Bills-Ravens Rookie Report: Allen and Edmunds provide hope for the future

The Buffalo Bills got thrashed by the Baltimore Ravens in their first game of the 2018 season on Sunday. If there’s anything positive to take away from the game however, it was the play of the Bills’ two 2018 first rounders. Read about the performance of the Bills’ entire 2018 rookie class below.

QB Josh Allen

Allen came into the game while it was already out of hand and while the stat sheet doesn’t really show it, his performance was more positive than negative. On certain snaps, such as the would-be touchdown to Kelvin Benjamin in the third quarter, the rookie quarterback demonstrated an ability to stay in the pocket, go through his reads and deliver accurate passes. On others, Allen’s internal clock would go off and he would decide to abandon the pocket too early, just as wide receivers were earning separation. His offensive line and his wide receivers didn’t do him many favors. Regardless, Allen peppered in NFL-level throws during his time on the field and gave Bills fans at least some hope.

LB Tremaine Edmunds

After a shaky first quarter, Edmunds found his groove in the second. To start the game, the Ravens offense featured a lot of misdirection runs, weak-side runs and faked sweeps that made the rookie linebacker hesitate and react late. Edmunds, and the defense as a whole, seemed to adjust in the second quarter and started to make some positive plays. On the same series, Edmunds tackled a fleeing Joe Flacco for a sack, broke up a pass intended for the tight end, and then forced a fumble. Like Allen, this was a performance to build off of.

DT Harrison Phillips

Phillips was in a rotation with the rest of the defensive tackles and really failed to make much of an impact with his limited time on the field. While the game was still competitive in the first few quarters, Baltimore tended to avoid him on run downs and the former Stanford Cardinal only had a few opportunities to rush the passer, which were largely ineffective.

CB Tarron Johnson

Johnson was called for pass interference on a Ravens first-quarter drive that eventually resulted in a touchdown. It did not appear to be warranted. While his effort in the run game was noticeable on a few plays in the first and second quarter, Johnson was forced to exit the game halfway through the second quarter with a shoulder injury and did not return.

S Siran Neal

Neal notched the first stat his NFL career, adding one assisted tackle in his debut. He played three defensive snaps.

WR Robert Foster

Thanks to the blowout, Foster saw time on offense, playing 25% of the team’s offensive snaps. He was targeted twice but failed to come down with a reception.

P Corey Bojorquez

The newly-acquired rookie punted 8 times for an average of average of 49 yards, with a long of 58. Those are impressive numbers. Although he fumbled early in the second half, the conditions on the field were likely to blame.

Notes

• G Wyatt Teller and WR Ray-Ray McCloud were inactive.