As I feared, Buffalo looked out of sync coming off their bye week but the Chargers are no pushovers either. Wins come in all shapes and sizes. They don’t come easy. It turns out the game went mostly as I expected. The Bolts didn’t quite cover the 5.5-point spread, but it was still too close for comfort. I’m glad the Bills didn’t get matched up against one of the league’s better teams, but a 27-17 victory over a talented young team with a potent offense is something to be thankful for.
Things looked very promising early, as Buffalo forced a quick 3 & out and scored a TD on their opening possession. A 47-yard pass interference call set the Bills up at the LAC 5-yard line and Josh Allen connected with tight end Dawson Knox for the score two plays later. The Chargers were happy to have Austin Eckler back in the lineup and they answered with a scoring drive of their own where he almost single-handedly sliced up the Bills’ defense to the tune of 46-yards. Keenan Allen caught the TD pass but Michael Badgley missed the extra point.
Both defenses clamped down after that score and the team exchanged punts for the rest of the first quarter. The Bolts’ defense did a nice job getting after Allen and completely taking away Stefon Diggs in the first half. Thankfully Cole Beasley can throw the ball and found rookie WR Gabriel Davis for the TD on a designed double-pass. Buffalo would add a field goal before the half to make it 17-6 at halftime.
The Bills got the ball to start the second half and Allen scored on a short rushing TD to add to their lead as they’ve done numerous times this season. However, they’ve also had rocky 2nd halves throughout the season and Allen was also flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct due to excessive celebration on his score. Los Angeles scored a TD to answer and converted the 2-pt conversion to cut the lead to 10-pts and that’s where Buffalo’s late-game woes reared their ugly head.
After turning the Chargers over on downs, Buffalo’s offense turned the ball over three consecutive possessions over the course of only 8 plays. The first of which, a Devin Singletary fumble, set up a Bolts’ FG to cut the lead to a 7-points. Next, it was Allen’s turn as he fumbled after a huge completion to Davis that had set the Bills up with excellent scoring position. The defense held again, forcing another 3 & out, but Allen threw a pick trying to force a throw to Diggs and LA took over right around midfield. At that point, the Bills had already given the Bolts too many extra chances and were just begging to lose this game.
Fortunately, Buffalo has a pretty good defense that’s getting better and Tre White made a great read on Justin Herbert and came away with the interception. They managed a 6-play, 40-yd drive to tack on a FG and basically put the game out of reach. However, the drama didn’t end there. The Chargers weren’t going to just stop playing and on a 4th & 17 from near midfield, Herbert rolled out to his left and heaved a deep ball into heavy traffic. It looked very similar to Kyler Murray’s game-winning Hail Mary to DeAndre Hopkins that beat Buffalo in their previous game.
You think the Bills would have learned a lot about how to defend those situations after the loss to Arizona, but as the ball was in the air, I was having serious flashbacks. Wouldn’t you know it, Jalen Guyton came down with the ball over three defenders and damn near scored on the play as well. Luckily, Guyton was flagged for offensive PI and the play was brought back but the BUF secondary all played the ball again. The ball was basically in Jordan Poyer’s hands and Guyton still managed to somehow get his hands on it. Regardless of the result of that play, the way it went down is cause for concern. In any close game, where the Bills are holding onto a late-game lead, the possibility of a game-winning desperation heave is far too realistic for comfort.
Overall, this was a solid win to get to 8-3 and a good defensive performance as BUF shut down the #2 ranked passing attack in the NFL and held a team that averages more than 25-pts/game under 20 for the first time since Week 3. When Matt Milano was placed on injured reserve, that was a serious blow to the Bills’ defense but A.J. Klein has been fantastic over the last few games. It was a little shaky for him transitioning to this defense at first but Klein was everywhere against the Chargers, recording 14-total tackles, 1.5-sacks, and 3.5-tackles-for-loss. With Tremaine Edmunds, Jordan Poyer, and Tre White all playing very well right now also, the defense is starting to resemble the dominant unit from a season ago.
Performance Grade: C+
Not having John Brown makes a huge difference in the Bills’ offensive efficiency and potency. His move to injured reserve is untimely, in addition to offensive tackle Cody Ford lost for the season, with the 49ers on deck. Even with all the injuries, San Francisco still boasts the 4th best pass defense in the league and the 10th best against the run. They’re coming off their second win over the Rams who were leading the NFC West and riding a win over Tom Brady and the Bucs, so it’s not going to be an easy game for the Bills. If Buffalo plays as they did against the Chargers, they’re going to take an L. If they can set the edge and force Nick Mullens to win the game, they’ll be in good shape to leave Arizona with the win. Yes, the game will be in AZ thanks to Covid restrictions in Santa Clara.