FanPost

Interesting stats and an obvious reason for the WR overhaul

Over the final six games of the 2018 season, Allen looked noticeably improved compared to his first six games (prior to injuring his elbow). However, even though our eyes said that Allen looked like an NFL quarterback, his stats were still pretty bad:

First 6 games: 64-for-139 (54.0%), 832 yards (5.99 Y/A), 2 TDs, 5 INTs, passer rating = 61.8

Final 6 games: 94-for-181 (51.9%), 1,242 yards (6.86 Y/A), 8 TDs, 7 INTs, passer rating = 72.6

As we often pointed out, Allen was basically a one-man offense on a team devoid of talent on that side of the ball. The (supposed) #1 WR, Kelvin Benjamin, was released with four games to play, as was backup WR Andre Holmes, leaving Zay Jones and Robert Foster -- a WR who had just been recalled from the practice squad with seven games to play -- as the starters. The remaining WRs for the rest of the season were mostly in-season additions, either from other teams, the practice squad, or the street. At the tight end position, Clay was struggling with knee issues and couldn't seem to develop any chemistry with Allen while routinely missing practices, and Croom put up some fairly mundane stats as the backup. The running game, largely featuring McCoy and Ivory, was awful, and they didn't add a whole lot to the passing game either.

In the end, only Foster emerged as a regular contributor to the offense. Just how lopsided was his contribution over his final six games?

Allen to Foster: 22-for-31 (71.0%), 406 yards (13.10 Y/A), 3 TDs, 0 INTs, passer rating = 145.6

Allen to everybody else: 72-for-150 (48.0%), 836 yards (5.57 Y/A), 5 TDs, 7 INTs, passer rating = 57.0

It was fairly obvious that Allen and Foster "clicked", combining for stats that, even at barely more than 5 targets/game, could turn Foster into a rising star this season. The rest of the results confirmed our suspicions -- the offensive roster needed an overhaul.

Jones was the only other player even close to be useful thanks to 5 TDs over that span, but catching only 19 of 43 targets (44.2%) while having two passes intercepted show that he was struggling to get separation and come down cleanly with the ball. Additionally, two passes thrown in Jones' direction were intercepted. Losing KB as the #1 WR didn't help as Jones became the #1 WR by default, and he was unable to get open as easily while facing the #1 CB. It did open up Foster to take advantage of the #2 CB, but the offense can't function effectively with only one useful receiver (who will eventually get double-teamed to shut him down as well), which is why the Bills went out and added John Brown, Cole Beasley, Duke Williams, David Sills V, Nick Easley, Tyler Kroft, and Dawson Knox while letting go of Deonte Thompson, Charles Clay, and Logan Thomas.

Let's take a look at how the two biggest additions to the WR group fared last season in terms of passer ratings:

Flacco to Brown: 33-for-66 (50.0%), 598 yards (9.06 Y/A), 4 TDs, 1 INTs, passer rating = 95.4

Prescott to Beasley: 65-for-87 (74.7%), 672 yards (7.72 Y/A), 3 TDs, 0 INTs, passer rating = 108.0

Obviously, these are two high-quality weapons to add to Allen's arsenal that can help him elevate his game. Combined with Foster, improved pass protection, and, hopefully, some contributions from the backup WRs and the TE position, Allen should be able to distribute the ball to multiple weapons instead of just relying on one.

Just another great fan opinion shared on the pages of BuffaloRumblings.com.