The Buffalo Bills’ offense finally woke up and helped the team manage to sweep the hapless Miami Dolphins this past Sunday. After not having much of an impact in their road game against the Cleveland Browns, Buffalo’s rookies bounced back in a big way.
More about how each rookie performed against Miami below.
DT Ed Oliver
Oliver saw a minor uptick in snaps from his last game and he quickly rewarded the coaches with his most statistically impactful game of the season. During the Dolphins’ second drive of the game, a late blitz by Tremaine Edmunds confused the blocking scheme and ensured that the rookie went untouched in sacking Ryan Fitzpatrick. His biggest play of the day, though, might have been his tackle of DeVante Parker on a crossing pattern. The receiver was set to break through to the open field, except Oliver managed to hustle downfield and jump on Parker from behind, limiting the play to only nine yards.
OT Cody Ford
A largely uneventful game for the rookie, who held his own against the Dolphins’ Avery Moss for much of the day. When on the field, Ford was rarely asked to be the focal point of runs and a significant number of called quick passes ensured that he wasn’t left on an island for very long. His only real mistake was drawing a holding call in the fourth quarter, as Ford was unable to sustain his down block. On the other hand, you could argue Dawson Knox didn’t help Ford double-team his defender long enough.
RB Devin Singletary
It looks like offensive coordinator Brian Daboll saw the light and decided to revolve the running game around Singletary. That meant plenty of runs to the outside for the rookie, who finished the day with 15 carries for 75 yards. He was also open on a couple of wheel routes but Josh Allen wasn’t able to deliver the ball accurately enough. One negative to note, however, is the rookie’s ball security. He ended up fumbling twice in the game, both of which were recovered by the offense. Here’s hoping it doesn’t become a trend.
TE Dawson Knox
It was a typical day for Knox, who came down with a couple catches for 32 yards. Most of that yardage came on his 23-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter. The linebacker assigned to cover Knox was blitzing and, as the safety was late covering, Knox was able to snag a quick pass and virtually walk into the end zone.
LB Vosean Joseph
The former fifth-round linebacker remains on injured reserve following shoulder surgery.
S Jaquan Johnson
Johnson was active against Miami, but only for his role on special teams.
TE Tommy Sweeney
With the return of Tyler Kroft, Sweeney was again a healthy scratch this week against the Dolphins.
DE Darryl Johnson
Johnson saw a significant amount of snaps on special teams, but only four snaps on defense, where he accumulated a single tackle.