Bills vs Rams

Predict the outcome

  • Bills by 1-4

    Votes: 1 16.7%
  • Bills by 5-9

    Votes: 3 50.0%
  • Bills by 10+

    Votes: 2 33.3%
  • Rams by 1-4

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Rams by 5-9

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Rams by 10+

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    6
I HATE when we lose winnable games. Hell, I hate when we lose any games.
1st seed just took a step back and Detroit took notes.
Worse coached game on Defense I can remember in a LONG time.

Balls
Allen - amazing game, other than those two passes on the last drive. WTF were those?
O-Line - no pressure from the #1 pressure Defensive front (Both O-Lines played very well)
Cooper - made more catches and that one... wow!
Mac Hollins - Allen has turned him from a 3rd rate wr into a weapon!

Goats
DEFENSE!! WTF!! When the other team easily exploits the zone coverage, Get the FK out of Zone Coverage. MCDipshit: "nahhhh"
DEFENSE!! When you're STILL Blitzing in the 2nd Quarter and a Mid-Range OLD QB is exploiting the Blitz and you haven't gotten close to him ONE TIME, STOP FKN BLITZING!! McD: "nahhhhhh"
Spencer and Deion taking their required allotment of PF penalties
Fuck you refs! 3 Holds and a blatant Pass Interference.... "Flag?? what's a flag??" "Oh, that thing I dropped? Let me pick that up"
 
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Report Card: Bills' pass defense, special teams, coaching all flunk against Rams​


Grading the Buffalo Bills in their 44-42 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday at SoFi Stadium …

Running game: C-​

Quarterback Josh Allen rescued this grade from being an “F.” Allen led the Bills with 82 rushing yards on 10 attempts and scored a ridiculous three rushing touchdowns. His longest run was 30 yards, which came on a scramble. The problem is, he was the only one who did anything on the ground. James Cook rushed six times for 20 yards and the only other carry was by wide receiver Curtis Samuel, which gained 1 yard. That’s 21 rushing yards from players other than Allen – not nearly enough. “Would like to have seen us be able to run the ball a little bit more with our running backs,” coach Sean McDermott said after the game.

Passing game: A​

Allen’s MVP case certainly was strengthened, even in defeat. He went 22 of 37 for 342 yards and threw for three touchdowns. Amari Cooper was heavily involved, finishing with 14 targets that he turned into six catches for 95 yards. That Allen missed Cooper on eight targets suggests that they’re still ironing out some details in their chemistry, which is to be expected. Khalil Shakir led the team with 106 receiving yards on five catches, including a magnificent 51-yard touchdown catch. Mack Hollins had four catches for 57 yards that included a 21-yard touchdown catch. Hollins now has five touchdown catches this season, which is a new career high. Running back Ty Johnson gained 55 yards on two catches, including a 41-yard touchdown reception that came on a well-executed screen pass. Moving the ball through the air was not the problem Sunday.

Run defense: C​

The Rams stuck with it, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry, but running 42 times for 137 yards and three touchdowns. The Bills decisively lost the battle of the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. “If you want to be a good run defense, it starts with an attitude and everyone doing their job. So it’s a collective thing,” McDermott said. The Bills started out on a good note, as DaQuan Jones dropped Kyren Williams for a 3-yard loss on the first play from scrimmage. Matt Milano, Von Miller and A.J. Epenesa also had tackles for loss. The Bills’ two leading tacklers were their safeties – Taylor Rapp had 13 and Damar Hamlin finished with 12. The Rams used wide receiver Puka Nacua in the run game, as he carried five times for 16 yards and one touchdown.

Pass defense: F​

It’s hard to remember the last time a McDermott-coached defense got shredded like this through the air. Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford picked apart the Bills, going 23 of 30 for 320 yards and two touchdowns. Stafford wasn’t sacked, and was hit just three times. The Bills had absolutely no answer for Nacua, who finished with 12 catches for 162 yards and a touchdown. He’s one heck of a player. Cooper Kupp also hurt the Bills, finishing with five catches for 92 yards and a touchdown. It’s hard to believe the Rams were just 6-6 coming into the game after watching how explosive their offense is. The Bills now will hold their breath that the knee injury suffered by cornerback Rasul Douglas is nothing major. He’s a huge part of what the team does defensively, even if he and the rest of the secondary had a tough night Sunday.

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The Rams celebrate their blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown against the Bills on Sunday. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News

Special teams: F​

It was the type of game that could lead to coordinator Matthew Smiley being replaced after the season. It’s borderline impossible to believe the team could have had only nine players on the field for the final punt. That type of thing simply can’t happen in that situation. The Bills also had a blocked punt returned for a touchdown. Long snapper Reid Ferguson got beat on the play. That happens, but why was there nobody else to pick up the rusher? Because of that blocked punt, Martin averaged just 33.7 net yards on his five punts. Rookie returner Brandon Codrington should have tried to catch the Rams’ final punt and return it instead of hoping the ball got into the end zone for a touchback. That’s a tough spot for Codrington to be in and he’ll learn from it.

Coaching: F​

Where do we even begin? McDermott said after the game he felt like his team lacked urgency. That’s inexcusable considering what’s at stake in the conference standings. A lot of fans were up in arms about McDermott accepting a holding penalty that made it third and 16 for the Rams in the fourth quarter instead of declining it and allowing Los Angeles to make a decision about what to do on fourth and 6 from the Buffalo 36-yard line. I didn’t have much of a problem with that, but the decision to call timeout with just over a minute to go in regulation was inexcusable. At that point, the team absolutely needed to preserve all three timeouts to give the defense a chance to get the ball back. We’ve seen the Bills’ defense be on its heels before at times this season, but usually it can make the necessary in-game adjustments to correct course. That did not happen against the Rams. “Overall, we really got to roll up our sleeves and look at it,” McDermott said. The sooner, the better in that regard
 

It happened again. In a script that Buffalo fans know all too well, Bills quarterback Josh Allen had a historic performance that will go down as a loss. Even Allen’s opponents know that what he’s doing is otherworldly.

“You see Josh Allen is an alien,” Rams coach Sean McVay said after the game.

“Some of the stuff that he can do and the things that he can create – we knew he was capable of that. He’s shown that. It’s why he is as well respected and regarded in this league as he is. It’s all deserved and earned. But our guys found a way to just make enough plays to come out on top.”

On Sunday, Allen became the first player in NFL history with three passing touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns in a regular-season game. But the record came in a 44-42 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, and that will be the prevailing memory for Allen.

“Got to make one more play than they do, however it may be,” a downtrodden Allen said after the game. “So, again, it was a total team loss, three phases. We feel like we didn’t play up to our standard. That starts with me.”

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Bills quarterback Josh Allen throws a touchdown pass to Khalil Shakir against the Rams in the second half Sunday. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News

Allen repeated the idea that he needed to be better in his post-game news conference. But that margin for improvement is slim.
Allen threw for 342 yards and picked up a team-leading 82 rushing yards on 10 carries.

As the Bills’ defense wilted to Matthew Stafford, Puka Nacua and the offense, the Bills’ specials teams had their share of mishaps, and the Bills coaching staff made baffling choices, Allen was the driving force to keep Buffalo in the game until the final minute.

Still, Allen’s emphasis returned to the final results.

“I don’t know the stats,” Allen said. “I don’t know how well we were on third down or completion percentage. I don’t know any of that. I just know it wasn’t good enough to win a football game.”

The thing is, however, what Allen did should have been good enough to win a football game.

In NFL history, teams that scored at least six touchdowns and have zero turnovers in a game had never lost until Sunday. Those teams were 245-0 in the Super Bowl era, per Dante Koplowitz-Fleming, a senior researcher for the NFL. The Bills are the first to lose such a game.

“I hate losing,” Allen said. “If you lose by two, (or) you lose by 100, it don’t matter, you’re still losing.”

While the Bills lost, the team is still 10-3, and Allen, even in defeat, is still making his case for league MVP.

Allen threw for a touchdown and rushed for a touchdown in the same game for the 41st time in his career. In NFL history, only quarterback Cam Newton has done that more, with 45 such games.

“He just does everything for us,” left guard David Edwards said. “He’s the catalyst, the heartbeat of our offense. For him to be able to – especially when it became evident that we weren’t having the ability to run the football – his ability to get us in and out of protections, to make great throws with the guys downfield, and his ability, obviously, to evade pressure, and make plays with his feet – it’s just incredible.”

When Allen threw a 51-yard touchdown to wide receiver Khalil Shakir in the third quarter, it was the 23rd time in his career he threw for two or more touchdowns and rushed for at least one in a game, breaking a tie with Newton to set a NFL record.

Bills coach Sean McDermott shook his head when he was told that Allen put the loss on himself. The other two phases, defense and special teams, squandered Allen’s historic performance.

“Incredible. Incredible. We’ve got to do a better job around him,” McDermott said of Allen.

“If you look at the game, it’s line of scrimmage and being able to run the ball with our running backs. It’s line of scrimmage on defense, it’s special teams giving up big plays. When you lose two of three and the line of scrimmage overall, you’re making it really hard — you’ve got to score 40 points, and even then, you’re holding your breath to win.”

Of the Bills’ 10 longest plays of the game, seven were Allen passes (the longest the 51-yard touchdown to Shakir) and three were Allen runs (the longest a 30-yard gain).

“He’s my dog, for real,” running back Ty Johnson said. “It’s in him, you know what I’m saying? You can’t make that up. You see that hunger to keep making plays and put points on the board. It’s a spectacle to see. I’m glad to be his teammate.”

Each of Allen’s three rushing touchdowns came from the 1-yard line. Two came in the fourth quarter as Allen and the Bills mounted a comeback attempt.

“I gotta give a lot of credit to Josh for being able to not only keep us in that game, but bring us back, put us in a position to win it,” Edwards said. “We didn’t do – I didn’t do – well enough up front today, especially in the run game, pass (protection) stuff, I wish I had a couple of plays back.

“And again, it goes back to Josh being the best in the world to put up 42 points and have the performance he did.”

The Bills likely will have to score frequently next week, too, as they take on the Detroit Lions, who are averaging 32.1 points per game. The 12-1 Lions have put up 42 or more points four times this season.

Allen’s late-game heroics on Sunday were just the latest reminder to his teammates of all that he can do.

“It’s hard to win in this league, but when our quarterback could continue to heat up and get in his rhythm and get his feel, it’s a plus in our book,” left tackle Dion Dawkins said. “’Cause we’re still pushing forward. We’re still pushing forward.

“And when Josh Allen is Josh Allen, everybody is better.”
 

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Observations: Josh Allen's heroics undone by horrible defense, questionable coaching in loss to Rams​


The job of an NFL head coach is to give his team the best opportunity to win.

Sean McDermott failed in that regard Sunday for the Buffalo Bills.

A superhero performance by quarterback Josh Allen was wasted by a putrid defensive showing, a terrible breakdown on special teams and a late-game coaching blunder as the Los Angeles Rams held on for a 44-42 victory at SoFi Stadium.

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Bills quarterback Josh Allen was incredible Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams, accounting for six total touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough to lead his team to a win.
Harry Scull Jr. photos, Buffalo News

Despite the repeated defensive failures, Allen kept clawing his team back into the game. The Bills had a first-and-goal at the Rams’ 1-yard line with 1:06 remaining in the game, trailing 44-35.

Crucially, the Bills still had all three timeouts. With a touchdown, the defense still had a chance to get the ball back to Allen and Co. by stopping the Rams and utilizing those timeouts. It wouldn’t have been an easy spot for the offense, but with Allen, anything is possible.

On that first down, the Bills went to their bread-and-butter play in short yardage – a quarterback keeper.

“I think that was the easiest call for us to do,” right tackle Spencer Brown said. “We’ve ran ‘attack’ I don’t know how many times on the season. We can at least get 1 yard out of it.”

This time, they didn’t. Allen didn’t get into the end zone, and the clock didn’t stop. McDermott chose to use a timeout with 1:02 left.
Once he did, the possibility of getting the ball back with a defensive stop was gone, because the Rams would be able to run out the clock. Instead, the Bills had to rely on an onside kick.

Allen ultimately scored on second down, but the Bills’ hopes then rested with an onside kick – a play that ha]s only been successful 7% of the time this season in the NFL (teams are now 3 of 41 after the Bills failed to recover).

Once the Rams recovered, they ran out the clock, stopping the Bills’ winning streak at seven games and dealing the team a severe blow in its quest to earn the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs.

McDermott explained his reasoning for using the timeout:

“You have two options, basically. Neither are great, right? So when you’re in that situation with holding three timeouts, felt like with the ball, felt like we (were) underneath kind of a time overall where we felt like we could get the ball back with a legit chance to win the game with no timeouts. Having said that, we used what we thought was our best play all year, which is 1-yard quarterback sneak by Josh. Had to use a timeout. Just felt like that was the best course of action for us right there. Neither of them are great choices in that situation.

“At the end of the day, we have to play better overall so we stay out of those situations. But we’ll go back and look at it again. Just overall, again, (I) felt like thought we could get it right there on the first play. Didn’t get it, used the timeout, and then feel like, ‘Hey, we’re in a situation if we do get the onside, we’re still going to have a high percentage.’ I recognize that – 15 yards and roughly 50 seconds, two timeouts to go, feel pretty good about ourselves.”

McDermott said he understood the odds of recovering the onside kick were low.

If he truly did, though, he shouldn’t have put his team in that situation.

It’s true that the Allen keeper has worked exceptionally well. It was only the third time in 19 rushing attempts this season he had been stopped with a to-go distance of at least 1 yard. Two of those stops have occurred on the opponents’ 1-yard line

He is 20 of 27 on sneaks from the opponents’ 1-yard line in his career and 4 of 6 this season.

When it didn’t work, though, the Bills needed to have a contingency plan. Yes, it would have taken time to untangle the pile and get lined up again to either run another play or spike the ball. But that would have been better than relying on an onside kick.

“Ideally, we’re not in that situation. But if we’re in the situation you don’t have great options at your disposal,” McDermott said. “There’s potential you’re able to save the timeouts and play defense and then you’re out of timeouts and they’re punting the ball back to you. Then you’re in a situation with no timeouts and the ball may be pinned. So you know, or you go the route we did. So there’s not great options at that point in the game. We’ll go back and look at it again, I promise you that.”

That’s surely little solace for fans frustrated by a loss in which coaching played a direct, detrimental role.

Other observations from Sunday’s thriller in SoFi Stadium:

2. The coaching errors didn’t stop there. After the Rams recovered the onside kick, the Bills used their two remaining timeouts, and the defense held the Rams to 8 yards gained on three plays. With 7 seconds left, the Rams let the play clock expire and took a delay-of-game penalty before Ethan Evans punted.

At that point, the Bills had to hope for either a blocked punt for a touchdown or a touchdown return by rookie Brandon Codrington.

Despite having more than enough time to get their punt-block unit set because of the Rams’ penalty, the Bills inexplicably had just nine players – nine! – on the field for the punt.

“Yeah, punt block. We should have been in that,” McDermott said. “Honestly, we didn’t have enough guys on the field to do that so that’s something we got to figure it out.”

How could that happen?

“It comes down to substitutions,” the coach said. “So it’s communication, it’s understanding who’s in the game, who’s available, so we’ll go back and figure that out.”

Codrington didn’t field the punt, and time expired as the punt went into the end zone for a touchback.

“The call before we went out there was go for the block, hopefully fair-catch, we have 1 second, or potentially a touchback, we get the ball at the 20 and we get one more play,” Codrington said. “That was what it was. That was definitely a thought, to try and return it.”

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Bills special-teams players watch a replay of a punt blocked by the Los Angeles Rams’ Jacob Hummel and returned for a touchdown by Hunter Long on Sunday at
SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. Harry Scull Jr./Buffalo News

3. The Bills had another disastrous breakdown on special teams. On fourth-and-10 from their own 48-yard line early in the second quarter, the Bills sent punter Sam Martin onto the field. But Rams linebacker Jacob Hummel broke through the middle of the line to block Martin’s punt. Los Angeles tight end Hunter Long returned in 22 yards for a touchdown. It’s the 10th time in Bills history a blocked punt has been returned for a touchdown by the opposing team, and the first since Pittsburgh’s Ulysses Gilbert did so on Sept. 12, 2021.

On the play, Hummel bowled over Bills long snapper Reid Ferguson to get in position to make the block.

“Obviously worst-case scenario, something you never want to go through,” Ferguson said. “Something I pride myself on as a snapper is good snaps and good protections. When one fails, you need to take a look in the mirror and see what went wrong. Got walked back on that punt. It wasn’t pretty. It’s a tough one to swallow, but you’ve got to look forward. Had good snaps and good protection the rest of the game, but you just hate to be the reason that one could cost you.”

Martin said he did not feel the pressure from Hummel until it was too late.

“Most times it is a surprise. I can sometimes see (pressure) when it’s off the edge, but no, it was bang bang,” he said. “You hate that feeling, but we’ll watch it Monday and get it fixed. It’s definitely something that’s fixable. So it happened, we’ve just got to figure it out and not let it happen again.”

4. Officials missed a huge call. Facing fourth-and-5 from the Bills’ 35-yard line with 3:53 left in the fourth quarter, the Rams left their offense on the field. Before quarterback Matthew Stafford took the snap, right tackle Rob Havenstein clearly moved. Officials did not throw a flag for the false start, however, and the Rams picked up the first down with an 11-yard completion from Matthew Stafford to receiver Tutu Atwell.

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Buffalo Bills defensive backs Taron Johnson, left, and Taylor Rapp, center, look on as Los Angeles Rams receiver Puka Nacua celebrates a touchdown during the first half Sunday.
Harry Scull Jr./Buffalo News

5. Taylor Rapp and Rasul Douglas were injured on the same play. The Bills’ safety and cornerback collided while in coverage on a play in which Rams receiver Cooper Kupp caught a 17-yard touchdown pass late in the third quarter.

Rapp suffered a shoulder injury but was cleared to return. Douglas suffered a back injury but was back on the field by the time the Bills’ next defensive series had started. Douglas, however, then left the game later in the fourth quarter with a knee injury. He was replaced in the lineup by Ja’Marcus Ingram.

Defensive end Casey Toohill also left the game in the second half because of a rib injury.

Nickel cornerback Taron Johnson also briefly left the game but returned.

McDermott did not have any updates on the injuries after the game.

6. Lewis Cine made his Bills debut. The safety, who was called up from the practice squad Saturday, was on the field for the opening kickoff, marking his first action as a member of the team. Cine is a former first-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in 2022 who has been on the Bills’ practice squad since late August.

“I was ecstatic, of course. Still grateful to get that opportunity, win or lose,” Cine said. “Being on practice squad, just keep your head down, work, work, work until you get your shot. Once you get it, don’t look back.”

7. Two of the Bills’ top offensive weapons still weren’t ready. Rookie wide receiver Keon Coleman and second-year tight end Dalton Kincaid did not play. Coleman missed his fourth straight game because of a wrist injury originally suffered in Week 9 against Miami. Kincaid missed his third straight game with a knee injury suffered in Week 10 against Indianapolis.

Tight end Quintin Morris also missed the game with groin and shoulder injuries. Coleman, Kincaid and Morris were all questionable for the game on the final injury report.

8. Kaiir Elam was once again inactive. The Bills’ cornerback was inactive for the third straight game. The team’s other healthy inactive players were offensive lineman Will Clapp, rookie linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio and defensive tackle Jordan Phillips.

Rookie defensive tackle DeWayne Carter, who was activated from injured reserve Saturday, made his return to the lineup for the first time since being hurt in Week 7 against Tennessee. To make room in the gameday lineup, the team sat Phillips.
 
Balls:

JA17 - Missed some throws early but had an EPIC game. MVP
Shakira - Amazing
Cooper - Stud
BAREfoot - Weapon
Tie - Screen Machine
McGovern - Baller
Torrence - All pro
Edwards - Mauler

Goats:

Oliver - Noticed him once
Groot - No pressure
Millano - liability
Benford - Toast
Douglas - Toast
Martin - Blocked punt. The curse of the Punt God in full effect
Ferguson - Got blown up on punt block
 
Balls

Josh Allen. Another all world performance. What an absolute stud. I'm sorry for McD Josh, I really am.

Shakir. Mr. Reliable

Cooper. Solid game.

Pass blocking. Elite, not so much run blocking.



Goats

Sean Michael McDermott. Write up another L for McClappy and his "elite" defense. Could not stop a nose bleed. Nakua and Kupp open all game long and no adjusting, gashed left and right on the run game and we have not even gotten to the game management part. I could not believe my eyes when they accepted the hold. You finally got a fucking stop and your idea is to give them another shot?? .... are you fucking stupid? ... make them kick the fg man. It was a darn long one. And even if its good it gives the ball back to your All World QB who is on a tear. We needed 6 to win anyway. I wont even get into the stupidity of the QB sneak, TO and then 9 players on the field thing. More of the same. It will never change, when the stakes are higher McD will crumble. Guaranteed. As taxes and death. Fuck him

Babich and his defense. They could've been told the plays beforehand and still not stop them. Honorable mention to the overpaid bums of the DLine. Useless all of them.

Smiley. Needs to be fired today. No more of this. His units have bene consistently bad and he has cost us games before. 9 players on the field? Not even 10 bro. 9. No try for a block, no return either. Unreal

Run game. Nothing. No blockign, Cook was lost, did we even give Ray Davis a carry?

Refs. Wrolstad with a stinker. Bad all game long and for both sides but the non calls on the false start and the huge OPI really hurt.
 
Balls:

The Josh, if the Bills want to continue to waste his career and my time then at least trade him to an NFC north team like Minnesota or Green Bay so he can win a title. He has earned that right over and over

O Line, no sacks in how many weeks? That's damn solid

Receiving corps

Goats,
Defense
Special Teams
McFuckup
 
Sean Michael McDermott. Write up another L for McClappy and his "elite" defense. Could not stop a nose bleed. Nakua and Kupp open all game long and no adjusting, gashed left and right on the run game and we have not even gotten to the game management part. I could not believe my eyes when they accepted the hold. You finally got a fucking stop and your idea is to give them another shot?? .... are you fucking stupid? ... make them kick the fg man. It was a darn long one. And even if its good it gives the ball back to your All World QB who is on a tear. We needed 6 to win anyway. I wont even get into the stupidity of the QB sneak, TO and then 9 players on the field thing. More of the same. It will never change, when the stakes are higher McD will crumble. Guaranteed. As taxes and death. Fuck him
It's crazy that a team this good needs to fire the coach but it's the coach that's cost us trips to the Superbowl
 
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