The Buffalo Bills won their second straight game on Sunday, shellacking the Oakland Raiders by a score of 34-14 to move to 5-2 on the season. Let’s take a look at who contributed to the win.
Offense (69 total plays)
QB Tyrod Taylor - 69
C Eric Wood - 69
G Vlad Ducasse - 69
T Jordan Mills - 69
T Cordy Glenn - 69
G Richie Incognito - 66
WR Zay Jones - 55
TE Nick O’Leary - 54
RB LeSean McCoy - 50
WR Jordan Matthews - 48
FB Patrick DiMarco - 28
WR Deonte Thompson - 23
WR Andre Holmes - 21
TE Logan Thomas - 21
RB Mike Tolbert - 19
G Ryan Groy - 12
TE Khari Lee - 9
WR Brandon Tate - 5
T Dion Dawkins - 3
- Groy played all of one snap with the offense prior to the bye week, but in the last two games he’s seen plenty of action as an eligible lineman and as a sub for Incognito, who is still dealing with an injured ankle (but played in all but three snaps). After matching a two-year offer sheet for Groy in March, the coaching staff is finally getting around to using him.
- After his breakout performance against the Buccaneers, Thompson only registered one catch for five yards despite a similar amount of playing time. He was also dinged on an OPI call in the second quarter.
- After working his way back into the offense last week, Glenn played in all of the team’s snaps on Sunday. It’s no coincidence that the three best rushing days for the Bills this year have come when Glenn was healthy and contributing to the offense. While the glut of offensive tackles in a league deprived of good ones has led to Glenn’s name being mentioned on the trading block in recent days, he’s far too important to the team to shop around.
Defense (65 total plays)
S Micah Hyde - 65
LB Preston Brown - 65
CB Shareece Wright - 64
CB Tre’Davious White - 64
S Trae Elston - 64
CB Leonard Johnson - 59
LB Matt Milano - 52
DT Kyle Williams - 47
DE Jerry Hughes - 42
DT Adolphus Washington - 38
DE Shaq Lawson - 38
LB Lorenzo Alexander - 36
DE Ryan Davis - 28
DT Cedric Thornton - 23
DE Eddie Yarbrough - 15
DT Jerel Worthy - 14
S Shamarko Thomas - 1
- There weren’t necessarily a ton of snaps to go around at defensive tackle after Marcell Dareus was traded to Jacksonville on Friday. The most notable change was that Thornton, Washington, and Worthy were all active for the first time this season, as the three had been rotating as healthy scratches after Worthy recovered from a preseason concussion. Worthy played a season-low 14 snaps (in the three game he’s been active), while Washington hit a season-high with 38. It’ll be something to keep an eye on moving forward.
- With Jordan Poyer missing the game due to injury, Brown is the only defender left who has played in all of the team’s 474 defensive snaps this year. For what it’s worth, Poyer is still fourth on the defense in total snaps this year with 409, behind only Hyde (472) and White (471).
- Alexander was only on the field for a little more than half of the team’s defensive snaps on Sunday, and his 36 plays is the lowest number he’s registered since appearing in only 25 during the opener. It’s possible that the effort was just to keep him fresh on a short week, or it could have been a strategy change to give a bit more playing time to guys like Milano and Johnson, who both set season-highs in snaps on Sunday.
Special Teams Notes
- Although Alexander’s time with the defense was on the short side, he still saw a heavy dose of coverage plays (16). For the oldest player on the team, he sure does stay busy.
- Newly-signed Lafayette Pitts jumped right into the action with 14 special teams plays. He was in the scrum that ended with the Bills recovering a fumble on a punt return in the third quarter. Joe Banyard also jumped back into the fray after re-signing with the Bills after the Dareus trade, seeing 13 plays on special teams.
- The core special teams group has pretty much held steady over the course of the season. If you’re looking for the team’s ace in coverage, rookie Tanner Vallejo is probably the name you want. Deon Lacey and Joe Webb aren’t far behind, with Alexander and Holmes contributing a lot despite fairly prominent roles with the defense and offense, respectively.