The Buffalo Bills are looking to stay in the win column in Week 9 as they travel to Minnesota to take on the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium.
The Bills (6-1) have won their last three and are trying to keep the momentum going on Monday night. How can Buffalo get the upper hand against the Vikings (6-1) and their stingy defense?
Here are Bills Wire's three keys to victory in Week 9:
Have a plan for the blitz
Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores has been known for his blitzing defenses in his time in the NFL, and this year is no different. The Vikings currently lead the NFL in blitz rate at 75.3%, which is 30% more than the second-most blitz-happy team. They're aggressive and they affect opposing offenses by attacking their QB and forcing them into quick decisions.
This style of play has led the Vikings defense to some impressive rankings through eight weeks. They are first in the NFL in points allowed per game (13.3), first in passing yards allowed (154.9), second in total yards per game (271.6), second in sacks (25), and second in turnovers forced (7).
Head coach Joe Brady and QB Josh Allen will have to be prepared to deal with the blitz at a high rate, making sure protections are in place and having outlets to get the football out quickly.
Establish ground game
While the Vikings are an attacking defense that takes advantage of teams' mistakes in the passing game, their rushing defense is just middle-of-the-pack. They rank 17th in rush yards allowed at 116.7 yards per game. In last week's NFC North matchup with the Detroit Lions, the Vikings allowed running back Jahmyr Gibbs to rush for 153 yards and a score on 23 carries.
The Vikings also allowed Jonathan Taylor to rush for 95 yards a couple weeks ago, and Ollie Gordon gashed them for 100 yards in Week 4. There should be opportunities for James Cook and the running attack to help control the game for the Bills.
Cook has had three consecutive games of over 20 carries, and has seen that total of carries in five of seven games this year. Brady should once again feed his feature back to take some heat off Allen in this road game against a challenging defense.
Repeat performance in secondary
Coming off their bye week, the Bills made some serious changes on defense in Week 8, specifically in the secondary. Being without starting safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson due to suspension, the team rolled out veteran safety Damar Hamlin, and also had safety Geno Stone working in. Combine that with Te'Cory Couch starting at nickel for the injured Dee Alford. The three guys stepping in did their job, communicated, and were mostly always in the right spot. The play of these guys made the Bills confident enough to release Gardner-Johnson. Now, the Bills will try and keep things rolling with the shakeup in the secondary.
Defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard made the change to moving up to the box instead of the sideline to call his defense last week, and that seemed to help. The Bills also designated DB Jordan Hancock to return from IR, so he may get mixed in shortly. The Bills defense continues to learn and make changes on the fly in year one under Leonhard and his 3-4 defense.
This article originally appeared on Bills Wire: 3 keys to a Bills win at the Vikings in Week 9
