A Few Thoughts about the Chiefs Game, in no particular order

[rusty shackleford]

1 hour ago, Virgil said:

6 - Mistakes - If there's one thing that worries me for the playoffs, is us making the dumb mistakes that we can't come back from.  The defense had two horrible tackles on Juju that allowed him to look like a real receiver again and break 100 yards.  I want to say Juju had almost 75 YAC thanks to poor tackling.  You could argue that those plays made the game closer than it should've been.  Same on the McK pitch play.  I'm not going to fully blame McK, but he really needed to be more ready if that was the call.  Josh also needed to look and realize McK wasn't ready.  In any case, we missed Hyde on those tackles and were able to overcome in the end, but this is now 3 games where dumb mistakes early put us in tough situations late.  If we can clean those up, none of these games are even close.

 

Misc

-Can we please start using Shakir more.  I can't handle anymore McKenzie mistakes.  We aren't using him as a speed decoy anymore, so get the rookie some more reps

When you think about some of those mistakes combined with the injuries we battled with while playing through what was thought to be the toughest part of our schedule, it really is amazing what they have been able to overcome and the results that they achieved in the process. Many really good teams would have struggled to overcome those challenges. It should be really interesting what this team will be able to do after we clean up those mistake, get back to almost fully healthy and get into the softer parts of the schedule.

 

I like McKenzie but I think he is best suited in the role he has been playing the few prior years for us as that speed/gadget guy with occasional plays designed specific to him. McD seems to really keep rookies down the depth chart unless he has no choice (like our early CB situation). I get having to earn the playing time, but it seems like he could be a little less conservative in this area and give Shakir a bigger role. It can't be any more risky than having to rely on McKenzie to be a consistent starter.

[Big Turk]

47 minutes ago, DrDawkinstein said:

 

When you see Pickett put up 300 yards but only 3 points, and Mahomes put up 340 yards and only 20 points... I'd say we're pretty close to bend but dont break. It's will always be the case in the cover-2 shell we run. Teams can move down the field to an extent, if they are happy to take what we give them. But once we get inside the 40-30 yard line, it naturally tightens up.

 

Pickett put up yards in large part to the Bills playing soft much of the game, plus they had no real game tape on him.  He had a good game for a first start.  

 

Bills D is much more like the first 4 games where they held 3 teams to 220 yards or less and the other to under 300 than the last 2

[buffaloboyinATL]

3 hours ago, Virgil said:

Being a Bills fan, I think it can be very difficult at times to find a sustained "happy place" within the season.  There's always another game on the schedule against someone that could ruin your day, a recent loss that gives you doubts about how far the team can go, or just some devastating loss due to a dumb play that lives on national tv for a week.  However, for the first time in a long time, I'm at peace as a fan and don't see that changing until after the bye week.  I'm not foolish enough to believe that Chiefs win has any impact on how we play them again in the playoffs or if we will win it all, but I am able to take comfort in the fact that we can, and SHOULD, expect this team to win every single game they play.  That we have a balanced offense, MVP quarterback, bend but don't break defense, and coaching staff that has what it takes to be the best team in the league.  And for that, I can take comfort in knowing this is going to be a very good team for long time.  We may lose some games, but it's because we found a way to lose, not because we were beaten.

 

1 - Diggs/Dorsey - While I know there are so many other things to talk about, this is something I've wanted since the start of the 2021 season.  After Diggs breakout first season, teams really started to focus on him and he wasn't as explosive or game changing for us.  I always watch players like Kupp or Jefferson and wondered why our OC can't move Diggs around like that, to create mismatches and more opportunities.  Well, this was the game for that.  Considering how the Chiefs have neutralized Diggs in the past, it was even more special to see him put up a 10 catch day and come up big, over and over.  Dorsey had Diggs in motion, the slot, stacked, and just plain everywhere.   And as you see Diggs get fed the ball, you remember more and more how special of a talent he is, because he doesn't drop anything and makes the contested catches look easy.  Add a healthy Davis on the other side of the field, and watch out.

 

2 - Milano - I've never hidden my love for Milano as my favorite player on this defense.  But I don't think I'm being a homer here when I say that he was the best overall player on the defense, and was just as responsible for the game ending pick as Von was.  I'm not trying to take away from Von as he made two HUGE plays that helped steer the Bills to victory, but Milano was playing like a man possessed.  I don't know if he broke into Josh's locker and ate some of his sugar, but Milano was absolutely flying to the ball.  He looked as fast as I've ever seen him.  There were some RB swing passes that Milano tracked from the middle of the field and brought the ball carrier down with almost no gain.  I'm talking 25-40 yards of coverage and did it with authority.  His ability to watch that last defensive play, know when to switch from spy to blitzer was perfect.  He covered the middle lane enough for Pat to hesitate, Von comes up at him, then the moment Pat is distracted by Von, Milano rushes in and helps force the quick throw to TJ.  Milano is having an all-pro season to this point and was another player who really stepped up in a big game.

 

3 - Mahomes - Before the break, I did want to take a moment and really appreciate the talent we got to witness in Patrick out there.  No matter what happens, Josh is the perfect QB for the Bills and I wouldn't change a thing, but Mahomes operates in just a very different way.  Sometimes, I think his swagger is a little arrogant and he can have a punchable face.  But he almost dances with the ball behind the line.  Where Josh is a psychopath wrecking ball, Mahomes is a graceful ballerina (no pun intended).  All of his movements, throws, and overall stature on the field looks effortless and make you think anyone could do it.  The fact that we get one half of the new Brady/Manning era is amazing, and I'm almost appreciative that the other guy is Mahomes.

 

4 - You have the choice
To hear the noise
Or hear the sweet sound
Of your sweet voice
I know I've heard it
I heard it in my sleep

 

5 - Allen - The Bills are backed up against the goal line after one, of many, great punts by the Chiefs.  Someone, I honestly can't remember who, drops a pass and it's 3rd down I think.  The camera zooms in on Josh's face and there's a look on his face that is hard to describe.  He's not panicked.  He's not frustrated.  It's confidence, but determined while also being relaxed.  For me, beyond all the throws, that was when you could see that Josh was in complete control of this game.  You knew that, if we did lose, it wasn't going to be because of Josh.  The moment wasn't too big for him, the situation wasn't too daunting....Josh was going to win this game, it just hadn't happened yet.   Now, with that being said, holy ***** that throw to Knox.  I could watch that play all day.  Sometimes, you see receivers catch the ball with their outstretched hands and think "wow, what a throw, but the receiver equally made adjustments to the pass to make it happen.   On this throw to Knox, I'd love to see the sports science of it, because that was a 1 out of 100 throw to me.  It had the absolute perfect elevation and speed to get just over the outreached fingers of a defender.  But it also has the accuracy to hit Knox just as his toes got to the sideline, around the other defender, and thud into his chest.  I could talk about how perfect the deep balls to Diggs and Davis were, which is so damn refreshing, but this Knox pass was next level.  I remember them showing a stat of him going 0-8 in a row, and then almost like he heard the announcers, proceeded to hit his next 10 (I think?).  Josh is a MVP, make no mistake about it

 

6 - Mistakes - If there's one thing that worries me for the playoffs, is us making the dumb mistakes that we can't come back from.  The defense had two horrible tackles on Juju that allowed him to look like a real receiver again and break 100 yards.  I want to say Juju had almost 75 YAC thanks to poor tackling.  You could argue that those plays made the game closer than it should've been.  Same on the McK pitch play.  I'm not going to fully blame McK, but he really needed to be more ready if that was the call.  Josh also needed to look and realize McK wasn't ready.  In any case, we missed Hyde on those tackles and were able to overcome in the end, but this is now 3 games where dumb mistakes early put us in tough situations late.  If we can clean those up, none of these games are even close.

 

7 - Von - Let's be clear, games against the Chiefs are the reason we paid Von.  With that, I'd say Von is exactly as advertised and was huge in this game.  Von was a massive part in stop the Chiefs in the 4th quarter and seemed to know the exact moment to turn it on.  I was disappointed to not see him get more help from Groot or the rest of the line, but he clearly didn't need it at times.  Additionally, some of Mahomes best plays came when Von wasn't on the field.  The lack of speed rush threat hurt us, even moreso why we need other guys to step up.  Honestly, I wouldn't care if they reduced Von's snaps down to 40% the rest of the year to keep him fresh.  We need this man in the playoffs.

 

8 - Ref - I actually appreciate being able to talk about the refs after a victory because it doesn't come off as much of an excuse.  Holy ***** were these guys terrible.  Granted, it went both ways at times, but the lack of offensive holding calls were insane.  I'm all for letting people play, but wow.  You could see defenders getting tackled, spun around, and jerseys pulled within feet of the quarterback.  The missed tripping call was impossible to comprehend.  There was another obvious facemask penalty that makes you think all the refs blinked at the same time.  The offensive PI against Kelce felt like an apology call for the Bills.  I'm incredibly worried about this trend of no holds being called, as our front 4 being able to get to the quarterback is a massive piece of our overall defense,

 

9 - Motor - When I saw that Moss was a healthy scratch, I figured it was going to be time for the Cook show.  Nope.  What a game for Motor!  I mean, this might be the most usage I've seen out of him and he did an absolute smashing job.  There was only one play where he danced a little too much behind the line and cost himself a first down.  But outside of that, Motor was used often and was incredibly effective.  No turnovers, multiple 7+ yard runs.  He hit the hole hard, fast, and dragged guys with him.  I would argue this was the perfect balance of running in our offense.  The only thing missing was a goal line drive where Motor got to punch one in.  If teams have to start respecting our rushing attack, watch out.

 

10 - McD - Don't tell me this game didn't mean more than others.  The players can say it's just the next game on the schedule all they want, but watching the locker room speech after the game was all I needed to see.  McD was as fired up as I've ever seen him and it was amazing to see.  McD has done a fantastic job this season of leveling expectations, getting his team ready, not forgetting the past, but also not letting it define the future.  Like Allen, we have the perfect coach for this team.  He has the perfect coordinators and built a culture that's unparalleled in the NFL.  This could finally be his year to win Coach of the Year.  

 

Misc

-Can we please start using Shakir more.  I can't handle anymore McKenzie mistakes.  We aren't using him as a speed decoy anymore, so get the rookie some more reps

-Considering how well we shut down Mark Andrews, I wonder if there was a different plan for Kelce as he seemed to be left wide open a little too much.

-If that interception by Elam is a flash of things to come, get ready....

-Congrats to Knox on a moment that I'm sure meant a lot to him

-Is anyone more underappreciated on this team than TJ?  Dude just makes plays in the biggest moment of the biggest games.  

 

Enjoy the bye week everyone!  Go Bills!!!!!

Great write up Virgil. Definitely not a homer when it comes to Milano. He is clearly one of the best defenders in the league. I am absolutely amazed at what a sure tackler he is.  He has made so many clutch, open field tackles so far this season, I have lost count.  

 

As far as Singletary goes, he seemed to be gaining huge chunks at will early in this game. I thought he was going to put up 200 yards, but they stopped feeding him. 

 

Side note: I was at this game and their crowd is definitely loud, but it was funny.  The lady next to my wife, a Chiefs fan, kept trying to shush us when the Chiefs had the ball saying things like "don't distract them, they need to focus" They are apparently not used to visiting fan bases making noise.  We obviously did not make an impact, but our players definitely heard us.  I was 16 rows back, behind the Bills bench, and several times when I was yelling, Jordan Phillips would interact and get the Bills fans fired up.  We had a great time! The Chiefs fans kept trying to use the "13 seconds" taunt the whole game, and afterwards, they kept saying, that's ok, we win in the playoffs when it matters... It was so fun to get that win and watch the smugness fade off of their fans faces.  

 

Edited October 19, 2022 by buffaloboyinATL

[Big Turk]

This...is...amazing...

 

 

[Einstein]

1 hour ago, Virgil said:

2 - Milano - I've never hidden my love for Milano as my favorite player on this defense.  But I don't think I'm being a homer here when I say that he was the best overall player on the defense, and was just as responsible for the game ending pick as Von was.  I'm not trying to take away from Von as he made two HUGE plays that helped steer the Bills to victory, but Milano was playing like a man possessed.  I don't know if he broke into Josh's locker and ate some of his sugar, but Milano was absolutely flying to the ball.  He looked as fast as I've ever seen him.  There were some RB swing passes that Milano tracked from the middle of the field and brought the ball carrier down with almost no gain.  I'm talking 25-40 yards of coverage and did it with authority.  His ability to watch that last defensive play, know when to switch from spy to blitzer was perfect.  He covered the middle lane enough for Pat to hesitate, Von comes up at him, then the moment Pat is distracted by Von, Milano rushes in and helps force the quick throw to TJ.  Milano is having an all-pro season to this point and was another player who really stepped up in a big game.

 

That open field tackle by Milano was incredible.

 

Oddly enough he was one of the lowest graded Bills this week.

[LABILLBACKER]

One of your best Virgil. I do agree a little with Big Turk. If this defense were not held on every other play, they would probably average 5-7 sacks per game. And we're #1 without Tre & Micah.

    Putting Diggs more in motion is brilliant. Milano always has and always will be our best clutch LB.  The way McKenzie played was an abomination. Get Shakir in there and stop dicking around. And as others have said that throw to Knox reminded me exactly of his throw to Diggs in Arizona.  Enjoy this journey fellow brethren. This is going to be a special season. 

Edited October 19, 2022 by LABILLBACKER

[TPS]

1 hour ago, Big Turk said:

 

Allen is like Neo from the Matrix after Morpheus tells him "Don't think you can do it...KNOW you can!" and once Allen started to believe that midway through last season it's been pretty much over for opposing teams on D.

I don't think that was the issue--believing in himself.  I was looking at discussions from the past two years, and the issue many of us described, as I phrased it, "the only person who can stop Josh Allen is Josh Allen".  Once he learned to stop the hero ball and always looking for the big play, and realizing that taking the check-down was okay, he became nearly unstoppable. 

[hemma]

Thanks Virgil.

 

Always good and I always read.

[Fleezoid]

2. Milano - Yes, love that dude. Instincts are incredible and an absolute ball hawk. 

 

3. Mahomes - Miss Piggy absolutely loves him!

 

5. Allen - Yes, the throw to Knox was a ting of beauty! But the other 2 TDs to Davis and Diggs were nearly as impressive.  They went to nearly the same spot on the field, but each one went to spots where only the receiver could get it. The one to Davis was high and slightly outside if I remember correctly, while the one to Diggs was thrown slightly to the inside allowing Diggs to seal off the defender preventing him from making a play on the ball. Just perfect passes. 

Edited October 19, 2022 by Fleezoid

[Special K]

Until the KC game,  the Bills D hadn't given up a TD in 21 straight drives....thats an amazing stat!!!!

 

Only giving up 2 TD drives to KC is also a sign of how great this defense is playing!

 

Now the Bills will be adding an  All-Pro CB in Tre White to the mix....the cherry on top to an already dominant D!!!

[WyoAZBillfan]

Great write up. Thank you for sharing. 
 

Go Bills!

[Beck Water]

1 hour ago, Big Turk said:

This...is...amazing...

 

 

 

LOL at Shady fanning that one guy who's saying the Bills are equal or better: "Hot Take" I assume that means

[Big Turk]

38 minutes ago, Fleezoid said:

2. Milano - Yes, love that dude. Instincts are incredible and an absolute ball hawk. 

 

3. Mahomes - Miss Piggy absolutely loves him!

 

5. Allen - Yes, the throw to Knox was a ting of beauty! But the other 2 TDs to Davis and Diggs were nearly as impressive.  They went to nearly the same spot on the field, but each one went to spots where only the receiver could get it. The one to Davis was high and slightly outside if I remember correctly, while the one to Diggs was thrown slightly to the inside allowing Diggs to seal off the defender preventing him from making a play on the ball. Just perfect passes. 

 

I remember hearing Michael Irvin saying Allen might as well have gone over and handed the ball to Davis and Diggs on those TD throws, they were so perfect.

[buffaloboyinATL]

2 hours ago, Einstein said:

 

That open field tackle by Milano was incredible.

 

Oddly enough he was one of the lowest graded Bills this week.

He was? That has to be a mistake.  He was everywhere on that field, and made several tackles that saved either first downs, or substantially larger gains. Whatever grading system graded him low, must not take those things into consideration.   

[Einstein]

7 minutes ago, buffaloboyinATL said:

He was? That has to be a mistake.  He was everywhere on that field, and made several tackles that saved either first downs, or substantially larger gains. Whatever grading system graded him low, must not take those things into consideration.   

 

Yeah he graded in the 40’s.

 

 

 

 

 

[Coach Tuesday]

Mahomes can do things inside the pocket that Allen does in the open field. The game seems to slow down for him inside the pocket, he is the best (maybe ever) at moving around and resetting (or just throwing off-platform) with rushers in his face.  

[Ralonzo]

4 hours ago, Virgil said:

Someone, I honestly can't remember who, drops a pass and it's 3rd down I think. 

 

 I'm incredibly worried about this trend of no holds being called, as our front 4 being able to get to the quarterback is a massive piece of our overall defense,

 

If someone dropped a pass, it was McKenzie.

 

If someone called a holding penalty, it was Mahomes. Pretty much every other incompletion he's pointing downfield at the magic flag and the replay booth can't find the foul.

Edited October 19, 2022 by Ralonzo

[HappyDays]

6 hours ago, Virgil said:

I could talk about how perfect the deep balls to Diggs and Davis were, which is so damn refreshing

 

Allen has, miraculously, become the best deep thrower in the league. I can't remember the last one he missed. Has it happened this year? It's at a point where as soon as I see the ball come flying out of his hand on an upwards trajectory I'm already out of my chair ready to celebrate. Remember when he couldn't hit a receiver downfield to save his life? Of all the weaknesses he's turned into strengths this might be the most impressive. I don't even know what Allen's weaknesses are right now. Maybe he could be a little better against blitzes?

 

6 hours ago, Virgil said:

Considering how well we shut down Mark Andrews, I wonder if there was a different plan for Kelce as he seemed to be left wide open a little too much.

 

I think our plan against Kelce was more like our plan against Kupp - we'll give your #1 guy his completions but good luck getting the ball to anyone else. The strategy worked. The two Chiefs TDs were because of 3 DBs missing tackles which almost never happens in this defense, and Mahomes making an incredible pinpoint throw despite us having perfect coverage. That 2nd one is the kind of TD you live with against an elite QB. The goal with the Chiefs isn't to stop them, it's to keep them out of the endzone. Conceding some short/intermediate completions to Kelce isn't necessarily a bad thing. It's a lot better than the Raiders stopping him most of the way down the field but giving up 4 TDs.

[Solomon Grundy]

The clip they showed on Get Up of Ed Oliver getting pancaked by Orlando Brown was hilarious!! Even Ed couldn't believe it. He took his helmet off and looked at Brown all while the play was still going😂😂😂

 

 

Edited October 19, 2022 by Solomon Grundy

[billsfan_34]

6 hours ago, Virgil said:

Being a Bills fan, I think it can be very difficult at times to find a sustained "happy place" within the season.  There's always another game on the schedule against someone that could ruin your day, a recent loss that gives you doubts about how far the team can go, or just some devastating loss due to a dumb play that lives on national tv for a week.  However, for the first time in a long time, I'm at peace as a fan and don't see that changing until after the bye week.  I'm not foolish enough to believe that Chiefs win has any impact on how we play them again in the playoffs or if we will win it all, but I am able to take comfort in the fact that we can, and SHOULD, expect this team to win every single game they play.  That we have a balanced offense, MVP quarterback, bend but don't break defense, and coaching staff that has what it takes to be the best team in the league.  And for that, I can take comfort in knowing this is going to be a very good team for long time.  We may lose some games, but it's because we found a way to lose, not because we were beaten.

 

1 - Diggs/Dorsey - While I know there are so many other things to talk about, this is something I've wanted since the start of the 2021 season.  After Diggs breakout first season, teams really started to focus on him and he wasn't as explosive or game changing for us.  I always watch players like Kupp or Jefferson and wondered why our OC can't move Diggs around like that, to create mismatches and more opportunities.  Well, this was the game for that.  Considering how the Chiefs have neutralized Diggs in the past, it was even more special to see him put up a 10 catch day and come up big, over and over.  Dorsey had Diggs in motion, the slot, stacked, and just plain everywhere.   And as you see Diggs get fed the ball, you remember more and more how special of a talent he is, because he doesn't drop anything and makes the contested catches look easy.  Add a healthy Davis on the other side of the field, and watch out.

 

2 - Milano - I've never hidden my love for Milano as my favorite player on this defense.  But I don't think I'm being a homer here when I say that he was the best overall player on the defense, and was just as responsible for the game ending pick as Von was.  I'm not trying to take away from Von as he made two HUGE plays that helped steer the Bills to victory, but Milano was playing like a man possessed.  I don't know if he broke into Josh's locker and ate some of his sugar, but Milano was absolutely flying to the ball.  He looked as fast as I've ever seen him.  There were some RB swing passes that Milano tracked from the middle of the field and brought the ball carrier down with almost no gain.  I'm talking 25-40 yards of coverage and did it with authority.  His ability to watch that last defensive play, know when to switch from spy to blitzer was perfect.  He covered the middle lane enough for Pat to hesitate, Von comes up at him, then the moment Pat is distracted by Von, Milano rushes in and helps force the quick throw to TJ.  Milano is having an all-pro season to this point and was another player who really stepped up in a big game.

 

3 - Mahomes - Before the break, I did want to take a moment and really appreciate the talent we got to witness in Patrick out there.  No matter what happens, Josh is the perfect QB for the Bills and I wouldn't change a thing, but Mahomes operates in just a very different way.  Sometimes, I think his swagger is a little arrogant and he can have a punchable face.  But he almost dances with the ball behind the line.  Where Josh is a psychopath wrecking ball, Mahomes is a graceful ballerina (no pun intended).  All of his movements, throws, and overall stature on the field looks effortless and make you think anyone could do it.  The fact that we get one half of the new Brady/Manning era is amazing, and I'm almost appreciative that the other guy is Mahomes.

 

4 - You have the choice
To hear the noise
Or hear the sweet sound
Of your sweet voice
I know I've heard it
I heard it in my sleep

 

5 - Allen - The Bills are backed up against the goal line after one, of many, great punts by the Chiefs.  Someone, I honestly can't remember who, drops a pass and it's 3rd down I think.  The camera zooms in on Josh's face and there's a look on his face that is hard to describe.  He's not panicked.  He's not frustrated.  It's confidence, but determined while also being relaxed.  For me, beyond all the throws, that was when you could see that Josh was in complete control of this game.  You knew that, if we did lose, it wasn't going to be because of Josh.  The moment wasn't too big for him, the situation wasn't too daunting....Josh was going to win this game, it just hadn't happened yet.   Now, with that being said, holy ***** that throw to Knox.  I could watch that play all day.  Sometimes, you see receivers catch the ball with their outstretched hands and think "wow, what a throw, but the receiver equally made adjustments to the pass to make it happen.   On this throw to Knox, I'd love to see the sports science of it, because that was a 1 out of 100 throw to me.  It had the absolute perfect elevation and speed to get just over the outreached fingers of a defender.  But it also has the accuracy to hit Knox just as his toes got to the sideline, around the other defender, and thud into his chest.  I could talk about how perfect the deep balls to Diggs and Davis were, which is so damn refreshing, but this Knox pass was next level.  I remember them showing a stat of him going 0-8 in a row, and then almost like he heard the announcers, proceeded to hit his next 10 (I think?).  Josh is a MVP, make no mistake about it

 

6 - Mistakes - If there's one thing that worries me for the playoffs, is us making the dumb mistakes that we can't come back from.  The defense had two horrible tackles on Juju that allowed him to look like a real receiver again and break 100 yards.  I want to say Juju had almost 75 YAC thanks to poor tackling.  You could argue that those plays made the game closer than it should've been.  Same on the McK pitch play.  I'm not going to fully blame McK, but he really needed to be more ready if that was the call.  Josh also needed to look and realize McK wasn't ready.  In any case, we missed Hyde on those tackles and were able to overcome in the end, but this is now 3 games where dumb mistakes early put us in tough situations late.  If we can clean those up, none of these games are even close.

 

7 - Von - Let's be clear, games against the Chiefs are the reason we paid Von.  With that, I'd say Von is exactly as advertised and was huge in this game.  Von was a massive part in stop the Chiefs in the 4th quarter and seemed to know the exact moment to turn it on.  I was disappointed to not see him get more help from Groot or the rest of the line, but he clearly didn't need it at times.  Additionally, some of Mahomes best plays came when Von wasn't on the field.  The lack of speed rush threat hurt us, even moreso why we need other guys to step up.  Honestly, I wouldn't care if they reduced Von's snaps down to 40% the rest of the year to keep him fresh.  We need this man in the playoffs.

 

8 - Ref - I actually appreciate being able to talk about the refs after a victory because it doesn't come off as much of an excuse.  Holy ***** were these guys terrible.  Granted, it went both ways at times, but the lack of offensive holding calls were insane.  I'm all for letting people play, but wow.  You could see defenders getting tackled, spun around, and jerseys pulled within feet of the quarterback.  The missed tripping call was impossible to comprehend.  There was another obvious facemask penalty that makes you think all the refs blinked at the same time.  The offensive PI against Kelce felt like an apology call for the Bills.  I'm incredibly worried about this trend of no holds being called, as our front 4 being able to get to the quarterback is a massive piece of our overall defense,

 

9 - Motor - When I saw that Moss was a healthy scratch, I figured it was going to be time for the Cook show.  Nope.  What a game for Motor!  I mean, this might be the most usage I've seen out of him and he did an absolute smashing job.  There was only one play where he danced a little too much behind the line and cost himself a first down.  But outside of that, Motor was used often and was incredibly effective.  No turnovers, multiple 7+ yard runs.  He hit the hole hard, fast, and dragged guys with him.  I would argue this was the perfect balance of running in our offense.  The only thing missing was a goal line drive where Motor got to punch one in.  If teams have to start respecting our rushing attack, watch out.

 

10 - McD - Don't tell me this game didn't mean more than others.  The players can say it's just the next game on the schedule all they want, but watching the locker room speech after the game was all I needed to see.  McD was as fired up as I've ever seen him and it was amazing to see.  McD has done a fantastic job this season of leveling expectations, getting his team ready, not forgetting the past, but also not letting it define the future.  Like Allen, we have the perfect coach for this team.  He has the perfect coordinators and built a culture that's unparalleled in the NFL.  This could finally be his year to win Coach of the Year.  

 

Misc

-Can we please start using Shakir more.  I can't handle anymore McKenzie mistakes.  We aren't using him as a speed decoy anymore, so get the rookie some more reps

-Considering how well we shut down Mark Andrews, I wonder if there was a different plan for Kelce as he seemed to be left wide open a little too much.

-If that interception by Elam is a flash of things to come, get ready....

-Congrats to Knox on a moment that I'm sure meant a lot to him

-Is anyone more underappreciated on this team than TJ?  Dude just makes plays in the biggest moment of the biggest games.  

 

Enjoy the bye week everyone!  Go Bills!!!!!

Thanks Virgil