Happy Victory Monday! The Buffalo Bills defeated the Cleveland Browns, 23-20, on Sunday afternoon to increase their record to 11-4. It wasn’t pretty, but good teams find ways to win, and Buffalo finds itself with its sixth-consecutive 11-game win season.
Entering Week 16, Buffalo had to scramble to find a replacement kicker for Matt Prater, who suffered a quad injury that forced him to the sideline, with Michael Badgley receiving the spot start. Linebacker Terrel Bernard returned after a four-game
absence, as well as wide receiver Mecole Hardman Jr. after a short stint on Injured Reserve. To make room for Hardman, wide receiver Keon Coleman was the odd man out yet again.
See the full inactives list here: Buffalo Bills Week 16 inactives at the Cleveland Browns
Bills Week 16 offensive snap counts (50 snaps)
D.Dawkins T 50 100%
D.Edwards G 50 100%
O.Torrence G 50 100%
C.McGovern G 50 100%
J.Allen QB 50 100%
S.Brown T 48 96%
J.Palmer WR 35 70%
D.Knox TE 34 68%
J.Hawes TE 32 64%
T.Shavers WR 29 58%
J.Cook RB 28 56%
K.Shakir WR 24 48%
D.Kincaid TE 19 38%
Ty.Johnson RB 16 32%
B.Cooks WR 12 24%
R.Gilliam FB 11 22%
R.Davis RB 8 16%
A.Anderson T 2 4%
R.Van Demark T 2 4%
The Bills’ offense logged just 50 snaps, the lowest total since October 2023. Buffalo ranks second in the NFL in time of possession, but Cleveland controlled the ball for most of the game, despite turning the ball over twice. Josh Allen (100%) might not be featured on Myles Garrett’s record-breaking highlight tape, but he also didn’t add to his own. Allen totaled just 147 yards and zero touchdowns, and even scared all of Bills Mafia when he ran to the locker room before halftime with one cleat off to receive x-rays on his foot.
Running back James Cook (56%) carried the offense despite barely logging over 50% of the snaps. Cook carried the ball 16 times for 117 yards and two touchdowns, including a 44-yard house call on Buffalo’s opening possession. Sunday marked Cook’s ninth game in 2025 where he eclipsed 100 rushing yards, and he leads the NFL in yards, with Jonathan Taylor yet to play.
Considering Allen had an abysmal game, his pass-catchers did, too, with wide receiver Khalil Shakir (48%) leading in receptions, yards, and targets. Allen’s usual go-to target, tight end Dalton Kincaid (38%), was targeted just once, and he failed to get his second foot down on the play. Tight end Dawson Knox (68%), who entered Week 16 coming off back-to-back strong outings, hauled in just one of two targets for 10 yards, and his drop was a touchdown.
It is intriguing to see wide receiver Joshua Palmer (70%) presumably back to full health, as he led all pass-catchers in snaps. However, he caught just one pass for two yards. Wide receiver Tyrell Shavers (58%) logged six fewer snaps than Palmer and was quiet on Sunday, too, with just one reception for 21 yards. With Coleman sidelined, one would have expected one of these outside boundary guys to step up and make plays, but that was not the case. Wide receiver Brandin Cooks (24%) is starting to feel like a waste of a roster spot, as he continues to be held off the stat sheet and drops crucial balls.
Bills Week 16 defensive snap counts (66 snaps)
C.Benford CB 65 98%
C.Bishop S 65 98%
M.Milano LB 61 92%
T.Bernard LB 60 91%
J.Poyer S 58 88%
T.White CB 47 71%
G.Rousseau DE 44 67%
Ta.Johnson CB 44 67%
D.Jones DT 40 61%
J.Bosa DE 40 61%
D.Walker DT 35 53%
T.Sanders DT 34 52%
A.Epenesa DE 26 39%
P.Mathis DT 25 38%
A.Jones DE 22 33%
D.Williams LB 22 33%
M.Hairston CB 18 27%
S.Thompson LB 11 17%
C.Lewis DB 9 14%
On the other side of things, the Bills’ defense logged its third-most snaps in a game this season. The first drive was tough to watch, as the defense allowed quarterback Shedeur Sanders and the offense to drive 70 yards in eight plays for an opening-drive possession. But it made Sanders look uncomfortable at times, which was enough to force two interceptions.
Linebacker Terrel Bernard (91%) made his return to the lineup, but he was still noticeably a step slow. I’m sure Buffalo would have liked to ease Bernard back in just a bit, but linebacker Shaq Thompson (17%) picked up an early injury that left him questionable to return. Linebacker Matt Milano (92%) and his recent play cannot go unnoticed, either, and one can only hope his strong play will bleed into the postseason.
With how well cornerback Tre’Davious White (71%) has looked the last few weeks, he’s received the edge in snaps over rookie cornerback Maxwell Hairston (27%). This split feels a bit matchup dependent, though, so I wouldn’t suggest looking too deep into it.
Safety Jordan Poyer (88%) had himself a game in Cleveland, totaling an interception, tackle for a loss, a half-sack, and a team-leading 11 combined tackles. It’s worth noting that the veteran was forced to exit late in the game with what appeared to be an arm/shoulder injury. But the real player of the game was defensive end Greg Rousseau (67%), who terrorized the Browns’ tackles all day long, totaling seven quarterback hits, 2.5 sacks, and two tackles for a loss. It was a career game for Groot, but it falls in line with the “only shows up for a few games a year” narrative that many Bills fans use when discussing him. It may not count on the stat sheet, but defensive end Joey Bosa (61%) continues to wreak havoc and make plays, as his tipped pass led directly to defensive tackle DaQuan Jones’ (61%) first career interception.
Bills Week 16 special teams snap counts (24 snaps)
D.Dawkins T 4 17%
D.Edwards G 4 17%
O.Torrence G 4 17%
J.Hawes TE 5 21%
T.Shavers WR 13 54%
K.Shakir WR 1 4%
Ty.Johnson RB 3 12%
R.Gilliam FB 19 79%
R.Davis RB 10 42%
A.Anderson T 14 58%
R.Van Demark T 4 17%
C.Benford CB 5 21%
C.Bishop S 5 21%
T.Bernard LB 4 17%
J.Poyer S 58 88% 5 21%
G.Rousseau DE 5 21%
D.Jones DT 5 21%
D.Walker DT 9 38%
A.Jones DE 15 62%
D.Williams LB 15 62%
M.Hairston CB 2 8%
S.Thompson LB 1 4%
C.Lewis DB 14 58%
J.Andreessen LB 20 83%
S.Franklin DB 20 83%
J.Solomon DE 15 62%
J.Hancock DB 14 58%
M.Badgley K 9 38%
M.Wishnowsky P 7 29%
R.Ferguson LS 7 29%
S.Van Pran-Granger C/G 4 17%
M.Hardman WR 2 8%
