BUFFALO, N.Y. — Here are four things to look out for heading into Sunday's Bills game versus the Falcons.
Taking advantage of the matchup
Josh Allen has been playing the best football of his career over the past few weeks. This Sunday is an opportune time for Allen to put an MVP type performance against a very weak Falcons defense. Atlanta is one of only five teams in the NFL to allow 400 points, and with Allen really starting to hit his stride, I would expect a monster game from No. 17.
Tight end Dawson Knox said, "I think Emmanuel Sanders said it best: he is a fan of Josh Allen, so am I. We sit back and watch him make plays, and we are like, it looks like he's playing a video game out there."
Expect video game numbers on Sunday if Allen is consistent with his play. Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees had one of the quotes of the year when asked, how do you stop Josh Allen?
Pees said, "You don't let him get off the bus."
Luckily, for Buffalo, it's a home game, so there is no bus.
Defense is looking more consistent
I would say the biggest issue of the season so far for Buffalo has been their inability to stop the ground game. They have massively struggled to stop the run, especially versus elite running backs.
Over the past two weeks, it seems the defense has taken the season-long criticism to heart and has started to make some positive shifts. On Sunday, they play against one of the most versatile players in the NFL in Cordarrelle Patterson, a player Stefon Diggs defined as "the best player to handle the football, outside of Adrian Peterson."
That is some serious praise.
Josh's weapons are back
With the exception of Emmanuel Sanders, who is dealing with an on-going knee issue, the Bills are expected to have all of their "mini-weapons," as Josh calls them, back on Sunday.
Even if Sanders does not suit up, Allen will get Cole Beasley and Gabriel Davis back since the NFL changed their isolation rules allowing players who were on the COVID-19 list to return after five days instead of 10.
Allen said it earlier this week, with the emergence of Davis and Isaiah McKenzie over the past few weeks, as far as opportunity going forward, it's going to come down to whoever gets open. The good news is, Allen has an arsenal of players he can clearly trust with the football.
Postseason on their minds
Harrison Phillips said on Friday it would be ignorant for them to not say that what's at stake is on their minds. If Buffalo wins on Sunday and Baltimore loses versus the Los Angeles Rams, the Bills would clinch a playoff spot while just needing a win versus the struggling Jets in week 18 for back-to-back AFC East titles.
A lot is riding on the next two games for Buffalo, and when you get a chance to climb the AFC and host a playoff game, especially in a very tight playoff race, it makes the world of a difference.
Right now if the season ended today, Buffalo would host the Indianapolis Colts, who just destroyed them a month ago in Orchard Park when Jonathan Taylor went off for five touchdowns. If the Bills win out, they should be able to jump up higher and get a more favorable matchup with either New England or any of the teams who end up in the 7 seed, which is a lot better than hosting the Colts.
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