Buffalo Rumblings
It’s not the count, it’s the Harm
The Buffalo Bills hosted the Miami Dolphins in Week 9 and on the surface it looked like a good day for flags. That’s true when it comes to traditional measures, but y’all know we don’t stick to traditional measures ‘round these parts.
Thanks to the small volume, we’ll be able to dive into the particulars of each flag and even go into the vault for a conversation item or two.
This is all pretty normal. That’s weird, because the Bills have historically struggled to stay close to average. But this year, this is normal — or at least more normal than the two games where they went “YOLO” and collected flags like Pokémon.
The Dolphins are technically above the league average but close enough to call it average. Speaking of average, the league has remained pretty stable for a few weeks. We’re still a bit higher than last year, but with close to half a season to go, there’s room for it to fall a bit — but it’s worth watching.
After looking at the counts above, the set of bars on the left is pretty much as expected. On the right side, we have our first glimmer of a deeper story. The Bills added over 50% more yardage to their total when factoring in negated yards, whereas the Dolphins negated zero yards.
The Dolphins had 10.7 Harm total, which is barely above the bad day line of 10.0 Harm. I generally don’t break down a ton of opposing flags as they’re all wicked, wicked human beings who deserve to be called out on their evil ways. That said, sometimes there are a few worth discussing.
Cornerback Cam Smith had two flags on one drive, both of which come with free first downs. Only one actually gave up a down though (the defensive holding came on second down). Both helped the Bills drive down the field. It’s noteworthy that Smith’s were on the same drive as the Bills’ holding calls discussed below. Ultimately, Smith’s flags didn’t lead to a touchdown but they sure didn’t help the Dolphins.
The two most impactful ones were courtesy of former Buffalo Bills. Cornerback Siran Neal was called for defensive holding on 3rd & 6 where quarterback Josh Allen’s pass to wide receiver Keon Coleman was incomplete. The flag continued Buffalo’s drive, which did end in a touchdown. So thank you Siran Neal!
Safety Jordan Poyer’s unnecessary roughness has been broadcast all over and I’m not going to show it to you again. Poyer’s flag gave up two free downs, and continued Buffalo’s game-winning drive so kind of thanks except he injured Keon Coleman. Fun fact; Poyer was flagged for unnecessary roughness the first time the Bills played the Dolphins when he went low and hit wide receiver Khalil Shakir helmet to helmet while making a catch. That one was...
