ONCE again the vast majority of the sports talking heads are predicting the Bills will loose this one, but they have done so without the usual sarcasm. This shows the Bills are growing together, players and coaching staff, into a real football team. I know the Bills are facing a hard go of it in Atlanta today, BUT I also know they have as much a chance of beating the Falcons there as any other team in the NFL! Come on Buffalo, make us wanna shout!!!!!
What they're saying: Bills-Falcons game predictions
Buffalo is looking for their first road win of 2017. Find out who the national media are picking in this week's Bills-Falcons matchup.
MDS’s take: The Falcons are 3-0 but they’re a dropped touchdown pass in Chicago and an overturned touchdown pass in Detroit from being 1-2. If this game were in Buffalo I’d take the Bills, but I’ll pick Atlanta to win a close one at home.
MDS’s pick: Falcons 24, Bills 21.
Florio’s take: The Bills have been playing better than expected, and the Falcons could easily be 1-2. But they performed well in their new stadium, and they’re back for their second regular-season game there. The Julio Jones back injury could be a problem, but if he plays this one ends up being not necessarily easy but nevertheless a fourth win.
Florio’s pick: Falcons 27, Bills 17.
The Falcons will be at home, where their offense is a completely different animal. That said, I think the Bills' defense will weather the storm well enough, forcing Atlanta coach Dan Quinn to settle for numerous field goals. This will be a Matt Bryant game. Buffalo's defense has allowed all of two touchdowns in three games. Atlanta's defense must stop LeSean McCoy
so that Bills coach Sean McDermott -- who, having served as Carolina's defensive coordinator from 2011 through '16, is all too familiar with these Falcons -- can't slow this contest down to a run-based, defensive slugfest. The Bills' rush offense is down from 164.4 yards per game in 2016 to 111.3 this season, while the yards-per-rush mark has sagged from 5.3 to 3.4. They've only rushed for one touchdown, too. #BUFvsATL. Atlanta 26, Buffalo 17.
The Buffalo Bills are a really solid football team. They don't have any glaring weaknesses, but then again, they don't have any overwhelming strengths either.
Buffalo is headed into a rough environment. The Atlanta Falcons may be the fastest team in football, and playing on the turf at home gives them a huge advantage. Against Atlanta's quick defense, the Bills could have difficulty scoring points.
Now, Buffalo did play an aggressive defense against Denver last week, but the Bills also benefited from multiple Broncos mistakes.
The Falcons, on the other hand, should be able to score. The Bills have a good defense, but they don't have cornerbacks who are well-suited for man coverage. Buffalo has to be able to give at least the occasional man look. Otherwise, Matt Ryan and Julio Jones are going to find holes in the zone and pick it apart. Falcons 31, Bills 27
The Bills could legit be 3-0 right now. But the Falcons are 3-0 and already have one of the best home-field advantages in the sport. ATLANTA FALCONS (3-0) over Buffalo Bills (2-1)
Falcons 30, Bills 17
Falcons 34, Bills 17
Falcons 30, Bills 23
Bills Today: Bills may be Falcons toughest test to date
Here’s the Bills news of note for Sept. 28th.
1 - Bills may be Falcons toughest test to date
The Atlanta Falcons have soared through their first three games this season to be one of two undefeated teams in the league. They haven’t trailed a single second so far this season. But with Buffalo’s convincing 26-16 win over the Denver Broncos some think the Bills can dethrone the Falcons.
The Atlanta Falcons have soared through their first three games this season to be one of two undefeated teams in the league. They haven’t trailed a single second so far this season. But with Buffalo’s convincing 26-16 win over the Denver Broncos some think the Bills can dethrone the Falcons.
SiriusXM NFL Radio discussed the Week Four matchup.
“The 3-0 Atlanta Falcons fully anticipate a tremendous challenge to remain unbeaten when they face the 2-1 Buffalo Bills at home Sunday. It could very well be their toughest game to date, mainly because Falcons coach Dan Quinn anticipates how hard he sees the Bills playing under first-year coach Sean McDermott,” SiriusXM NFL Radio’s ‘Movin’ the Chains show.
Falcons head coach, Dan Quinn, is just a third-year coach. He certainly has hit the ground running early in his NFL coaching career. He led the Falcons to an NFC championship last season. Quinn and Bills head coach Sean McDermott have a good relationship. It stretches back to 1994 at William & Mary, where Quinn was a coach and McDermott was a safety for the team.
“I’ve known him forever, all through his time in Philly and Carolina and just for years,” Quinn told show hosts Jim Miller and Pat Kirwan. “I was so impressed by how hard the defense that he was associated with played… and now you’re really getting to see that transfer into the whole team. And you feel that type of energy from their team all the way through.”
The Bills may be the toughest test thus far for the Falcons, but it will certainly be the toughest test so far for Buffalo as well.
2 - McCoy willing to be decoy if that means winning
A strong running game is what the Buffalo Bills have prided themselves on over the past few seasons. The main source of that success has been running backLeSean McCoy .
A strong running game is what the Buffalo Bills have prided themselves on over the past few seasons. The main source of that success has been running back
The past two weeks have been a struggle for McCoy. He only tallied a total of 30 yards rushing in the games against Carolina and Denver. The numbers are meaningless to McCoy, as long as the Bills keep winning.
“At the end of the day I’ll do whatever it takes for success. I’m willing to be the decoy on offense if that means the team gets a win,” McCoy said.
Though Shady hasn’t found his groove on the ground, he’s been a factor in the passing game. McCoy was the team’s leading receiving in the Carolina game. Last week against Denver he backed it up with seven receptions for 48 yards. McCoy and Tyrod Taylor have found ways to keep the ball moving when the ground game isn’t there.
“We won the game and that’s important… shows the types of players we have on the offense. Tyrod really exploded and took over the game,” McCoy said.
3 - Taylor in elite company early into the season
When you’re just behind Tom Brady and Drew Brees, and ahead of Matthew Stafford, you know you’re doing something right.
When you’re just behind Tom Brady and Drew Brees, and ahead of Matthew Stafford, you know you’re doing something right.
According to Pro Football Focus, Tyrod Taylor is the third highest graded quarterback through three weeks. The top four quarterbacks are: Brady (88.8), Brees (88.7), Taylor (85.4), and Stafford (82.4)
Taylor has been a relatively conservative quarterback in his three years in Buffalo. It’s working, because he’s only turned the ball over once this season.
“Taking care of the football is definitely a big factor in this league. If you look across the league, week to week, takeaways are something big that determines the game,” Taylor said.
He gets what it takes to be a successful quarterback in the NFL. One of the keys is not putting the offense in situations they can’t handle.
“Our big thing is third down conversions. It starts with first and second down for us. We keep it to manageable situations,” Taylor said.
The offense really took a step in the right direction against the Denver Broncos as almost half of their 16 third down opportunities required six yards or less for a first down.
“We’re continuing to grow as an offense,” said Taylor. “We’re going to continue to do that.”
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