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Well, the Buffalo Bills got their butt kicked on Sunday and I'm not sure if there is a better way of putting it. In a 47-3 blowout to the Baltimore Ravens, there aren't many positive outlooks you can have going forward other than hoping they get a premier player in next years draft. Thankfully there was one area that made the future sound exciting.
Highlight: LB Tremaine Edmunds
As a rookie linebacker, the Bills have asked a lot of Edmunds to take charge of the defense. In his first regular-season game, Edmunds displayed why the Bills had drafted him in the first place: his athleticism, open-field tackling, and his ability to go from sideline to sideline. Edmunds ended up with seven tackles, including a sack and a forced fumble. The future looks bright for the Bills’ young linebacker, who played every snap of the game at 20 years old.
Lowlight: Pretty much everyone else
When a team loses by 44 points, its nearly impossible to point out just a few players and single them out as to why the team didn't succeed. To make it simple, Nathan Peterman’s lack of offensive command snowballed to just about every other aspect of the game. I don't want to go into a rant about how Peterman should never play another NFL snap but, my heavens, he shouldn't.
The offensive line as a unit wasn't the worst I’ve seen them, and on a few plays Peterman had a lot of time to make a play from the pocket yet he was off-target. Nonetheless, they couldn't move the ball on the ground either and the running back group didn't have any space to work with.
The receivers helped prove why they are one of, if not the worst corps in the league. More often than not, they failed to get separation. Vontae Davis was a healthy scratch after some struggles in the preseason but I don't think he could've played much worse than Philip Gaines. For the second straight year—even after the addition of Star Lotulelei, Harrison Phillips and Trent Murphy—the Bills have yet to find much of a pass rush outside of Jerry Hughes.
This was a forgetful one for the Bills and, hopefully, everyone who watched them. Still, it can be tough to remain optimistic after witnessing that type of performance.