Riding a seven game win streak, the Bills traveled across the country to take on the LA Rams. In a game that featured very little defense, the heroics of Josh Allen were not enough to carry the team to victory.
Early Signs of a Shootout
LA’s opening possession saw Matthew Stafford and Kyren Williams march down the field on a 12 play, 70 yard drive. Williams found the endzone from three yards out to open the scoring, totaling 27 yards on seven carries. Puka Nacua was also involved early and often, catching two passes for 29 yards, and adding two carries for 14 yards.
Buffalo kept their opening drive alive after Allen drew a roughing the passer call on third down. Completions to Khalil Shakir and Mack Hollins for 16 yards each moved Buffalo into the redzone. Following a successful screen pass to Ty Johnson that the running back turned into a 14 yard gain, Allen’s QB sneak up the middle resulted in a one yard rushing touchdown.
Stafford continued relying on his receivers, connecting with a wide-open Cooper Kupp for a 24 yard gain. Backup running back Blake Corum totaled 24 yards off of three straight carries. The Bills defense was able to shut down the ground game and force the Rams to settle for a field goal. Joshua Karty was good from 22 yards out to give the Rams a three point lead.
Special Teams Disaster
Allen connected with Amari Cooper for an 18 yard gain to open the next drive, but three straight incomplete passes resulted in a punt. Sam Martin’s kick was blocked from a rush up the middle, with the Rams scooping up the loose ball and running into the endzone for a special teams touchdown.
Buffalo’s offense responded quickly, with first down completions to Hollins and Cooper. The Bills executed another successful screen pass, with Johnson following great blocks downfield to take the short pass 41 yards to the house. Connor McGovern, David Edwards, Mack Hollins, and Zach Davidson all gave Johnson a clear path to the endzone, bringing the Bills back within three points.
Nacua Nightmare
The Rams offense picked up where they left off, with Nacua catching four passes for 46 yards, carving up Buffalo’s secondary with great route running and a ridiculous catch along the sideline. A 10 yard run from Williams up the middle set up 1st and Goal, with Nacua eventually rushing for a four yard touchdown to extend LA’s lead.
The Bills punted on 4th and 2 from their own 41, after Allen couldn’t connect with Shakir on third down. The Rams ran out the clock to reach halftime, despite having 50 seconds and three timeouts to work with. Buffalo failed to capitalize on the opportunity to start with the ball in the second half, going three-and-out after another incompletion intended for Shakir on third down.
Stafford found Nacua on 3rd and 10 for a gain of 13 to move the chains early, and the two connected again on 3rd and 6 for a gain of seven. Kupp beat Rasul Douglas one-on-one downfield for a 37 yard completion, leading to a seven yard touchdown run from Williams.
Too Late for a Comeback
Buffalo’s offense kept the team alive in the second half, despite trailing by 17 points. Following a beautiful 26 yard completion down the sideline to Cooper, a false start and facemask penalty moved the Bills back to 1st and 30. Regaining most of the lost yardage, Allen was finally able to connect with Shakir on 3rd and 8, with the receiver accelerating past several Rams defenders and breaking multiple tackles as he ran into the endzone for a 51 yard score.
21 yard completions to Tutu Atwell and Nacua set up a Stafford seam-beater throw to Kupp for a touchdown. Kupp trapped the ball in between his arm and knee to secure the catch, despite the strong positioning of Douglas to make a play on the football.
Allen scrambled for 20 yards and picked up a 15 yard horse collar penalty at the end of the play to quickly move Buffalo to midfield. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Allen dropped a dime in between three Rams defenders to Shakir for a 34 yard completion, setting up 1st and Goal. Allen picked up his second rushing touchdown of the afternoon on another QB sneak.
Buffalo’s defense finally produced a stop, forcing a three-and-out after tackling Kupp two yards shy of the first down marker. Pinned inside their own 10 yard line, Allen led a 10 play, 91 yard scoring drive to cut the lead down to three points. A 30 yard scramble from the QB moved the Bills to midfield, and a back-shoulder throw connected with Hollins for a 21 yard touchdown score.
Questionable Late-Game Decisions
The Bills stopped LA on 3rd and 7 from Buffalo’s 37 yard line, but also drew a holding penalty on the play. Instead of forcing the Rams to settle for a 54 yard field goal attempt or go for it on 4th and 7, Sean McDermott elected to accept the penalty, bringing up 3rd and 16 out of field goal range. Quinton Jefferson almost got to Stafford in time, but the QB was able to find Colby Parkinson on a checkdown, which the tight end was able to turn into an 11 yard gain. Now facing 4th and 5, the Rams opted to go for it, with Stafford completing his pass over the middle to Atwell for a gain of 11 yards. Three plays later, Nacua took a screen pass 19 yards to the house, giving the Rams a 10 point lead once again. While the officials missed a false start and a holding call on the drive, you can’t rely on flags in order to stop an offense.
Hindsight is always 20/20, but that doesn’t mean McDermott’s decision to accept the penalty shouldn’t be questioned. I understand the thought process of wanting to knock LA out of field goal range entirely, but a 54 yarder is no gimme either. Karty is 3/4 on kicks from 50+ this season, missing from 57 but making his kicks from 52, 53, and 55. So a 54 yarder would’ve been right on the edge of his range, and I think it would’ve been worth it to test him. Worst case scenario, he drills it, but then it’s still a one possession game. Not to mention, accepting the penalty gave the Rams an additional play to run time off the clock, with about 47 seconds in between the snap on 3rd and 16 and 4th and 5. The other factor is, McVay might’ve decided to go for it on fourth down regardless of the distance, but that’s an answer we’ll never get.
The Bills drew a pass interference penalty on 4th and 15 to keep the drive alive. Following a nine yard Allen run, another pass interference penalty in the endzone set up 1st and Goal from the one yard line. A non-traditional QB sneak without a tush push from behind was stuffed on first down, leading McDermott to use one of his three timeouts. On 2nd and Goal, the Bills ran their usual ‘tush push’ QB sneak that got Allen into the endzone for his third rushing touchdown.
Not only was the play call questionable on first down, but I disagree with McDermott’s decision to use one of his three timeouts. I think Buffalo would’ve been much better off calling pass plays until they score, running the ‘tush push’ on first down, or at the very least, quickly spiking the ball or redoing the QB sneak instead of burning a timeout.
The Bills failed to recover the onside kick, prevented LA from gaining a first down, but didn’t get another chance on offense, with the Rams taking enough time off the clock to sail their punt out of bounds and end the game. To make matters worse, Buffalo only had nine players on the field for the punt, in a situation where you basically had to block the punt in order to stay alive.
Afterthoughts
The offense looked electric, with Buffalo taking advantage of the deep-passing game for the first time under Offensive Coordinator Joe Brady. James Cook tallied just six carries, which is what happens when you’re down multiple scores. Sometimes, the best run defense is a two possession lead. Unfortunately, the Bills were on the wrong end of my defensive mantra, relying on Allen’s arm and improvisation to move the ball downfield (and it worked!).
Defensively, the team was desperate for a play, but no one could step up. The defensive line was nonexistent, unable to generate pressure on Stafford or plug up rushing lanes for Williams and Corum. While the secondary got torched all game by Nacua and Kupp, there were several plays where Buffalo’s DBs were in perfect position, but it didn’t matter. Kupp and Nacua are arguably the best wide receiver duo in the league, and they showed why on Sunday. Nacua caught 12 balls for 162 yards and a score, while Kupp added five receptions for 92 yards and a touchdown. Simply put, the Bills had no answers. Anytime adjustments were made to defend LA, Sean McVay had a new trick up his sleeve to get his stars involved. Nacua had five carries, only one less than Cook!
Special teams was also a disaster, giving up a touchdown on a blocked punt, and not having enough players on the field for the last play of the game.
Once again, a ridiculous Josh Allen game ends in defeat, and once again, much of Bills Mafia is left questioning the late-game coaching decisions. I think Coach McDermott has done a tremendous job this year, especially given the expectations by many as a ‘reset year’. Still, there are games like this every season that leave me wondering if he has what it takes to coach us to a Super Bowl victory.
Game Awards
Offensive Player of the Game: Khalil Shakir
Shakir is exceptional at gaining yards after the catch. He excels at contact balance and breaking tackles, yet is somehow also extremely shifty to create separation and make defenders miss easily. Add that to his reliable hands, and you have a complete receiver. He finished the game with five catches for 105 yards and a score, including an amazing 51 yard touchdown.
Defensive Player of the Game: N/A
No turnovers, no sacks, 44 points surrendered.
MVP: Josh Allen
This will go down as one of the best Allen performances of his career, finishing with six (SIX!) total touchdowns. He threw for 342 yards and ran for an additional 82 on 10 carries. He is the first QB in NFL history with three passing and three rushing touchdowns, further cementing his status as the greatest dual-threat QB of all time.
What’s Next: Bills @ Lions 12/15
Unfortunately, things don’t get easier for the Bills next week, as they take on the 12–1 Detroit Lions at Ford Field. Detroit leads the league in points per game and is top five in passing and rushing yards per game. Buffalo’s defense will need to take a dramatic step up if the Bills want to stay in contention for the #1 seed with a victory next Sunday.
Editor’s babble: Colin doesn’t sugar coat the issues the Bills had in this game. We are grateful for Colin’s contributions to our blog. You can also find Colin on Xwitter @whatthef00tball.
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