Olean Times Herald

‘No one can fault the Bills for moving on from Taylor after 2018, given how well the Allen pick turned out. But I’ve always thought it was unfair when fans lumped him in with some of the truly poor quarterbacks of the franchise’s 17-year playoff drought. After all, he was the quarterback of the team that ended the drought in 2017. He had a 22-19 record in starts with the Bills and threw 51 touchdowns to 16 interceptions and ran for 14 more scores. Only Allen (93.1) has a higher passer rating than Taylor (92.5) in franchise history (minimum of 250 attempts); of course that statistic favors modern advanced passing games, and favors a risk-averse style of play like Taylor’s.’

‘“It was 100% worth going,” she says of her six-night stay. “Tottenham Hotspur stadium was absolutely incredible, not a bad seat in the house! It was amazing how it truly did feel like a home game even thousands of miles away. I am hoping the Bills get to play in Germany in the next couple of years so we can attend that as well!”’

‘Milano’s absence seemed evident as the Jaguars gashed Buffalo for 474 total yards, with Buffalo unable to stop running back Travis Etienne (136 yards) or Trevor Lawrence’s favorite receiver, Calvin Ridley (122 yards). Buffalo also lost defensive tackle Daquan Jones to a pectoral injury and cornerback Taron Johnson left but returned after a knee injury.’

‘But this year’s London trip finds the Bills in a much different position than the 2015 team that also took on Jacksonville. The Bills are — to borrow an English soccer, erm, football term — top of the table in the AFC East and the conference overall, one of four AFC teams to start 3-1, along with the Dolphins, Ravens and Chiefs.’

‘Allen had his first career perfect passer rating of 158.3, beating his previous best of 146.7 in a 2020 game at Miami. He was virtually mistake-free, while throwing in a few jaw-dropping moments of mobility in the pocket or rocket-armed passing, sometimes on the same play. He finished 21-for-25 for 320 yards and four touchdowns with no turnovers. In the fourth quarter, he put an exclamation point on a perfect day with an 11-yard touchdown run.’

‘At the least, Sunday’s game will determine first place in the AFC East. The Dolphins could take a two-game lead over Buffalo with a win; on the other side, the Bills would leapfrog the ‘Fins with a key win toward postseason tiebreakers. And with the Jets facing another season of Zach Wilson at quarterback and the Patriots’ offense struggling, both teams at 1-2, it’s fair to wonder if the East is already a two-horse race.’

‘Of course no one expects the Bills to repeat Sunday’s defensive performance — holding Washington to three points on a pitiful fourth-quarter field goal — this week against Miami, the same way you wouldn’t expect the Dolphins to push the NFL record for points against this Buffalo defense. But where they fall between those two extremes will be the subject of much speculation and fascination this week.’

‘“First of all, let me give Mr. Milano his flowers. He is a beast. I am a fan of his,” Bieniemy told Washington reporters this week of the Bills’ seventh-year linebacker. “Over the years we’ve played, I can’t speak enough volumes for him because first of all, he probably doesn’t get the respect that he should. He flies all over, he makes a number of tackles throughout the course of the game. On top of that he can cover, and then in that scheme, he’s just a key integral part in what they do.”’

‘While coach Sean McDermott’s defense had some early troubles — allowing a five-play, 75-yard opening touchdown drive — it made the Raiders’ offense look increasingly nonexistent as the game rolled along. Bills linebackers Terrel Bernard and Matt Milano both intercepted Jimmy Garoppolo, and the Raiders’ running game had an even worse day. Josh Jacobs, the NFL’s leading rusher a season ago, finished with minus-2 yards on nine carries.’

‘But give Allen and Buffalo credit for bouncing back: remarkably, the Bills are 7-0 the following week after those games. The week after that Minnesota game last year, Buffalo played the Browns in Detroit due to the November snowstorm. And Allen was solid in that 31-23 win, albeit in a more run-focused offense, only throwing 27 times (18-for-27) for 197 yards and a touchdown for a 100.4 passer rating.’

‘The Bills Mafia Zippo had been available for $44.95 exclusively at Delta Sonic locations in Buffalo and Rochester, but goes on sale Monday at zippo.com, while supplies last.’

‘After an NFL-leading 19 turnovers last season, clearly, an entire offseason’s worth of talk about taking care of the football — not to mention avoiding hits — went out the window. Allen was sacked five times, which you can credit a lot of to an excellent Jets defensive line and a Bills o-line with some new faces and question marks, but he also took some brutal hits on scrambles downfield, particularly when it may have been wise to seek the sideline or slide.’

‘Fan social media accounts seem to relish whenever a cable sports channel panelist picks another team to top the division. Some have gone so far as to predict Buffalo missing the playoffs entirely.’

‘Most NFL games in 2023 will air on CBS, home games for AFC teams, and Fox, home games for NFC teams. Also this season, Thursday Night Football will stream exclusively on Amazon Prime Video, Sunday Night Football will air on NBC and stream on Peacock and Monday Night Football will air on ESPN.’

‘As the title suggests, the book follows the Bills all the way from their founding by Ralph Wilson all the way to the 2022 season, concluding with the traumatic Damar Hamlin game in Cincinnati and the disappointing playoff loss to the Bengals last January. In between is a chronological tracking of the team’s highs and lows and the many coaches and star players that have come through the old War Memorial Stadium to what’s now known as Highmark Stadium.’