I’m working on a few hours of sleep, and I’m actually surprised I was able to fall asleep in the wee hours of Tuesday morning given the mixture of cortisol and adrenaline that were coursing through my veins after the Buffalo Bills 37-34 win over the Rams on Monday Night Football in Week 5.
This game had nine lead changes, six-consecutive touchdown drives to end regulation, and was capped with the first overtime victory over Josh Allen’s NFL career to date.
Josh Allen reminded everyone who the NFL’s best player is
On April 21, 2026, I sent the following tweet,
because I realized despite feeling this way for years, I had never actually put it on the Twitter/X record. And nothing is official until that happens right?
As you can see, that tweet went decently viral… plenty of Bills fans liked it, agreed, etc. Plenty of Ravens/Chiefs fans felt differently.
A few months later, I wrote my rationale here at Rumblings.
And I’m not a victory lap person. I know how much of a rollercoaster the NFL season is. Keenly aware.
BUT MY LORD JOSH ALLEN SURE AS HELL VALIDATED THAT TWEET LAST NIGHT.
OK, that is all. Onto the next point.
Jim Leonhard’s defense is currently not Jim Leonhard’s defense
I’m not going to pretend I know/understand all the calls and concepts in Leonhard’s defensive scheme. But as an avid college football fan, I vividly remember those Wisconsin defenses. They blitzed from everywhere. You just never knew from where. Their secondaries were outstanding despite lacking five-star recruits.
They lived in man. They dropped defensive tackles into underneath throwing lanes. Confused the hell out of quarterbacks.
And I think these two tweets that resurfaced last night from Anthony Prohaska of Cover 1 that were sent in the offseason tell essentially the whole story right now on the defensive side of the ball for the Bills:
Couldn’t have written it better myself, Anthony. Whether it’s because Leonhard doesn’t trust his secondary loaded with youth and newcomers to Buffalo, or they’re simply still learning all of the intricacies of it, the Bills secondary is a major problem entering Week 6. No question about it.
I do happen to think the more reps this secondary gets together, the better it’ll become. And the more they’ll understand what Leonhard is asking of them. I’m also of the belief more youngsters should see the field in the back seven — like Kaleb Elarms-Orr and Jalon Kilgore.
And for as much as I initially want to write that Leonhard might be meddling/micro-managing too much… again, Buffalo’s defense, in its current state schematically, does not resemble the Wisconsin defenses he coordinated with great aplomb and perennial success.
Joe Brady is learning too…
I didn’t hate the Bills wasting time for the end of the first half before trying to move the ball. I did not like the timeout after they let the clock bleed inside 40 seconds.
If you’re going to take that route — milk the clock so you’re legitimately with the ball last before halftime — you can’t then stop the clock yourself because you can’t get into the right play.
Unequivocally a mistake. Brady owned it postgame.
And, yes, the Bills probably should’ve tush pushed Allen twice to get the clock inside two minutes in overtime.
But you know what? Even if that was technically the smarter thing to do, and I’m all for staying true to the best decision at all times, the tush push plan to “waste time” in case of a miss would’ve been focusing too much on the worst-case scenario occurring and attempting not to lose. And I’m glad, for a change, the Bills coach was concerned with one thing… winning.
…but his game plan was masterful
The Bills were down their two best outside separators at receiver for this game. That cannot be overstated in its importance. We’ve seen many offenses, even early in 2026, completely crumble with their No. 1 wideout.
So the Bills pounded the rock. Utilized two perfectly executed running back screens. Called an exquisite — and legal — pick play on the Keon Coleman touchdown. Schemed open a two-point conversion! And let Allen be Allen as a runner.
Now, of course, Brady didn’t necessarily plan for Allen to run it 10 times for 121 yards. But Brady understood those man beaters were going to draw defenders out of the intermediate level of the field to give his quarterback ample room to morph into an indomitable moose with And 1 mixtape agility in space.
The Bills (passing) offense went into this game with one hand tied behind its back, and Brady’s game plan helped Buffalo escape with a win. And he very much understands that if the Bills are to go to where they intend to this season, James Cook will be an integral facet of this team. Brady going right back to the elite runner after his overtime fumble will go a long way with Cook himself and the rest of this Bills team.
The Bills are 4-1
That’s a takeaway? Yes it is. Caught up in all the defensive turmoil and Cook fumbles, I think it’s an incredibly obvious yet important reminder.
