Archives for December 7, 2015

'Buffalo’s hero was its ever-improving quarterback Tyrod Taylor, who threw for three touchdowns and ran for another against a Texans defence that had allowed two touchdowns, total, in its four previous games.'

'Reading holes opened by his pulling blockers and bruising fullback Jerome Felton, McCoy rushed for 112 yards on 21 carries. That included a 32-yard burst in the first half. McCoy did most of his damage in the first half with 72 yards on 11 carries that helped the Bills build a 21-13 lead.'

'The touchdown might have been prevented if Demps had stayed inside and accounted for Clay over the middle instead of helping with Mulligan. Or if Simon had gotten a bigger piece of Clay and then run down the field with him.'

'Houston's Brian Hoyer finished 26 of 44 for 293 yards with three touchdowns but was unable to deliver in the clutch. Hoyer threw four consecutive incompletions on the Texans' drive after Clay's touchdown.'

'"He is just getting better every week with leading this team, being a leader," receiver Sammy Watkins said. "He is the guy we are rolling with."'

'Taylor was 11 for 21 passing for 211 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 28 yards and another score as the Bills snapped a two-game losing streak to help their playoff chances.'

'Ground and pound is proving to be the Bills' blueprint for victory. Running backs LeSean McCoy, Mike Gillislee and Boobie Dixon combined with quarterback Tyrod Taylor to gain 187 yards on 36 carries (5.2 average). The Bills are now 6-0 in games when they attempt less than 30 passes – and 0-6 when they throw more than 30 times.'

'McCoy was later cleared by concussion protocol and returned to the sideline. He took himself off the field following a 3-yard rush and had his helmet taken away while being attended to by trainers. He had 83 yards on 14 carries to that point.'

'After a fourth down stop, the Bills kicked a field goal to go ahead 30-21.'

'You know how you offset J.J Watt and the Houston pass rush? You run the ball and the Bills came out with their ground and pound mindset. They topped 100 yards rushing before the first quarter came to an end on a day when someone named Mike Gillislee was pressed into action when LeSean McCoy needed a break.'

'It just feels good to get …. Knowing that we had to pull it out, everybody played well and we played the best we could. In certain areas we could have been better but we did the best we could. It feels good. We know we needed it and it feels good to know that we can really go out there and dig it out when we need to.'

'The Bills QB didn’t have the highest completion percentage (52.3%), but he made big throws all afternoon and once again took care of the football. Taylor averaged over 10 yards per attempt and over 19 yards per completion. He threw for three touchdowns and ran for another. Along the way he set a franchise record for consecutive pass attempts without an interception, previously held by Drew Bledsoe. Taylor made good decisions, knowing when to be aggressive and when to keep things safe. And that 52.3% is a bit deceiving, as well, due to a couple drops by pass catchers. Taylor now has 17 TD passes and only 4 INTs. He has 9 TD and 0 INT in his last six starts.'

'It was a masterful job by Roman to not only free up his big guns on offense, but by doing so methodically and forcing the Texans to make the mistakes that he wanted.'

'There were many Bills heroes on a day when they had their way against a J.J. Watt-led defense that had allowed just 8.8 points per game while winning its previous four games. The Texans yielded just two touchdowns in their 18 quarters before Sunday. The Bills scored three touchdowns against them in the first half alone.'

'I was very discouraged by the play of the defense most of the game but they really shut things down when it counted late in the game without Stephon Gilmore who left with an injury. Most of the season when things started going south they continued that way but not in this game. The Titans had tied it up and it was looking a lot like the Chiefs game a week ago. The Bills dug down deep, shut the Texans offense down late in the game and the Bills made the plays to get the win. They still may not make the playoffs but at least we can dream for another week.'