New England Patriots vs. Buffalo Bills discussion with BuffaLowDown
Listen-in on our New England Patriots vs. Buffalo Bills conversation with BuffaLowDown editors Ryan Brennan and Dennis Moody to pass the time this Friday.
"Musket Fire: Four short weeks ago, the Bills wiped the Patriots across their windshield with a 16-0 win. What has changed in Buffalo since then?"
BuffaLowDown: The main thing that’s changed for Buffalo is their ability to stay healthy at key offensive positions. Buffalo was without their top receiver, Sammy Watkins last time they played the Patriots. Since then, their number two and three receivers have suffered injuries as well. Bills number two receiver, Robert Woods, suffered a foot injury and did not play last week. Their third receiver Marquise Goodwin left the game against Miami early and is currently in concussion protocol.
While their depleted receiving corps is a problem, it’s not the biggest concern for Buffalo. The Bills biggest issue involves LeSean McCoy and his hamstring. He suffered the injury about a week ago and was not himself against Dolphins last week. The Bills offense runs through McCoy literally, and if he is not 100 percent this week, Buffalo is in serious trouble against a much more talented Patriots team.
"Musket Fire: If you could have any player on the Patriots not named Brady or Gronk, who would it be and why?"
BuffaLowDown: Bills fans have longed for two things besides a playoff berth over the last several years. A productive tight end and a red zone receiving threat with some height. Martellus Bennett covers both of those areas. While Charles Clay can be a nice option at times, he hasn’t lived up to his contract and having a guy like Bennett on the roster could really improve the Bills offense dramatically.
"Musket Fire: What went wrong last week against the Dolphins? How did Jay Ajayi bust loose for over 200 yards again? LeGarrette Blount has a similar running style…"
BuffaLowDown: There were two main reasons for this. The Dolphins have a terrific offensive line and they outclassed the Bills defensive line in the trenches. The Bills defense was too aggressive against Miami which caused them to overshoot their gaps.
The other reason is Buffalo had tackling problems. Jay Ajayi broke ten tackles against the Bills which is flat out unacceptable. Going against a hard runner like Blount is concerning considering all the missed tackles last week.
"Musket Fire: If the Bills lose this game, the Patriots will almost certainly win the division. But Buffalo looks like a serious Wild Card contender… who is their biggest threat in the AFC for the Wild Card?"
BuffaLowDown: This may seem like a cop-out but it’s true. The entire AFC West. The Broncos will probably win the division but the Raiders scare me as much as any other team in the AFC. The Chiefs always seem like they are in the running every year and San Diego has blown several leads that seemed impossible to give up. Had they not done that, more people would be talking about them as one of the top teams in the AFC. Two or three teams in that division will make the playoffs and that’s going to be a huge problem for Buffalo.
"Musket Fire: Alright, final score prediction time. Give me your prediction and some reasoning!"
BuffaLowDown: Belichick was pretty pissed off at the way his team played last time against the Bills without Brady. I’m sure it didn’t sit well that the Bills shut them out at home either. I expect him and Brady to come out swinging. Against an injury-plagued Buffalo team, I don’t think the Bills have the talent to stay in this game. I expect a Patriots thrashing of the Bills 33 – 10.