Plain and simple: Buffalo exhibits all the warning signs of a troubled team on defense.
And no one play typified its struggles more than Falcons running back Bijan Robinson taking a handoff, making a cut to the right sideline, and evading safety Cole Bishop for an 81-yard touchdown.
Robinson’s run, the second-longest in Falcons history, put Atlanta up 21–7. It was also part of a 335-yard outburst in the first half that helped bury the favored Bills, 24–14, on Monday Night Football.
The Bills have a good record (4–2) but now find themselves in second place behind the Patriots in the AFC East. Going into Monday, Atlanta ranked 14th in yards per play (5.5), 18th in yards per carry (4.3), 10th on third down (41.8%) and 25th in the red zone (46.2%). For the Falcons, the numbers show an average offense with quarterback Michael Penix Jr. making his eighth NFL start.
But against Buffalo, Atlanta looked like the 2007 Patriots. The Falcons scored 21 points on 9.1 yards per play in the first half. Drake London had nine catches for 147 yards and a touchdown, and was inches from another on the second quarter’s final play before being ruled out of bounds before the pylon. Robinson notched 138 rushing yards in that span, too, and the Falcons had six plays of more than 20 yards.
In the second half, the Bills were better but still not great. Corner Christian Benford committed pass interference on a third-and-14, extending one drive. Late in the game, with Atlanta facing third-and-1 out of the two-minute warning, defensive tackle Jordan Phillips was called for encroachment. The Falcons scored just three points but controlled the ball when it needed to, churning out a 14-play, 68-yard, five-minute drive to ice the contest.
If this performance was a one-off, it wouldn’t be alarming. But the Bills’ defense has struggled all year, considering its level of opponent. Against the Ravens, Buffalo permitted 432 yards. Baltimore’s next-best total this year is 360, and that was aided by a 71-yard touchdown run in garbage time against the Chiefs.
In Week 3, the one-win Dolphins stayed close all night in Buffalo. Miami notched 5.2 yards per carry while going 10-of-15 on third down, only to be undone by a late Tua Tagovailoa interception. The following week saw the one-win Saints come to town and post 298 yards with 189 yards on the ground.
Last weekend, Drake Maye and the Patriots handed the Bills their first loss, producing 338 yards, with Maye piercing Buffalo’s secondary for 273 yards on 30 attempts.
The injuries are also mounting, including to linebackers Terrel Bernard (ankle) and Matt Milano (pectoral), safety Damar Hamlin (pectoral), defensive tackle T.J. Sanders (knee) and corner Maxwell Hairston (knee) all ailing, with the latter trio all on injured reserve.
Another short- and long-term issue is the lack of production from April’s draft class. General manager Brandon Beane selected six defensive players, including edge rusher Landon Jackson, nose tackle Deone Walker, defensive backs Jordan Hancock and Dorian Strong, along with Hairston and Sanders.
Either due to injuries or underwhelming play, that trio has combined for 19 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, one quarterback hit and zero interceptions. Save for two tackles, all of that is Walker’s production.
If the Bills aren’t going to get anything from five of their six rookie defenders, they have little shot of significant improvement. Additionally, Beane made three splash signings for coordinator Bobby Babich’s unit in edge rusher Joey Bosa (one year, $12.6 million), defensive end Michael Hoecht (three years, $21 million) and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi (one year, $6 million). The latter two have been suspended every game to this point, while Bosa has two sacks.
It all adds up to a defense very vulnerable to any quality team come January, let alone a high-powered attack. Over the past five postseasons, Buffalo has lost to star quarterbacks who carved the defense up, including four defeats to Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, and a home loss to Joe Burrow and the Bengals in 2022.
In those five games, the Bills surrendered an average of 33.2 points per game, while Mahomes and Burrow combined for 11 touchdown passes against zero interceptions.
Buffalo has 11 games to figure it out. The Bills are cap-strapped though, holding only $2 million in cap space, 30th in the NFL, so the fix must come from within.
The warning signs of a major problem are evident. Buffalo must make the correct changes, or suffer a similar, painful fate come the playoffs.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bills Showing Signs of Fatal Flaws With Second Straight Loss.
