Buffalo Rumblings
The Buffalo Bills committed two costly first-half turnovers during Sunday’s Week 13 clash vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers and went into halftime trailing 7-3 despite James Cook, Ray Davis and the ground game consistently gashing the Steelers during the first 30 minutes.
The second half was a completely different story for the Bills, who emerged with a 26-7 victory to hang onto the No. 7 seed in the crowded AFC playoff picture, and today’s edition of Buffalo Rumblinks leads off with observations and analysis from a bounce back win for the Bills in Pittsburgh.
On a day where the Bills were missing starting tackles Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown, offensive coordinator Joe Brady committed to running back James Cook III and the rushing attack from the first snap, and it carried Buffalo to a big road win over a fellow playoff contender.
Cook ran wild for 144 yards on 32 carries (an average of 4.5 yards per rush), running back Ray Davis added 62 yards on nine carries (6.9 yards/rush), and the Bills amassed 249 rushing yards, the most yards the Steelers have surrendered on the ground since O.J. Simpson and the Bills beat Pittsburgh in Week 2 of the 1975 NFL season. It was great to see head coach Sean McDermott continue to feed Cook even after a costly first-half fumble squandered a potential scoring opportunity.
Quarterback Josh Allen overcame a first-half interception, completing 15 of 23 passes for 123 yards with a TD toss to Keon Coleman, and added 38 rushing yards with a TD to become the league’s all-time leader in rushing touchdowns by a quarterback.
Defensively, the Bills bottled up the Steelers, holding Pittsburgh to 166 total yards of offense—108 passing yards and 58 rushing yards. On the first play of the second half, Joey Bosa applied the pressure, sacking Aaron Rodgers and forcing a fumble that Christian Benford scooped up and returned 17 yards for the go-ahead TD. The hit temporarily knocked Rodgers from the game, and on the ensuing drive, Benford picked off an errant throw from Mason Rudolph, which led to Allen’s one-yard TD toss to Coleman and a 16-7 lead.
Linked below: how Buffalo’s defense put on a dominant display from the get-go; how Bosa’s monster hit on Rodgers changed the tone of the game; how backup tackles Alec Anderson and Ryan Van Demark stepped up and played admirably while helping hold T.J. Watt and Pittsburgh’s talented pass rush to zero sacks and only one hit on Allen; how Benford played like an All-Pro; how the Bills can rely on toughness and a physical style of play to overcome their flaws; and more!
