Buffalo Rumblings
In a tale of two halves, the Buffalo Bills took their frustrations out on the Cincinnati Bengals, rising to the massive challenge in front of them to win 39-34 in Week 14. Buffalo is now 9-4 and battle-tested against some of the best teams in the AFC. They’ll need to bring their best for next weekend’s trip to Foxborough, MA.
The first half against Cincinnati was anything other than pretty in most ways, but there’s a reason they play a second stanza. A quick read through either of our open chats for this game will reveal plenty of folks ready to shake things up at One Bills Drive. Ugly, losing football will do that to the best of people. News flash: The Bills aren’t going anywhere, and neither should you.
The offense looked off in the first half, which was concerning against what is the league’s worst overall defense. Thankfully, offensive coordinator Joe Brady figured things out at halftime and adjustments were made. For whatever reason, the team didn’t lean into running back James Cook III more in the first half, but perhaps that was a bit of cat & mouse on Brady’s part to throw off what Cincinnati’s defense expected.
It was clear early that Brady and Allen were going to try and exploit the Bengals’ defense with tight ends Dawson Knox and Dalton Kincaid. Fact or not, it sure felt like a career day for Knox, who finished with six catches (7 targets) for 93 yards. For his efforts, Knox earned a $100,000 bonus as part of his yardage incentive. He needs just five more catches to earn another $100,000 for a receptions incentive. Meanwhile, Kincaid followed that with four catches (5 targets) for 41 yards and a touchdown, plus an early two-point conversion. Not to be left out of the party, rookie tight end Jackson Hawes caught his only pass for another touchdown. The kid comes up big when huge plays are needed.
As Allen said in his postgame interview with Pam Oliver, Buffalo’s pretty good when they win the turnover battle. Thankfully, they did so today, and they took the ball away from quarterback Joe Burrow when it mattered most. The team’s win on Sunday felt a lot like what unfolded in Week 1, where the Bills trailed with under five minutes to play in regulation against the Baltimore Ravens. As with that one, Buffalo’s comeback win was borne out of a two-score deficit in the fourth quarter. And just as it was against those Ravens, the defense came out of nowhere to make the game-changing play.
What did we learn from the Bills’ latest win? There’s plenty to celebrate, but more than a few things to mark as concerns. Let’s dive in…
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If you’re looking for momentum to spark the Bills down the stretch, peek no further...
