TSN

‘Among the qualities of good football teams is being able to win games when they are not at their best. That was the Buffalo Bills on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins.’

‘True as that may be with the Bills and their “everyone eats” mantra, Allen’s words were immediately taken as a shot at Diggs, who served as the Bills No. 1 target during his four years in Buffalo, getting more than 29 per cent of Allen’s throws last season.’

‘There’s a long way to go this National Football League season, and there will undoubtedly be bumps and dips along the way. That’s the nature of the sport. But in terms of answering early questions, the Bills have ticked a lot of boxes over the course of their 2-0 start.’

‘But while the past few seasons have featured a Bills team with all the pieces apparently in place, this one comes with questions that could either derail the Bills’ hopes or extend their Super Bowl window into this season and beyond.’

‘The fact that the Bills started six players this season who were either rookies or second-year players will help, but there are going to be a lot of Bills walking to free agency this off-season, or being sent there against their wishes, purely because of economics.’

‘But football is often a game of attrition and Monday night was a great example of this.’

‘There were no apps, or internet to check the weather. And for whatever reason, none of us watched the forecast on the Buffalo television stations that beamed across the border to Toronto. We were going south, so weather shouldn’t be an issue.’

‘In what’s become a bit of a pattern for the Bills, the offence — the passing game in particular – did just enough to complement a defensive performance that set the tone for Buffalo.’

‘Well, these might not be the new Buffalo Bills, but they are certainly a team capable of winning games in ways we haven’t seen previously. They did that a week ago in Kansas City by grinding-out a 20-17 win on the road against the Chiefs. Then on Sunday against Dallas, Buffalo took that a step further, riding running back James Cook for 179 yards on the ground and 42 more through the air in a dominating 31-10 win over the Cowboys at Orchard Park, New York.’

‘The notion that Allen is no longer in the elite tier of NFL quarterbacks? Ridiculous, after arguably the best performance of his career. Thoughts that head coach Sean McDermott taking over the defensive play-calling was the sign of a desperate head coach trying to save his job? Well, you can trash that one as well.’

‘Ray’s signing in Buffalo came as a bit of a surprise to many because it’s unusual for players at his age and with his injury history to land opportunities in the NFL. Though Ray was effective while on the field with Toronto, he missed large chunks of both his CFL seasons due to injuries.’

‘The Bills were soundly beaten for the first time this season, from the opening kickoff to the final gun, with barely any sense they were ever a threat to win this game.’

‘There were some familiar themes that creeped in for Buffalo over that final 25 minutes. Struggling to convert red zone drives in to touchdowns, questionable decisions by the coaching staff and an inability to close out games in the fourth quarter have been among the biggest concerns for the Bills this season. Those issues showed up once again versus New England.’

‘Let’s take a look at past seasons where everything fell apart for the Bills.’