The Buffalo Bills moved to 8-4 on the season with a 26-7 rebound win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Let's look at the game's positives and negatives
It wasn't always pretty, but the Buffalo Bills did exactly what they needed in their 26-7 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday evening. Backed by a strong day on the ground, the Bills were able to move to 8-4 on the season and keep themselves in the 7th seed in the AFC playoff race.
The win also keeps their chances at a sixth-straight AFC East title, although distant, alive.
It was also a game that saw Josh Allen break yet another record in his, eventual, Hall of Fame career. And though it didn't start strong, Buffalo took hold of the game in the second half, coming out on top in what was a must-win game in the Steel City.
Here are the positives and negatives from Buffalo's Week 13 win.
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Positives
Bills Run Offense: There's a reason the Bills entered the day with the second-best rushing attack in the league. Buffalo's ground game had its way with Pittsburgh's defense from the start. James Cook went for 141 yards on 30 carries while Ray Davis went for 62 on 9 carries. Davis, specifically, had four
In total, Buffalo rushed for 249 yards, which is a stadium record for most rushing yards for a Steelers opponent.
Bills Offensive Line: After a miserable performance against the Texans, the Bills offensive line---who had to do it without starting tackles Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown---more than carried their weight. Not only did they lead the way for the rushing game, but they protected Allen enough to keep him from getting sacked even once.
Bills Defense: Buffalo's defense has been one of the worst in the league, but they looked anything but against the Steelers. Through the first three quarters, the Bills held Pittsburgh to just 90 yards of offense and had two turnovers in the third. Even when Pittsburgh had a drive going, Buffalo stopped them on fourth down to force a turnover.
Joey Bosa: When the Bills needed a play, Bosa stepped up in a big way. On the first play of the third quarter, Bosa had a strip sack of Aaron Rodgers that was returned for a touchdown. From that point on, Buffalo never trailed again. Bosa's forced fumble was his fifth of the season, tying the franchise record for most in a single year.
Christian Benford: You can't talk about the Bills defense without talking about the performance Benford had. Not only did he hold DK Metcalf to just three catches for 32 yards, but he had an interception and fumble return for a touchdown.
Benford is the third player in team history---and first since 2010---to have an interception and fumble return for a touchdown in the same game. His touchdown also happened to be the game-winning score.
Keon Coleman: After missing the last two games due to being a healthy scratch, Coleman made an impact with a touchdown catch on 4th and goal from the two. He finished with two catches for nine yards and the score.
Josh Allen's Hall of Fame Resume: Another game, another day where Allen breaks a record. With his rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, Allen now has the record for most for a QB in NFL regular season history with 76. He's also now at 49 games with at least one passing and one rushing touchdown.
Negatives
Joe Brady Play Calling: Yes, they got the win in pretty dominant fashion, but it wasn't without its problems. Specifically, Brady's play-calling confusion throughout. Almost every first down was met with a run to the right. He also seemed to avoid calling play-action passes after back-to-back successful runs. Those decisions often led to stops that would derail momentum, especially in the first half.
Also, the love of screen passes continued, but it didn't hurt them in the end.
Bills passing game: It wasn't needed to get the win, but the Bills' passing game has continued to struggle. Pittsburgh entered the day giving up the most passing yards per game in the NFL, but managed to hold the Bills to just 123 yards on 23 attempts.
Turnovers: For the fourth game in a row, Buffalo turned the ball over twice. Allen threw another interception on the opening drive and the usually sure-handed Cook dropped the ball in the second quarter. That fumble resulted in Pittsburgh's only points of the game after being gifted a short field. As the season heads down the stretch, these turnovers have to be cleaned up.
Matt Prater: Speaking of cleaning things up, Prater has missed extra points in back-to-back games and is up to three misses on the year. We saw how much a missed extra point meant to a game against Houston. The Bills need the veteran to be more reliable in these moments moving forward. On the positive, he did go 2/2 on field goals.