Report card: Bills top Buccaneers, 24-18
The Buffalo Bills were riding high for, what felt like, nearly the entire game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 8.
Still, with only seconds on the clock, the Bucs (3-4) had a look at the win.
Thankfully for the Bills (5-3), a last-second Hail Mary attempt from Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield fell short–and in a bizarre twist wasn’t even touched by any player–in Buffalo’s end zone.
The Bills held on for the win, but did that unexpectedly close game harm their grades?
Check out Bills Wire’s Week 8 report card for the Bills following the team’s 24-18 win over the Buccaneers:
Quarterback: B+
Josh Allen had a promising stat line but one spot keeps him out of “A” territory.
The QB was an efficient 31-for-40 passing and surpassed 324 passing yards. Allen tossed two touchdowns as well.
Even better (and welcomed again) Allen got the wheels going. He had 41 rushing yards with another score on the ground.
But the Bills saw him throw an all-too-common interception. Allen should’ve either taken the sack or thrown it away when Bucs defender Antoine Winfield Jr. was in his face. Instead, a tipped interception ended up tying the game at 10 early.
Running back: B
James Cook had a pretty steady day rushing the ball. He averaged 4.8 yards per carry on 14 carries (67 total). Cook didn’t get too involved in the passing attack this week with only one catch.
Latavius Murray has now put together a few games that make you wonder if Buffalo will start taking him out of the game plan. Murray had five carries for seven yards. One of those five went for five yards early in the first quarter…
Wide receiver: A
Everyone got involved and that must have been an incredible feeling for Buffalo offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. It wasn’t only Stefon Diggs that got got going.
Diggs only had the third-most yards for the Bills–70 yards on nine catches is still productive. Khalil Shakir led the team with 92 yards and six catches, meanwhile, Gabe Davis had a bounce-back effort with nine grabs, 87 yards and a touchdown.
All around, you love to see that.
Tight end: A
Back-to-back big games for Dalton Kincaid. The rookie tight end had five catches for 65 yards and his first-career touchdown a week after an eight catch, 75-yard effort.
Kincaid’s starting to show his knack for playmaking at a perfect time with Dawson Knox (wrist) being placed on injured reserve.
Offensive line: B+
The Bills offensive line had their life made much easier when Bucs defensive tackles Vita Vea and Logan Hall were both declared inactive prior to kickoff. But Buffalo can only play the hand their dealt and they played well.
Allen was only sacked twice, one of which was a really odd one right before halftime on a quick snap. Cook’s near five-yard average per carry was a testament to this group, too.
Per Pro Football Focus, of the Bills’ five offensive linemen, four received an average grade or higher. The top was center Mitch Morse at 77.4, right above Dion Dawkins’ 77.2.
Defensive line: B+
For the most part, the Bills bottled up the Bucs’ subpar rushing attack. A 14-yard reverse play to Chris Godwin was the best of the night.
The best sign for the Bills defensive front was Ed Oliver’s sack. That guy is good and you could how much better he makes Buffalo’s defense.
AJ Epenesa added another sack, but one silly penalty knocks this group. A very bad face masking call against Jordan Phillips was uncalled for by the defender. The game would have been over.
Linebacker: B+
No real splash plays from the Bills linebackers against the Bucs but they didn’t need that. It was steady and positive.
Tyrel Dodson started the entire game alongside Terrel Bernard. He can still overpursue at times, but still looks like a more steady option for the Bills as opposed to Dorian Williams.
Both Bernard and Dodson were top-four defenders for Buffalo according to PFF against the Bucs. They graded out at 72.1 and 74.6, respectively. Bernard led the Bills with eight tackles and had two passes defended.
Secondary: B
For a bunch of the game, the Bills secondary held the Bucs’ top playmakers, Godwin and Mike Evans, at bay. Both did have touchdowns… but otherwise were quiet.
But late in the contest, the Bucs managed to start picking some holes in the Buffalo defense which led to a close game. Likewise to Phillips, cornerback Taron Johnson extended that late drive with a silly penalty.
Mirroring Bernard, safety Jordan Poyer had eight tackles and broke up two passes. His PFF grade was through the roof as well: 89.4.
Special teams: A
The Bills did have a few penalties called against them on punt returns. However, punter Sam Martin was so good this can only be an “A” mark.
Martin averaged 40 net yards and placed three punts inside the 10 and another should’ve been pinned there late.
Kicker Tyler Bass hit his only field goal attempt and was perfect on extra points. A bit of a turnaround for him after a few tough weeks.
