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Bills at Saints: 3 keys to a Buffalo win

The Bills head to New Orleans this week to face the Saints in one of this year’s Thanksgiving Day game matchups.

The team and their fans both want to put recent losses to the Colts and Jaguars behind them, so a bounce-back win could them do just that.

And as we know from their last appearance on Thanksgiving Day, a 26-15 win over Dallas in 2019, Josh Allen and company want to be the ones holding Turkey legs in the winner’s circle.

Both teams are looking to redeem themselves after losing games by similar lopsided scores this past Sunday, and Buffalo is aiming to shake off a few rocky performances overall with a short week victory.

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Here are three keys to the game for the Bills (6-4) against the Saints (5-5):

Go Big In The Big Easy

(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Getting the Buffalo passing game going and finishing offensive drives with points on the board will be key in this game.

The Saints typically have a strong run defense, though that defense got carved up by Philadelphia QB Jalen Hurts who ran for three touchdowns himself in last week’s contest.

While the productivity of the Bills RB group can vary week-to-week, they happen to have a QB who sometimes leads the team in rushing yards.

Josh Allen rose to the occasion when the Bills last played on Thanksgiving. He’s a big boy who is hard to take down and doesn’t shy away from making plays with his legs.

If he gets going in the air and on the ground, it could make for another long day for New Orleans.

On Brand Defense

Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

The Bills defense has been among the best in the NFL this season and has led the league in turnovers. New Orleans is without starting QB Jameis Winston who is out with a season-ending injury. They’ll be without starting TE Adam Tautman who caught one of the Saints’ two TD passes in last week’s loss, and maybe without RB’s Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram who did not practice this week while recovering from knee surgeries.

They are rolling with backup QB Trevor Siemian who threw two interceptions last week to go with two fumbles (one lost) by running backs Ingram and Deonte Harris.

If Kamara plays, containing him will be the key on the defensive side of the ball, where the Bills will hope to have a better outcome than they have had against elite backs like Derrick Henry and Jonathan Taylor. Having Tremaine Edmunds back from injury will certainly aid that effort, as could DT Star Lotulelei presuming he returns from the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

Regardless, pressuring Siemian could result in some more of those turnovers, which in turn can only help the Bills cause.

If Buffalo’s defense plays up to expectations, they could best the New Orleans offense.

Discipline, Execution, Don't Turn The Ball Over

(Photo by Joshua Bessex/Getty Images)

The Bills beat themselves too much through turnovers and penalties in the loss to the Colts, hurting their ability to remain competitive in the game.

Lack of discipline cost them yards on flags, and lack of execution in their game plan and drives ultimately cost them the game.

Buffalo is better than this and they’ll need to be at the top of their game for a primetime performance on Thursday, and that starts in the little things like not getting penalized or losing the football.

They also are about to embark on four weeks of storyline matchups. Next up after New Orleans, they face the New England squad that just ousted them from the division lead, before heading back to Florida to square off against Tom Brady and the Bucs. That before a game against a former Patriots QB and former Brandon Beane/Sean McDermott club in Cam Newton and Carolina, before a second meeting with New England.

The point is, they could use a win going into this challenging stretch to help their record and standings, and to build some rhythm, confidence, and consistency heading into those games.

If the Bills can execute efficiently, they may get that victory Thursday night.

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