Bills Vs. Patriots Game Breakdown

The refs have reached an all time low in the NFL. It has become absolutely ridiculous how much control the zebras have over a game and how often they abuse that control on a weekly basis. Games have been decided countless times this season over an extremely poor call by any given ref in any given week. Although the NFL never seems to care much about it, something must be done about how games are officiated in this league. The officials are putting too many games at risk of going one way or another with many of the calls they make, especially the ones in crunchtime. With that said, the poor officiating was just one of the themes of the game in a 20-13 Buffalo Bills loss against the New England Patriots in Foxborough. The Bills fall to 5-5, but still remain 2nd in the AFC East. Let's break down the game.


Offensively, this game was a mess for the Buffalo Bills. They were only able to get 319 yards of total offense, and could only muster up 13 points on the board. You won't win many games on the road, against the Patriots, by just scoring 13 points. The playcalling was rather poor at times, and the execution just wasn't there as Tyrod Taylor had often missed passes, especially the ones he usually makes.

Speaking of the Bills QB, his day was uncharacteristic for Tyrod Taylor. He kept his consistency by not turning the ball over, but he was unable to find a receiver in the endzone, and overall he managed to only complete 55% of his passes. He went 20/36 for 233 yards, and he should've played a lot better. He missed a lot of deep throws down the field, and despite Sammy Watkins being open on multiple occasions, Tyrod could not find his #1 receiver. He was injured toward the end of the game, and that also showed in his play, as he often had little to no power on many of the late balls he threw. Tyrod had a bad game, which is common for a relatively new quarterback. He'll need to play better to keep giving the Bills a chance to win, along with staying healthy from here on out.

As far as the receiving core goes, Chris Hogan was the player of the day. He had 6 passes caught for 95 yards as he was often left open. Lesean McCoy also had a relatively busy day through the air picking up 41 yards on his 6 receptions. Watkins and Clay were both rather quiet, contributing only 4 receptions for 53 yards combined. Tyrod's poor day showed as buffalo's receivers could really never get hot during this game.

Lesean McCoy on the other hand, has had his 3rd monster game in a row. With his 82 rushing yards and his 41 receiving yards, he has now eclipsed his 3rd game in a row where he has had over 100+ yards from scrimmage. He is now fully healthy, and that really is showing in his game. Buffalo fans are really seeing how elusive, shifty, and explosive he can be. He was the heart of the running game on Monday night, as Karlos Williams could only gain 11 yards on his 6 carries. Karlos was unable to break the rookie scoring record, but he will still continue to be productive in the Bills offense as long as he is used in the rushing and passing game.

The defense on the other hand, had a rather dominant day against the New England Patriots. They were putting pressure on Tom Brady all day, and although the front 4 was only able to achieve 1 sack, they made Brady's day miserable, hitting him over a dozen times. They held the Patriots to just 356 total yards and held Brady to a 20/39 for 277 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT performance, and in terms of Brady, that's getting shut down. In addition, the Bills were stingy in the ground game, giving up a total of only 85 yards. Rex's defense has finally shown up over the past few games, and that will be big going forward.

I'm going to jump into one final topic before I wrap this up, and that will be about the referees. Like mentioned in the first part of this post, the refs have been a joke. This game could've been completely different had calls not gone one way or another. There were a few calls in particular that really caught my attention.

One of these calls robbed the New England Patriots a seemingly easy touchdown, but still, the refs managed to compromise (rather unfairly), and it wound up costing the Buffalo Bills. The ref blew an inadvertent whistle on a completion to WR Danny Amendola, which Amendola had room to run after the fact. The refs discussed after the whistle, and gave Rex Ryan a seemingly random 15 yard call, and stated that the ball would be spotted after the reception, because it was a completed pass before the whistle, which was not true. The whistle blew while the ball was in mid air, and that means the down should have been replayed. Then, they gave Rex a ridiculous call for "interfering," because he had a foot on the white chalk. Even when the ref messed up, they still molded their messed up call to go toward the way of the Patriots, instead of calling it fairly down the middle.

Another call cost the Bills 42 seconds on their final drive. Robert Woods caught a 9 yard pass from Tyrod Taylor. at 1:51 left in the 4th quarter. The refs decided to review the first down ruling, and they never stopped the clock, or put the lost time back up on the clock. The next snap from Buffalo's offense came with 1:09 left. That 42 seconds could have been several more plays for the Buffalo Bills, and that could've ultimately been the game changer.

The last call, which is a smaller referee blunder than the last 2, cost the Bills one final Hail Mary opportunity. Sammy Watkins caught a 16 yard pass from Tyrod Taylor with 2 seconds left, and rolled out of bounds. He was untouched and nobody was near him. Still though, the referee mistook Sammy's actions as "surrendering himself," which led to the ref calling the clock to still run. That rule is an NCAA rule, though. Sammy had every right to roll out of bounds and stop that clock with 2 seconds left. It was just another one of many awful calls by the refs that night.

I'm not one to complain about the refs every single week, but when a game is as poorly officiated as this one, it has to be brought up. I'm not saying that the poor calls were Buffalo's excuses for losing the game, because they also blew many chances that they did have. The zebras did not do the Bills any favors, though. Buffalo now rests as the 8th seed in the AFC, in a 4 way tie between 3 other teams. Buffalo's game against the Chiefs on Sunday is a must win if they want to stay in the driver seat for the wild card race, which is now starting to heat up. Bills will be without Kyle Williams and Mario Williams against the Chiefs, which are 2 huge blows. Buffalo will have to overcome the odds and pull out a win. Happy Holidays, thanks for reading, and as always, let's go Buffalo!

Sources:
Stats: http://espn.go.com/nfl/playbyplay?gameId=400791717
Image #1:  (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Image #2: http://images.ischoolguide.com/data/images/full/36137/new-england-patriots-vs-buffalo-bills.jpg?w=600

Bills Vs. Jets Game Breakdown

Three weeks ago, Bills fans felt as if their team's season was over. A devastating loss to the Jaguars in London seemed to have put the season on ice, even though there were still 9 games left in the season. Now, this Buffalo team has won 2 games in 4 days, and with a 5-4 record, are sitting in the 6th playoff seed, just behind the 6-4 Pittsburgh Steelers. The Bills pulled out the red "Color Rush" jerseys and overcame a talented Jets team on Thursday night by a score of 22-17 to move to 2nd in the AFC East. Let's break down the game.

The game was not pretty...in fact, it was ugly. Rex did what Rex wanted against his former team as it was a defensive battle for most of the game, especially in the early going. The first 4 possessions of the game resulted in punts before New York finally put up a field goal. From then until the 4th quarter, it was all Bills. They put up 22 unanswered points as the defense and special teams smothered their former quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick and his Jets. The offense put up some numbers but it was the defense that lead the way.

The offense wasn't terrible, as they put up 280 yards of offense. Although the offense sputtered and stalled late, they put 17 points up throughout the first 3 quarters of the game. It was truly the defense that came up huge. The offense came through when it was required, though.
Tyrod Taylor was under duress nearly all game, as he was sacked 4 times. His day was good enough to the lead the offense as he went 17/27 for 158 yards, a touchdown and 0 interceptions. Tyrod's ball protection is one of his greatest assets, as he has not thrown an interception since week 4 against the Giants. He's turning into a quarterback Buffalo can rely on to get the job done, as long as he's not forced to throw 40+ times a game.
The Bill's leading receiver was Charles Clay as he hauled in 5 passes for 52 yards. Karlos Williams also added his catch for 26 yards and a touchdown, which he now has 7 TD's in 6 games. He is only the 2nd rookie RB in NFL history to score a touchdown in his 1st 6 NFL games. The passing game was certainly not prolific, and Sammy Watkins was not visited very often by Tyrod on his trip to Revis Island. Sammy caught a key pass on 3rd down in the 4th quarter, in which he absolutely lost Revis, to put Buffalo in the position to kill the rest of the clock out.
Lesean McCoy is also looking back to his old self as he took the rock 19 times for 112 yards. He's been shifty and quick and can cut on a dime for the first time all season in the past couple of games since the bye. That's how he was advertised when the trade was made back in March. Karlos Williams also added 24 yards on 7 carries.


The defense had an excellent day, holding Ryan Fitzpatrick and company to only 318 yards of total offense. The special teams also came through, putting up a key touchdown to spark the Bills on a kick return fumble. The Bills caused 4 turnovers, 3 of which were set up by standout player Bacarri Rambo. In the last 4 meetings, the Bills have committed 0 turnovers vs. the Jets, while the Jets have committed 15. This defense has the Jet's number for sure. The Buffalo defense dominated the Jets, and that's why Buffalo's been taking down the Jets in their last 4 match ups.

Buffalo has won 2 huge games in a row, and have another one coming up vs. the undefeated Patriots on next week's Monday Night Football. The Bills have looked like a much better team with all their weapons healthy, and with the recent losses of Patriots WR Julian Edelman and shifty RB Dion Lewis, the Patriots have to replace 2 key pieces. Buffalo's expectations aren't too high in a game in which the Patriots are favored by 7.5 points. This game will be extremely difficult as well considering it's not only on prime time, but it's also on the road. Buffalo will have their hands full, but anything's possible if they can limit big plays, get to Brady, and stop Gronkowski. Thanks for reading, and as always, Let's go Buffalo!

Sources:
Image #1: (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)
Image #2: (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)
Stats: ESPN.GO.COM

Bills Vs. Dolphins Game Breakdown

It's felt as if it's been forever since the Buffalo Bills have taken the field. After a disheartening loss in London to the Jags, the Bills, with fading playoff hopes and many injuries, had to come home, reset physically and mentally during the Bye week, and come out to face the Miami Dolphins, who were fresh off a beating to the Patriots. The Bye week did the Bills a lot of good, as they came out and crushed the Dolphins for the second time this season, by a score of 33-17. The Bills now reach 4-4 with a quick turnaround to a Jets game with huge playoff implications. Let's break down the game.

The offense had an excellent day, putting up 420 yards of total offense. The Bills started off their 2nd offensive drive with a touchdown, and never looked back, as they put up 3 more touchdowns and a field goal to put up one of the best offensive showings of the season. Buffalo made history by being the first team in NFL history with two 100 yard rushers and a receiver with 100+ yards. Buffalo's offensive superstars showed up today and were healthy, and that was the biggest reason Buffalo was able to come away with a victory.

Tyrod Taylor lit it up Sunday. Yet...he only threw 12 passes. Taylor finished 11/12 for 181 yards, with 1 TD and 0 picks. He also added 44 yards on the ground. Taylor's play has been flashy yet very efficient. Buffalo has not had quarterback play like this in years, so it's very refreshing to see that maybe, just maybe, the Bills have found themselves a gem.

Lesean McCoy and Karlos Williams also had monster days. Lesean McCoy kicked off his day with several good carries, one of which being a 48 yard touchdown in the first quarter. He finished with 112 yards on 16 carries. This is his first 100+ yard game of the year, which is exciting to see considering the injuries he's been battling. Karlos continued his dominant rookie campaign by putting up 2 scores and rushing for 110 yards on just 9 carries. Williams now has 6 touchdowns in the 5 games he's played. He should seriously be considered for Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Sammy Watkins has been injured on and off all season, and most recently he got into an altercation with many fans over social media regarding his health. That was put in the rear view mirror on Sunday as Sammy caught 90+% of Tyrod's passes, putting up 168 yards on 8 receptions, including a touchdown and 2 deep bombs from Tyrod Taylor. Watkins looks healthy and that's huge going forward.

The Bills defense also came up huge several times, including a goal line stand at the end of the 1st half. Jerry Hughes racked up 2 sacks, a forced fumble, and recovered that same fumble. The defense held Miami to just 17 points and less than 400 yards of total offense. The offense stole the show on Sunday, but the defense had a few key stops.

The Buffalo Bills looked great, and they should considering they're as healthy as they've been all year. Still though, key players are nursing injuries such as Kyle and Aaron Williams. Buffalo pulled off a great win, but don't have much time to celebrate, as they must travel to New York on Wednesday to take on the 5-4 Jets on Thursday Night Football. They took a step forward, but still have a long road ahead, as 5 of their next 6 games are on the road. With a 4-4 record, Buffalo is not even close to out of the playoff race...in fact, with a win on Thursday, Buffalo moves into the playoff picture as the 5th seed. Thanks for reading, and as always, let's go Buffalo!

Sources:

Stats: ESPN

Image #1: (AP Photo/Gary Wiepert)

Image #2: (AP Photo/Bill Wippert)