Buffalo Rumblings
Observations, analysis, report cards and recaps from Buffalo’s fifth straight victory
It wasn’t pretty, but the Buffalo Bills (8-2) earned a gutty, gritty 30-20 road win over the Indianapolis Colts (4-6) Sunday afternoon to improve to 8-2 for the first time since the 1993 season... the last time the Bills made the Super Bowl.
Today’s edition of Buffalo Rumblinks offers up observations and analysis from Buffalo’s fifth straight win as the Bills picked up an impressive road victory on a day when the offense was shorthanded and the defense came up with four big turnovers, including a pick-six from Taron Johnson on the very first Colts play of the game.
Playing without starting wide receivers Keon Coleman and Amari Cooper, and after losing tight end Dalton Kincaid to a knee injury, the Bills rolled up 416 yards on 69 offensive plays (before kneel downs) and forced Joe Flacco and the Colts into four turnovers (three interceptions and one fumble). Buffalo extended its lead in the AFC East to five games after eclipsing 30 points in a game for the seventh time in 10 games.
First, the positives: The Bills prevailed on a day when their offense was depleted and when Josh Allen wasn’t his usual sharp self (two uncharacteristic interceptions); nickel cornerback Taron Johnson became the first Bills defensive back to record a pick-six and a sack in the same game; defensive end Greg Rousseau had a big strip sack of Flacco and finished with four tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, and two quarterback hits; wide receivers Mack Hollins and Curtis Samuel stepped up admirably with Cooper and Coleman sidelined, combining for eight catches for 121 yards); the Bills run defense, which allowed Jonathan Taylor to gash them for a 58-yard run in the first quarter, made adjustments at halftime and held Taylor to -2 yards on five carries in the second half; and Allen and the offense came through in the clutch in the fourth quarter, sealing the win with a 13-play, 84-yard drive that culminated in James Cook’s two-yard touchdown run.
Among the negatives: offensive tackles Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown continue to have issues with penalties (17 combined this year); Allen threw two costly interceptions, including one that was over the head of wide receiver Khalil Shakir and another on an out pattern to Curtis Samuel that Kenny Moore made a good read on for the INT; the Bills were called for eight penalties; Buffalo’s offense stalled twice in the red zone, settling for two field goals; and KR/DB Brandon Codrington nearly fumbled away a kickoff after the Colts pulled ahead 13-10 and later got burned on a TD pass from Flacco to Alec Pierce.
