Bills Report Card: High grades reflect a complete win over Kansas City Chiefs
Here are Jay Skurski's grades for the Buffalo Bills in their 28-21 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.
buffalonews.com
Grading the Buffalo Bills in their 28-21 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday at Highmark Stadium …
Running game: A-
James Cook set a new career high with 27 carries, which he turned into 114 yards – the fifth time in the Bills’ eight games he has topped the 100-yard milestone. Cook had 72 of his rushing yards in the first half. The Chiefs loaded the box in an effort to slow him down in the second half. When that happens, it opens up other spots for the offense. Quarterback Josh Allen had a pair of 1-yard rushing touchdowns as part of his six carries for 19 yards. Ty Johnson rushed just twice, but one of those was a 3-yard score. The Bills have 16 rushing touchdowns through their first eight games, tying the most in franchise history in that span – a record that had stood alone since 1964.
Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir looks for room to run during the third quarter of Sunday’s victory over the Chiefs.
Shakir had 43 yards on a team-high seven receptions in the win. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
Passing game: A-
Allen was on one against the Chiefs, going 23 of 26 for 273 yards and one touchdown – a quarterback rating of 123.2. His completion percentage (88.5%) set a franchise single-game record (with a minimum of 15 passing attempts). Tight end Dalton Kincaid had a big game, catching all six of his targets for 101 yards. It’s the second 100-yard game of the season for Kincaid. He joined Paul Costa (1967) as the only two tight ends to do that in a single season. Allen completed passes to 10 receivers. Khalil Shakir got a team-high eight targets, which he turned into seven catches for 43 yards. Outside of Shakir and Kincaid, no other pass-catcher had more than two targets, which is what receiver Keon Coleman finished with. He caught both of them for 17 yards. Allen was sacked three times, bringing his season total to 17. That’s three more times than he was sacked all of last year.
Run defense: A
Things really tightened up in the second half, as the Chiefs ran eight times for just 23 yards. Part of that was because of the score – but when the Chiefs did try to run midway through the third quarter, Kareem Hunt was bottled up for a 1-yard gain by defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi and defensive back Cam Lewis. In the fourth quarter, defensive tackle Jordan Phillips stopped running back Brashard Smith for a 1-yard loss. That put Kansas City behind the sticks, and two plays later, Patrick Mahomes was intercepted. Bills edge rusher Joey Bosa had a tackle for loss in the first half on Kansas City’s Clyde Edwards-Helaire. The longest run allowed was 13 yards.
Pass defense: A
It was a strange game for the pass defense, which gave up a 40-yard pass, a 33-yard pass and two more that went for 29 yards and 28 yards. There were definitely some breakdowns, but also a ton of good things, starting with Mahomes being hit 15 times, the most in his career. Bosa led that effort with five quarterback hits, followed by Greg Rousseau with four. The Bills were more physical with Mahomes than they ever have been. Rookie cornerback Maxwell Hairston’s first career interception was a huge one in the fourth quarter. Second-year safety Cole Bishop had four passes defensed and led the team with seven tackles. “He was making plays today,” nickel cornerback Cam Lewis said of Bishop. “I don't what he had going on today, what he ate this morning, but man, that boy was playing his (butt) off. Proud of him. You could see that he's getting more and more comfortable every time he steps out on the field.”
Special teams: D
A holding penalty on linebacker Dorian Williams cost the Bills 19 yards on the opening kickoff. The kick coverage gave up a 32-yard return by the Chiefs’ Tyquan Thornton, which gave Kansas City a drive start at its 40-yard line. Thornton averaged 31.5 yards per attempt on four kick returns. Bills punter Mitch Wishnowsky had a strong game with three attempts that averaged 40.3 net yards. Two of those punts were placed inside the Chiefs’ 20-yard line. Matt Prater was sick to his stomach about missing the 52-yard field-goal attempt late in the fourth quarter that could have iced the win.
Coaching: B
Offensive coordinator Joe Brady’s opening script was a good one, as the Bills went 84 yards on 11 pays for a touchdown on their first drive. Buffalo’s second offensive drive ended with a turnover on downs (the fourth-and-2 play call left a lot to be desired; why no Cook in that situation?). Buffalo gained 404 total yards on offense, the most given up by the Chiefs this year. The Bills had to use their first timeout of the first half with 9:31 remaining in the second quarter with Kansas City lined up to attempt a 46-yard field goal. That was not great. Timeout usage was an issue throughout the game. Of the six timeouts Sean McDermott called, five were on defense or special teams. Some of those worked out, but it was troubling that there was enough confusion to necessitate those calls in the first place. Give defensive coordinator Bobby Babich plenty of credit, along with McDermott. They came up with a great game plan against an elite offense. The Bills were penalized four times for 40 yards, which is an improvement in that category.
