WGR

‘While it is just a year and three weeks in for Josh Allen, and one game for New York Giants rookie QB Daniel Jones, the two heavily scrutinized signal-callers are showing the conclusions many organizations, draft media, and fans drew were too premature and close-ended for the timing of their careers.’

‘The Bills played maybe the best 30 minutes of defense I’ve seen in my now six seasons as the team’s radio sideline reporter. They were absolutely outstanding from the very first snap until the final play of the half. The Bengals totaled 76 yards in the first two quarters.’

‘Cincinnati wide receiver John Ross is currently second in the NFL with 270 yards receiving. The league’s leading receiver, D.J. Chark of the Jaguars, already played his week three game. So, Ross is the two-week leader. He’s also tied for the NFL lead with three receiving touchdowns and is second with an outstanding 24.55 yards per catch. With the Bengals struggling to run the football so far this year, they’ve been attacking vertically, and often with Ross, who played a total of eleven games his first two years due to injuries. The Bills secondary prides themselves on not allowing the big play. The incredibly fast Ross will be their toughest challenge yet. How they deal with him, and what he’s able to do or not do, could go a long way in determining the outcome of this game.’

‘”Campers have already been pulled in earlier in the week, and I drove out of the parking lot last night and I’m watching people playing cards in a tent in one of the camper sections there. I think that’s the way it should be. It’s a great vibe. People are spending time with people. You see friends coming together, families coming together. People that don’t even know one another getting to know one another and becoming friends. To me, that just really typifies Buffalo.”‘

‘Just one day after his first full practice in a Bills uniform, tight end Tyler Kroft “banged his other ankle,” according to head coach Sean McDermott. Kroft has yet to play for the team after signing as a free agent in March. He broke his foot on the first day of OTAs and has been out ever since. McDermott couldn’t provide an update when he told the media after practice, saying he was about to get more information. Kroft had been on track to make his Bills debut against his former team when they host the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday at New Era Field.’

‘”We started off well, but there’s a lot of areas that we can make improvements on and there’s a lot of football left to be played. If we just take that, and [head coach Sean McDermott] always talks about that growth mindset. That mindset is just continually getting better each and every day, each and every week, and it’s continually getting stronger. It is only September, there’s a lot of football left to be played.”‘

‘Wide receiver/returner Andre Roberts will be limited, which also indicates progress for him. Roberts had not practiced at all over the past two weeks, dealing with a quad injury.’

‘”We like to hang out with each other. Outside of football we laugh, we joke around, we have fun. Make sure our wives are hanging out. That’s what Sean McDermott has brought to Buffalo.”‘

‘That is not how I expected an offense quarterbacked by Josh Allen to get their points. Through these two games Allen has completed 64% of his passes. Yes, there have been some big gains through the air, but mostly, the passing game has been efficient and relatively short. No lightning strike plays to offset the off target passes, mainly because there have been fewer off target throws than there were last season.’

‘Not all ended well for Buffalo, however. The Bills lost running back Devin Singletary and offensive tackle Ty Nsekhe to injuries, both players did not return to the game. Head coach Sean McDermott will have more information on the injured players in the coming days.’

‘When the schedule came out back in April, while Bills fans might not have been happy with two road games to open the season, they both looked very winnable. The Jets and Giants were not great tests. Both teams look like they will end up below .500 but you still have to take care of business and that is exactly what the Bills did. We are now one Bills win away from the dream scenario, a 3-0 start with New England coming to New Era Field in week four.’

‘Allen was dealing in the first half. He was on time and on-target, going 15-for-20, throwing for 203 yards in the first two quarters. He threw a TD and ran for one, as well. His second half didn’t go as well, but with his team up two scores for most of it, he only threw the ball ten times. Allen finished the game 19-for-30 for 253 yards and a touchdown through the air and added another 21 yards and a TD on the ground. He became the first Bills’ QB since Jim Kelly in 1992 to throw for over 200 yards in seven straight games and the first NFL QB since Cam Newton in 2013 to have a rushing and passing TD in three straight games.’

‘”Very impressed, what I found very fascinating was their first 18 plays, through their first three possesions, were called passes. Very interesting game plan and I thought Josh was poised, composed, the game was not too fast for him mentally, I liked the kinds of throws they asked him to make. They were short throws, they were timing throws, the kinds of throws that we always talked about that he had to do better in order to become a consistent quarterback. I thought, for the most part, he was pretty accurate, good ball placement. These were throws that demanded pace and touch and he made these kinds of throws. It was interesting and fun to watch.”‘

‘Giants running back Saquon Barkley might already be the best in the game. He’s fast, strong, and elusive. He finished second in the NFL in rushing yards last year in just his rookie season, with 1,307. He added another 721 receiving for a total of 2,028 yards from scrimmage, the most in the NFL. Last week against the Cowboys, Barkley only touched the ball 17 times, but he totaled 139 yards from scrimmage, including a whopping 10.9 yards per carry, running for 120 on just 11 carries.’

‘Both cornerback Levi Wallace and wide receiver Cole Beasley were out on the field for the media-open portion of practice. Wallace took a fall Thursday in 1-on-1 drills and had to have his ankle looked at by trainers. Beasley missed the entire practice with an illness.’