The Buffalo Bills soundly defeated the Carolina Panthers 40-9 on Sunday afternoon. This was a much-needed win for the team, as it had dropped back-to-back games in Weeks 5 and 6 and fell behind the New
England Patriots in the AFC East division race.
Head coach Sean McDermott now sports a 9-0 record when coming off a bye. Additionally, quarterback Josh Allen continues to break records, as he surpassed Cam Newton for the most games with one or more passing touchdowns and one or more rushing touchdowns. It is fitting that Allen happened to break the record while playing in Carolina.
The Week 8 injury report highlighted a few starters sidelined for the Bills, with wide receiver Joshua Palmer, defensive tackle DaQuan Jones, and linebacker Matt Milano all ruled out ahead of kickoff. However, the team finally welcomed both defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi and defensive end Michael Hoecht to the fray, as each had served a six-game suspension for PEDs.
Bills Week 8 offensive snap counts (63 snaps)
O.Torrence G 63 100%
S.Brown T 63 100%
D.Dawkins T 52 83%
D.Edwards G 52 83%
C.McGovern G 52 83%
J.Allen QB 52 83%
K.Coleman WR 46 73%
J.Hawes TE 35 56%
K.Shakir WR 30 48%
E.Moore WR 29 46%
J.Cook RB 28 44%
D.Knox TE 27 43%
R.Gilliam FB 26 41%
T.Shavers WR 25 40%
Ty.Johnson RB 20 32%
C.Samuel WR 19 30%
R.Davis RB 15 24%
D.Kincaid TE 14 22%
A.Anderson T 12 19%
R.Van Demark T 11 17%
S.Van Pran-Granger C/G 11 17%
M.Trubisky QB 11 17%
While the Bills won by 31 points, the offense still left plenty of points on the table. It’s always a good sign to see Allen (83%) sitting on the sidelines late in the fourth quarter while backup Mitch Trubisky (17%) finishes the game. However, something is off with the reigning MVP, and it’s hard to pinpoint what the primary issue is. Is it the lack of separation? Did the coaching staff break Allen and his superhero tendencies? I don’t know, but he completed just 12 passes for 163 yards and a touchdown. It was a clean game, but 116 of his 163 yards came after the catch, and he missed numerous easy throws.
Allen completed 12 passes; however, because he only recorded 19 pass attempts, thanks to dominance from running back James Cook (44%), who posted a career-best game. Who cares about the “everybody eats” mentality when Buffalo can just let James Cook? The 26-year-old totaled 19 carries for a whopping 216 yards and two touchdowns, with 153 coming in the first half. Those 153 yards in a half were the most by a running back since his brother, Dalvin Cook, did it in 2021. Cook’s 216 yards were almost the most by any running back in a single game this season. It’s truly unreal that Cook did all of this while logging just 28 total snaps, too, as both Ty Johnson (32%) and Ray Davis (24%) received extra snaps late in action. Oh yeah, fullbacks matter, especially Reggie Gilliam (41%), who was out there laying the boom all day long for Cook and co.
It was all Khalil Shakir (48%) in the receiving game. He led the Bills in every category: receptions, targets, yards, and touchdowns, turning a four-yard catch into a 54-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Keon Coleman (73%) logged 14 more snaps than Shakir but totaled just three receptions on four targets for 30 yards. Allen’s usual go-to target, Dalton Kincaid (22%), has dealt with an oblique injury but was deemed active for Week 8’s tilt. He seemingly re-aggravated it (or the Bills were being safe due to the blowout) and did not log a single snap in the second half. All in all, it’s rather clear that the Bills have a glaring need for a difference-maker in the receiving game.
Bills Week 8 defensive snap counts (61 snaps)
C.Benford CB 54 89%
C.Bishop S 54 89%
S.Thompson LB 54 89%
D.Williams LB 47 77%
J.Poyer S 45 74%
Ta.Johnson CB 45 74%
T.White CB 41 67%
M.Hoecht DE 40 66%
D.Walker DT 36 59%
G.Rousseau DE 32 52%
L.Ogunjobi DT 29 48%
A.Epenesa DE 28 46%
M.Hairston CB 27 44%
J.Bosa DE 27 44%
J.Phillips DT 23 38%
C.Lewis DB 21 34%
E.Oliver DT 18 30%
J.Andreessen LB 16 26%
J.Hancock DB 16 26%
J.Solomon DE 11 18%
J.Ingram CB 7 11%
Is the classic McDermott defense back, or did it only look good because it was facing a 37-year-old Andy Dalton? I’m unsure, but this defensive performance was a good confidence boost as the team enters Week 9, where it will face quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs.
As I mentioned above, this was the first taste of regular-season action for both Hoecht (66%) and Ogunjobi (48%). Hoecht absolutely showed out in his first game in a Bills uniform, totaling 1.5 sacks, one tackle for loss, and one forced fumble. Overall, the entire defensive line showed up, as they totaled nine QB hits and sacked Dalton seven times. Defensive end A.J. Epenesa (46%) recorded his third career interception right before the end of the first half, and defensive end Greg Rousseau (52%) forced a fumble late in the first quarter.
We can’t always have nice things in Buffalo, however, as defensive tackle Ed Oliver (30%) likely tore his bicep and will likely be sidelined for some time. Big Ed was on fire, too, with one sack and two tackles for loss across just 18 snaps.
Another interesting development on defense was that linebacker Terrel Bernard was declared active but did not record a single snap. Even with Milano also sidelined, the Bills had the linebacker depth to make it work, with Shaq Thompson (89%), Dorian Williams (77%), and Joe Andreessen (26%) all receiving regular run throughout the game.
The Bills’ secondary has been the biggest question mark all season, and it became even more questionable when veteran safety Jordan Poyer (74%) drew the start alongside Cole Bishop (89%). He played solid enough, despite being called for a holding penalty in the first half. It was nice to see rookie defensive back Jordan Hancock (26%) receive some consistent run, and he’s someone I’d like to see starting at safety eventually.
The biggest defensive news is that rookie first-rounder Maxwell Hairston (44%) played in his first career NFL game after spending the first half of the season on Injured Reserve. It’s very promising that the rookie split series with Tre’Davious White (67%), and his speed was very noticeable. I’d like to think that Buffalo wanted to ramp him up for the Chiefs in Week 8, particularly to cover wide receiver Xavier Worthy.
All in all, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Bills address positions on defense via trade. It’s likely that defensive tackle Jordan Phillips (38%) will be signed to the 53-man roster, given that the Bills have just two now (Deone Walker and Ogunjobi) with Oliver’s injury. The safety position is also rough, and Poyer would need to be signed to the 53-man roster, as well. Even the linebacker position feels risky, with both Bernard and Milano injured.
Bills Week 8 special teams snap counts (28 snaps)
R.Gilliam FB 25 89%
S.Franklin DB 20 71%
J.Andreessen LB 20 71%
C.Lewis DB 19 68%
J.Solomon DE 18 64%
J.Hancock DB 16 57%
T.Shavers WR 16 57%
M.Prater K 15 54%
D.Williams LB 14 50%
J.Ingram CB 12 43%
A.Epenesa DE 11 39%
Ty.Johnson RB 10 36%
M.Hoecht DE 10 36%
M.Wishnowsky P 10 36%
R.Ferguson LS 10 36%
D.Walker DT 9 32%
A.Anderson T 9 32%
O.Torrence G 7 25%
D.Dawkins T 7 25%
D.Edwards G 7 25%
R.Van Demark T 7 25%
S.Van Pran-Granger C/G 7 25%
J.Hawes TE 3 11%
K.Shakir WR 3 11%
C.Samuel WR 3 11%
R.Davis RB 3 11%
C.Benford CB 3 11%
C.Bishop S 3 11%
S.Thompson LB 3 11%
G.Rousseau DE 3 11%
J.Poyer S 1 4%
Ta.Johnson CB 1 4%
K.Coleman WR 1 4%
L.Ogunjobi DT 1 4%
M.Hairston CB 1 4%
Defensive back Brandon Codrington was a healthy scratch, leaving kick return duties to the likes of Ty Johnson (36%) and Curtis Samuel (11%). Shakir (11%) returned two punts, with Coleman (4%) returning one and getting blown up in the process.
Buffalo’s special teams still feels lackluster, though. The Bills rank second-to-last in punt return average, and as dependable as Shakir is to not muff a punt, he lacks the true speed that most elite returners possess. Coleman returned some punts in college, but is clearly not the answer there, either.
There is a certain speedy wide receiver playing down in New Orleans who has been rumored to be available via trade that would address both the return issues and lack of separation on offense.
