Archives for October 2, 2017

'“Big shoutout to the Detroit and Buffalo defenses,” said Tony Dungy, the former Indianapolis Colts coach who now serves as an analyst for NBC’s “Football Night in America,” on Twitter. “They keyed huge road wins for their teams today.” (Detroit defeated Minnesota, 14-7, on Sunday.)'

'Player of the game: Safety Micah Hyde. His two interceptions were one of the highlights of another solid defensive effort."

'Zay Jones absolutely has to make the catch on a ball he dropped in the second quarter. A perfect throw from Tyrod Taylor would have put the Bills in Atlanta territory after Buffalo went ahead 7-3, on its previous drive. Instead, Buffalo punted the ball away and the Falcons drove for a touchdown on the ensuing possession. The Bills traded up for Jones to make plays like that.'

'Hughes was too quick around the other edge for left tackle Jake Matthews and hit Ryan's forearm. There was no whistle, and White scooped it up and sprinted, unchased, to the end zone. Hughes gave Matthews problems with speed-rushing much of the game.'

'Running backs Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman were good. They combined for 222 yards on 33 touches. Last week they put up 227 on 33 touches against Detroit. But the foundation of the Atlanta offense is built on Freeman's outside zone rushing. He averaged 5 yards a carry against Detroit. He managed just 3.2 a carry on 18 attempts against the Bills. He never got around the corner. Coleman caught a 39-yard pass with Lorenzo Alexander in coverage. But the Falcons' dynamic duo caught only six passes on the Bills, and that play was the only one for more than 14 yards.'

'Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier was selective but had great timing in blitzing Atlanta's Matt Ryan Sunday.'

'The Bills loved the matchup and went to Clay early and often. The Bills had 182 passing yards and Clay accounted for more than 60 percent.'

'Sean McDermott has his team believing. The Bills are a close-knit bunch, and the coach gets a lot of credit for that. McDermott did lose a challenge in the first half, but at that point with three timeouts, it was probably worth taking a chance since nobody really knows what a catch is. The decision to take a delay of game on fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line could have been heavily criticized had the Falcons won. As it is, it was a strange play. It worked out, though.'

'And this came after two controversial calls went in the Bills' favor: Tre'Davious White's fumble return for a touchdown and Micah Hyde's second interception – both of which, on other days, may have been ruled incomplete passes.'

'Was it a fumble or an incompletion? Jerry Hughes hit Ryan as he threw, but the quarterback's hand appeared to still propel the ball forward while it was in his possession. Yet the play was allowed to continue and was held up on review.'

'Zay drops another one: Taylor threw Zay Jones a catchable pass on third and 7 before the Falcons' touchdown drive, but Jones couldn't hold onto the ball as he went to the ground. He entered the game with three catches on 12 targets this season; Taylor threw him four passes in the first half but they didn't connect on any.'

'Bills punter Colton Schmidt and the special teamers have bailed McDermott out of some uninspiring calls this year, and this was another example. The field-goal attempt would've been long, but they were in a dome with a chance to take the lead on the road, knowing that Steven Hauschka connected from 49, 53 and 55 yards a week ago.'

'“When you are going against a great quarterback like Matt Ryan you have to make him uncomfortable. I thought we did that at times. I thought we could have done more of it. It is never enough against a quarterback like this. Anytime a quarterback like this has the ball in his hand on the last drive it is touch and go. Our guys stood up, it was gut check time and they did a great job.”'

'No one knelt for the home Falcons. Three Miami Dolphins knelt before the game in London against the Saints.'

'Thornton, Wright, Clay, Tolbert and Jones were among the dozen members of the Bills who took a knee last week against Denver. Worthy is making his season debut after missing the first three games of the year. The five players who stood after taking a knee against Denver were Lorenzo Alexander, LeSean McCoy, Jordan Matthews, Ryan Davis and Johnson. Defensive end Shaq Lawson, who knelt last week, is inactive against Atlanta because of an injury.'