Buffalo Rumblings
We’re going with celebratory a bit this week
The Buffalo Bills quite easily took care of the Seattle Seahawks, putting most of Western New York into a celebratory mood including yours truly. Combine that with a bit of time constraint and that’s how we land on analyzing highlights and drive enders.
Let’s have some fun with our analysis this week!
The Seahawks went three-and-out on their first drive, in no small part thanks to terrible results on first and second down. Still alive but with 3rd & Long, the Bills shrank the pocket to make things harder for quarterback Geno Smith. While the pass rush didn’t hit home, defensive end Greg Rousseau was able to get a hand on the ball and nearly tipped it to himself for an interception.
The second drive went pretty much identically for Seattle, with the exception that the ball traveled further downfield before being impacted by a Bills defender. It’s imperfect from this angle, but defensive back Cam Lewis did tip the pass to create an incomplete. This was another near pick. I chose this angle because Lewis wasn’t the only defender in the area.
Looking to score at the goal line, this was the first of several plays that were lucky breaks for Buffalo. With multiple cracks possible from very short yardage, I think the Seahawks would have had a very good shot to score a touchdown if this didn’t occur.
This would be another one of those lucky breaks. Especially if considering just this angle. The offensive linemen here were incredibly close, nearly interlocking legs. Operating in close quarters and trying to get a good push, center Connor WIlliams extended his right leg back for balance and caught Geno Smith’s foot, creating a trip. This not only ended the drive but gave Buffalo a few yards of cushion.
I’d like to push back on the lucky break narrative for a second though. At the final pause, I highlight what may have been a viable Plan B for Seattle with one eligible receiver leaking back into the end zone and running pretty open. That said, the evidence I’m seeing suggests the running play I hypothesize at the pause was the likely play call.
This is important because the sea of Buffalo Bills defenders already crashing toward that zone meant this fourth down play wasn’t going to convert in all likelihood anyway. The trip gave a few yards of breathing room, but shouldn’t be considered the only reason the play wasn’t successful.
Once again the pass rush impacts the play without a sack. Defensive end Casey Toohill got his hands up and tipped the ball. The pass went haywire and right into the hands of defensive end Austin Johnson who showed off very good reaction time to pluck this one...
