Christian Barmore has been the best player in that group but he hasn't been alone. No one has consistently been able to produce on the ground against New England, largely due to the strong play of the front seven. However, the Patriots run defense hasn't sprung many leaks all season and remains one of the best units in all of football. Cook, Latavius Murray, Ty Johnson and recently Leonard Fournette have formed a dynamic backfield that has produced some impressive numbers under Brady, and the entire Bills offense has taken off as a result. Since then James Cook has emerged as a key cog in the attack, which was particularly true in Buffalo's blowout win over Dallas that saw Cook pile up 179 yards on the ground. But it won't be easy on the road against what has been one of the stingiest secondaries in football.īuffalo's ground game has taken off since Joe Brady replaced Ken Dorsey as offensive coordinator five games ago. Parker and Douglas stepped up in Denver and could be the top options this week as well. He's been without DeVante Parker, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Demario Douglas and Hunter Henry at times over the past several weeks so it's been difficult finding a rapport with any of his targets. Zappe will try to offset that by using quick passes and spreading the ball around to whichever healthy receivers he can find. That group can get after the passer, particularly when playing with the lead. That group has been effective taking the ball away and also benefits from an emerging pass rush – led by Leonard Floyd, Ed Oliver, A.J. Douglas joins Taron Johnson, Dane Jackson and Christian Benford along with safeties Jordan Poyer, Micah Hyde and Taylor Rapp. The Bills brought in veteran Rasul Douglas and he has helped solidify the unit. Otherwise, Buffalo's pass defense sits in the top 10 of the league, even after losing star corner Tre'Davious White. Jones is a space eater in the middle and should take some of the heat off undersized middle linebacker Terrel Bernard and make life easier on the Bills front seven.īailey Zappe will get his first opportunity to go against a Bills secondary that has struggled at times playing against the Patriots. That would help offset the loss of Jordan Phillips, who will be on IR for the rest of the regular season. As for the Bills, things could be improving soon as defensive tackle Daquan Jones has returned to practice and is eligible to come off injured reserve. The Patriots injury problems up front haven't helped the cause either. Ezekiel Elliott has run hard between the tackles but hasn't found enough openings to put much pressure on the defense. Even before Rhamondre Stevenson went down with an ankle injury against the Chargers, New England wasn't able to generate much in the running game. The problem for the Patriots is their ground game hasn't been effective much at all this season. But on a per-carry basis the number plummets to just under 4.6 yards per attempt, which ranks near the bottom at 27th. This season Buffalo sits in the middle of the pack in run defense, allowing a shade over 111 yards per game. Injuries along the front seven have impacted the performance, but even at full strength it's not something the Bills have been known for. Buffalo has not been great when it comes to stopping the run.
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