Niagara Gazette

‘The Bills had some success stopping the run when they brought a safety into the box — the area 3 to 5 yards within the line of scrimmage — in the first half. They held the Titans to 2.6 yards per carry on seven attempts with an extra defender in the box, compared to 7.6 on the seven carries without an extra safety near the line of scrimmage.’

‘“Making key adjustments, knowing our players, as well, and what they do best,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “Usually when you’re giving them what they do best, they’re able to execute and show who they really are.”’

‘It’s hard to envision Levis beating the Bills with his arm, but the Titans do have a quality running game. Half of their two-pronged attack is out, as Tyjae Spears won’t play due to a hamstring injury, but the Titans still have Tony Pollard.’

‘On Sunday, though, Allen faces an enigmatic Tennessee Titans defense that will test his patience more than any other defense the Buffalo Bills have faced this season, despite having played three of the top-five defenses in the NFL over the last four weeks. The Titans don’t force turnovers nor do they hit the quarterback often, but force quarterbacks beat them with short throws, trading field goals for touchdowns.’

‘Bass is in the first year of a four-year, $21 million extension signed April 20, 2023, and his $7.83 million dead cap hit makes releasing him difficult. But after missing a field goal and an extra point against the New York Jets, the Bills appear to be inching closer to making a switch, which is something that franchise hasn’t done in-season since 2001.’

‘“I would still have to kind of go through the week, get a routine,” Cooper said Wednesday. “Still learning the playbook and everything. I just got here … so I don’t really have an expectation right now that I can chalk up to being realistic until I go through the week.”’

‘The 30-year-old Cooper has eclipsed 1,000 yards seven times in 10 NFL seasons since being drafted fourth overall by the Raiders in 2015. Cooper is entering the final year of his contract, which the Browns restructured in the offseason and now the Bills are on the hook for less than $1 million for the remainder of the year.’

‘The Guardian Cap gave Rapp an extra layer of padding on the outside of his helmet, and while it doesn’t give him a free pass to play recklessly, it did allow him to get up from a hit that many players may not have. Rapp made the decision to wear the Guardian Cap during the week, placing him on a short list of NFL players and the first Bills player to wear one during a game.’

‘“If you’re going to hit a guy, hit a guy and let him know we’re here to play some football,” Kincaid told the Gazette after the game. “… I think it’s just contagious, not only for the offense, but for the special teams and the defense. It gets the sideline going, it gets the team going and just sets the tone for the rest of the game.”’

‘That may be true and they snapped a two-game losing streak, but the Bills still didn’t feel like the championship-caliber team everyone saw over the first three weeks of the season. Instead of thumping a turbulent Jets team six days removed from firing their head coach, the Bills squeaked across the finish line.’

‘Allen had the fewest completions (9) of any quarterback with 30 attempts in a game since 1992 last week. He has one touchdown pass in his last two games and is averaging a career-low 189 yards per game.’

‘Since being hired as the Jets’ coach in 2021, no one has given Allen more fits than Robert Saleh. Allen’s passing yards per game drop by 11, his completion percentage by 10 and he’s thrown more interceptions in six games against Saleh’s defense than he has against other AFC East teams in 13 games over the same time period.’

‘Knox went from playing 74% of the snaps in the first seven games to 49.3% in the last five and nothing seems to have changed. He took a pay-cut in the offseason and has gone from being one of quarterback Josh Allen’s favorite targets — he was watching the draft with Allen when Kincaid was selected — to being a non-factor.’

‘“There’s more than the challenges with him of he’s an elite thrower,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “But there’s more challenges to Aaron than just that. It’s the mobility, it’s the mental part of the game, and just have so much respect for his game and what he’s been able to do over the years and how he’s done it. So he’s as good as there is.”’

‘“You just need the right opportunity, the right timing, the right people and all that,” Cine told the Gazette. “I’ve had to be patient ever since I got in the NFL, but I’m not pointing fingers. I’m not boo-hooing, I’m not going to blame anything outside of myself and some unfortunate things that happened very early on. All I can do is take this new journey, take this new clean slate and just not look back.”’