The Buffalo Bills have dropped back-to-back games after starting the new season with a 4-0 record. This time, it was a 24-14 loss on Monday Night Football
against the Atlanta Falcons. The Bills now hold a 4-2 record and find themselves in second place in the AFC East behind the New England Patriots. It was ugly both offensively and defensively, and the team has plenty of issues to address as they enter the bye week.Entering Week 6, Buffalo dealt with key injuries on both sides of the ball. On offense,
both wide receiver Curtis Samuel and tight end Dalton Kincaid were unable to suit up for Monday Night Football. On defense, linebacker Matt Milano was unable to play due to re-aggravating his pectoral injury in Week 5. Then, defensive tackle DaQuan Jones hurt his calf in pregame warmups.
If you’re interested in seeing the full inactive list, check it out here.
Bills offensive snap counts (57 snaps)
D.Dawkins T 57 – 100%
D.Edwards G 57 – 100%
O.Torrence G 57 – 100%
S.Brown T 57 – 100%
J.Allen QB 57 – 100%
C.McGovern G 56 – 98%
K.Coleman WR 49 – 86%
D.Knox TE 46 – 81%
K.Shakir WR 34 – 60%
J.Hawes TE 31 – 54%
J.Cook RB 30 – 53%
T.Shavers WR 28 – 49%
Ty.Johnson RB 24 – 42%
R.Gilliam FB 21 – 37%
E.Moore WR 14 – 25%
J.Palmer WR 6 – 11%
R.Davis RB 2 – 4%
A.Anderson T 1 – 2%
This was the first time all season that the Bills rolled with just two tight ends, Dawson Knox (81%) and Jackson Hawes (54%). Knox hauled in a 19-yard touchdown on Buffalo’s opening possession but was targeted just once for the rest of the game. Quarterback Josh Allen (100%) had little-to-no protection on Monday night, which led to costly mistakes, particularly two interceptions and four sacks taken. Allen has flashed his usual heroics here and there, but the play calling, coupled with the lack of the roster’s pass-catching prowess, has made things about 10 times harder for the reigning NFL MVP just six weeks into the season.
Not a single Bills’ pass-catcher hauled in more than three receptions, as Allen completed only 15 passes, his lowest mark since 2023. A small positive, however, is that wideout Joshua Palmer (11%) finally flashed his deep-ball capabilities, hauling in two receptions for 60 yards, including a 45-yard catch on the Bills’ first play of the game. Keon Coleman (86%) led all pass-catchers in snaps and targets, but finished with a disappointing three receptions for 11 yards. Whether it’s Allen forcing it or offensive coordinator Joe Brady calling it, the classic “throw it up to Keon and hope he comes down with it” philosophy on key downs is not working.
While Buffalo was playing from behind the whole game, the misuse of running back James Cook (53%) was a bit egregious. The 26-year-old averaged 5.1 yards per carry on 17 carries, which is great. However, he was not on the field for any of the Bills’ nine third-down plays or their one fourth-down play. Following three straight weeks of at least 66% of snaps, he logged just 52% in Week 6, which was a puzzling decision considering Buffalo’s obvious struggle to get the job done through the air. Ray Davis (4%) logged just two snaps but touched the ball on both, hauling in a 16-yard touchdown on his second and final snap. Fullback Reggie Gilliam (37%) logged his most snaps in a game this season with the absence of Kincaid.
Bills defensive snap counts (70 snaps)
T.White CB 68 – 97%
T.Rapp S 67 – 96%
C.Benford CB 64 – 91%
S.Thompson LB 63 – 90%
D.Walker DT 56 – 80%
C.Bishop S 55 – 79%
E.Oliver DT 55 – 79%
T.Johnson CB 49 – 70%
G.Rousseau DE 48 – 69%
J.Bosa DE 47 – 67%
D.Williams LB 39 – 56%
T.Bernard LB 38 – 54%
A.Epenesa DE 33 – 47%
J.Poyer S 18 – 26%
J.Phillips DT 16 – 23%
J.Solomon DE 14 – 20%
C.Lewis DB 12 – 17%
L.Jackson DE 12 – 17%
J.Andreessen LB 8 – 11%
J.Ingram CB 8 – 11%
It’s never a good sign when there are zero defensive players who logged 100% of the snaps because it usually means injuries, and that was the case. Cornerback Christian Benford (91%) exited for a few snaps following an Achilles injury, giving career-long backup Ja’Marcus Ingram eight snaps and his second taste of action this season. Safety Cole Bishop (79%) exited early due to cramping, which gave veteran practice-squad call-up Jordan Poyer (26%) snaps in crunch time. Additionally, linebacker Terrel Bernard (54%) was rolled up on and unable to return to the game with an ankle injury.
The defensive line welcomed back Ed Oliver (79%), who logged one fewer snap than rookie Deone Walker (80%). A surprise before kickoff was veteran DaQuan Jones picking up a calf injury during pregame warmups and being ruled out. That led to some additional snaps for practice-squad call-up Jordan Phillips (23%) who unsurprisingly jumped offsides on a crucial third-down conversion with less than two minutes remaining. Defensive end Greg Rousseau (69%) looks to be nearing full health again, wreaking havoc on defense and blocking a field goal in the second half to shift momentum. Keep in mind that the team will be getting both Larry Ogunjobi and Michael Hoecht back on the defensive line following the Week 7 bye, so the roster shuffling should be interesting to monitor.
While the defensive line looked good at times, particularly Rousseau and Walker, the secondary is to blame for the defensive struggles. It was unable to cover Drake London, who accounted for a whopping 63% of Michael Penix Jr.’s yards. London hauled in 10 receptions for 158 yards and a touchdown, just one week after the Bills allowed Stefon Diggs to essentially do the exact same thing. Every key down for Atlanta resulted in the football being in either London or Bijan Robinson’s hands, and the defense was unable to stop it. This secondary may very well be in the worst state seen during the Sean McDermott era, a shame when Buffalo’s usual AFC foes are off to rough starts this season.
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Bills special teams snap counts (25 snaps)
J.Andreessen LB 23 – 92%
S.Franklin DB 23 – 92%
R.Gilliam FB 20 – 80%
D. Williams LB 18 – 72%
J.Solomon DE 18 – 72%
C.Lewis DB 17 – 68%
J. Hancock DB 14 – 56%
T.Shavers WR 12 – 48%
A.Epenesa DE 12 – 48%
T.Johnson RB 11 – 44%
B. Codrington DB 9 – 36%
J.Ingram DB 8 – 32%
L. Jackson DE 8 – 32%
R.Ferguson LS 8 – 32%
M. Wishnowsky P 8 – 32%
D.Walker DT 7 – 28%
R.Davis RB 7 – 28%
M.Prater K 5 – 20%
J. Phillips DT 5 – 20%
G.Rousseau DE 5 – 20%
C.Benford CB 5 – 20%
J.Hawes TE 5 – 20%
C.Bishop S 4 – 16%
J. Poyer S 4 – 16%
T.Bernard LB 3 – 12%
S.Thompson LB 2 – 8%
A.Anderson T 2 – 8%
R.Van Demark T 2 – 8%
O.Torrence G 2 – 8%
D.Dawkins T 2 – 8%
D.Edwards G 2 – 8%
S.Van Pran-Granger C/G 2 – 8%
