right sideline, where Shakir made the catch.’

‘The Bills sure didn’t look ready to play in the first quarter. Such a flat start was quite a disappointment. Coach Sean McDermott has to own some of that, but so, too, do the players. They are professionals who should be self-motivated. McDermott, not surprisingly, took an aggressive approach going up against an inexperienced quarterback. Sometimes, the blitz failed to get home, but in key moments, McDermott schemed up enough pressure. Los Angeles scored 16 of its 22 points off Buffalo turnovers. Interim offensive coordinator Joe Brady was able to call up the right plays when it mattered most at the end. It was far from the offense’s best showing, but a win is a win at this point in the season. McDermott stuck with Cook and Harty after they had lost fumbles, in a show of confidence. The team seems to have an issue with penalties snowballing against them (seven for 64 yards). That is on the coaches to clean up.’