{"id":56873,"date":"2024-12-20T16:21:05","date_gmt":"2024-12-20T21:21:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?p=56873"},"modified":"2024-12-20T16:23:43","modified_gmt":"2024-12-20T21:23:43","slug":"morse-patriots-week-16-opponent-buffalo-bills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2024\/12\/20\/morse-patriots-week-16-opponent-buffalo-bills\/","title":{"rendered":"MORSE: Patriots Week 16 Opponent: Buffalo Bills"},"content":{"rendered":"

This week the Patriots face their division rival Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park.\u00a0 The Bills are contenders for the AFC championship and are playing very good football coming down the stretch.<\/p>\n

The Bills are the #2 Scoring Offense at 31.8 points per game.\u00a0 Overall Offense, they stand at 7th<\/sup> with 369.6 yards per game.\u00a0 Passing they rank 7th<\/sup> with 238.8 yards per game and Rushing at 9th<\/sup> with 130.8 yards a game.\u00a0 In the Red Zone they are very effective, ranking 3rd<\/sup> at 68.9%.\u00a0 On 3rd<\/sup> down they rank 8th<\/sup> at 43.8%.\u00a0 Top 10 in all Offensive categories.<\/p>\n

Offense<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/td>\nStarter<\/td>\n2nd<\/td>\n3rd<\/td>\n4th<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
QB<\/td>\nJosh Allen<\/td>\nMitchell Trubisky<\/td>\nShane Buechele\u00a0IR<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
RB<\/td>\nJames Cook<\/td>\nRay Davis<\/td>\nTy Johnson<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
WR<\/td>\nAmari Cooper<\/td>\nMack Hollins<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
WR<\/td>\nKhalil Shakir<\/td>\nCurtis Samuel Q<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
WR<\/td>\nKeon Coleman<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
TE<\/td>\nDalton Kincaid<\/td>\nDawson Knox<\/td>\nQuintin Morris<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
FB<\/td>\nReggie Gilliam<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LT<\/td>\nDion Dawkins<\/td>\nRyan Van Demark<\/td>\nTylan Grable<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LG<\/td>\nDavid\u00a0Edwards<\/td>\nAlec\u00a0Anderson<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
C<\/td>\nConnor McGovern<\/td>\nSedrick Van Pran-Granger<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
RG<\/td>\nO’Cyrus Torrence<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
RT<\/td>\nSpencer Brown Q<\/td>\nTylan Grable<\/td>\nTravis \u00a0Clayton\u00a0IR<\/td>\nTommy Doyle\u00a0O<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

It all starts with Josh Allen who is having an MVP type of year.\u00a0 This from Rotoballer,\u00a0 who has Allen ranked as the #1 QB.\u00a0 \u201cAllen decided to pick up where he left off after Week 14. He delivered an encore of four total touchdowns this time around. The Bills were in another shootout with a top NFC foe (Lions), but this time they came out victorious. Allen put a huge stamp on the 2024 NFL MVP Award this week\u201d.\u00a0 The 6\u20195\u201d 237-pound QB was a 2018 1st<\/sup> round pick (#7) by the Bills out of Wyoming.\u00a0 The 28-year-old has completed 275 passes on 427 attempts, 64.4%, for 3395 yards, 25 TDs and just 5 INTs.\u00a0 Rushing he has 91 attempts for 484 yards, 5.3 yards per carry, 11 TDs and just 1 Fumble.\u00a0 He is in his prime and is showing it week by week.<\/p>\n

James Cook handles the bulk of the carries, 171 carries for 828 yards, 4.8 yards per carry, 13 TDs and no fumbles.\u00a0 He also has 29 catches on 35 Targets for 232 yards and 1 TD.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 81.4 good for 11th<\/sup> in the league.\u00a0 Cook stands 5\u201911\u201d 190-pounds and was a 2022 2nd<\/sup> round pick (#63) out of Georgia.\u00a0 Ray Davis is the backup.\u00a0 He stands 5\u201910\u201d 216-pounds and was a 4th<\/sup> round pick (#129) of Buffalo in the 2024 draft out of Kentucky.\u00a0 For the season he has rushed 87 times for 359 yards, a TD and no fumbles.\u00a0 He has also contributed with 13 catches on 14 targets for 167 yards, 12.8 yards per catch and 2 TDs.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 74.9 good for 28th<\/sup> in the league.\u00a0 Also contributing is Ty Johnson, 5\u201910\u201d 210-pound back out of Maryland.\u00a0 He was taken in the 2019 draft by Detroit in the 6th<\/sup> Round (#186).\u00a0 For the season he has 19 carries for 154 yards, 5.3 average, 1 TD and no fumbles.\u00a0 Receiving he is a big-time threat with 16 catches on 19 targets for 275 yards and a 17.2 yards per catch and 3 TDs.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 76.8 good for 18th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

The receiving corps is good but not great.\u00a0 \u00a0They are led by Kalil Shakir. A 6\u2019 190-pound slot receiver out of Boise State.\u00a0 He was selected by Buffalo in the 2022 draft 5th<\/sup> round (#148).\u00a0 For the season he has 71 catches on 88 targets for 774 yards, a 10.9 YPC and 4 TDs.\u00a0 His PFF rating is an excellent 80.2, good for 20th<\/sup>.\u00a0 The Bills acquired Amari Cooper from the Browns just before the trade deadline and that was expected to be a boost for Buffalo.\u00a0 The 6’1 211-pound Alabama product was selected by then Oakland in the 2015 1st<\/sup> round (#4).\u00a0 He hasn\u2019t really produced so far with just 16 catches on 27 targets, a 14.4 YPC and 1 TD.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 68.3 good for 76th<\/sup>.\u00a0 The Bills selected Keon Coleman just before the Patriots in the 2nd<\/sup> round (#33) of this year\u2019s draft.\u00a0 The 6\u20194\u201d 215-pound Florida State product has 23 receptions on 38 targets for a 20.9 YPC and 3 TDs.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 69.4 good for 46th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

The story as reported by Taylor Kyles of CLNS Media, the Patriots had a deal worked out with Buffalo for the last pick in the 1st<\/sup> round (#32).\u00a0 Buffalo wanted one of the two top remaining WR\u2019s (Coleman and Xavier Legette).\u00a0 A source said that Buffalo took the Patriots offer and shopped it around the league and got Carolina to bite, dropping down one spot to prevent the Patriots from taking the WR they wanted (believed to be Legette whom CAR took).\u00a0 Buffalo screwed the Pats, their division rival.\u00a0 Naivete on Eliots Wolf\u2019s part?\u00a0\u00a0 Mack Hollins is a very underrated WR and a big part in the Bills Offense.\u00a0 The 6\u20194″ 221-pound wideout from North Carolina was taken in the 2017 draft by PHI 4th<\/sup> round (#118).\u00a0 For the season he has 24 catches on 41 targets for 295 yards, 12.3 YPC and 5 TDs.\u00a0 Hollins PFF rating is 58.9.\u00a0 The Bills also have Curtis Samuel who has 24 catches on 38 targets for 201 yards and a 8.4 YPC<\/p>\n

At Tight End the Bills have two good ones in Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox.\u00a0 Kincaid stands 6\u20193\u201d 240-pounds and was selected in the 2023 draft out of Utah in the 1st<\/sup> round (#26).\u00a0 For the season he has 38 receptions on 66 targets for 409 yards, 2 TDs and a fumble.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 76.7 good for 10th<\/sup> in the league. Knox is 6’4″ 254-pounds out of Mississippi.\u00a0 He was selected in the 2019 draft 3rd Round (#96).\u00a0 He has 19 receptions on 26 Targets for 285 yards 15.0 average and a TD.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 57.5 good for 63rd.<\/p>\n

A remarkable stat about the Bills starting O-Line is that they have played together for 13 of the 14 games, with Right Tackle Spencer Brown missing just one game.\u00a0 Last season their O-line started all 17 games together.\u00a0 The Patriots have had 10 different starting O-line combinations this season and we might be looking at a new one this week if Cole Strange starts at Center.\u00a0 How is it a team like Buffalo can have these ironmen on the line and the Patriots can\u2019t?\u00a0\u00a0 Does it have to do with the strength and conditioning program?\u00a0 \u00a0Curious that the Head Coach for Strength and Conditioning is Jerod Mayo\u2019s brother Deron Mayo.\u00a0 In fairness, Deron Mayo was here as an assistant Strength and Conditioning coach before Jerod Mayo was an assistant coach here.\u00a0 This is Deron Mayo\u2019s 1st<\/sup> year as head Strength and Conditioning coach.<\/p>\n

Overall PFF ranks the Bills Offensive line 4th<\/sup> in the league.\u00a0 Left Tackle Dion Dawkins is 6\u20195\u201d 320-pounds out of Temple.\u00a0 Buffalo selected him in the 2017 draft in the 2nd<\/sup> round (#63).\u00a0 Entering his 8th<\/sup> season, Dawkins has been selected to 3 Pro Bowl teams.\u00a0 His PFF grade for the season is 69.8 good for 40th<\/sup>.\u00a0 David Edwards plays Left Guard.\u00a0 The Wisconsin product stands 6\u20196\u201d 308-pounds and was selected by the LA Rams in the 2019 draft 5th<\/sup> round (# 169).\u00a0 His PFF rating is 61.9 good for 64th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

Connor McGovern has big shoes to fill, replacing Mitch Morse at Center.\u00a0 McGovern signed with Buffalo in 2023 to play Guard.\u00a0 The 6\u2019 5\u201d 318-pound McGovern was drafted as a Center by Dallas in the 2019 3rd<\/sup> round (#90) out of Penn State.\u00a0 He played mostly Guard in his 5 seasons before moving back to Center this year.\u00a0 His PPF grade is 71.1 good for 10th<\/sup>.\u00a0 O\u2019Cyrus Torrence is the Right Guard.\u00a0 The Florida product is 6\u20195\u201d 347-pounds.\u00a0 He was selected in the 2nd<\/sup> round (#60) of the 2023 draft by Buffalo.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 58.3 good for 82nd<\/sup>.\u00a0 Spencer Brown is the Right Tackle and his improvement over the last two seasons has been incredible.\u00a0 The 6\u20198\u201d 310-pound Tackle from Northern Iowa was a 2021 selection in the 3rd<\/sup> Round (#94).\u00a0 Last season his PFF rating went from 76th<\/sup> in 2022 to 23rd<\/sup> in 2023.\u00a0 This season his 72.1 rating is 33rd<\/sup> in the league.<\/p>\n

Defense <\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Bills Overall Defense rankings is 23rd<\/sup> giving up 345.5 yards per game.\u00a0 Passing defense, they are ranked 25th<\/sup> giving up 221.8 yards a game.\u00a0 Run Defense is ranked 14th<\/sup> with 117.7 yards a game. \u00a0Scoring Defense, they are 12th<\/sup> giving up 22.1 points per game, in the Red Zone they are 18th<\/sup> at a 58.5% and on 3rd<\/sup> Down they are 26th<\/sup> at 43.5%.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/td>\nStarter<\/td>\n2nd<\/td>\n3rd<\/td>\n4th<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LDE<\/td>\nGreg Rousseau<\/td>\nDawuane Smoot<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LDT<\/td>\nDaQuan\u00a0Jones<\/td>\nJordan Phillips<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
RDT<\/td>\nEd\u00a0Oliver<\/td>\nAustin Johnson<\/td>\nDeWayne\u00a0Carter<\/td>\nQuinton\u00a0Jefferson<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
RDE<\/td>\nAJ Epenesa<\/td>\nVon\u00a0Miller<\/td>\nJavon Solomon<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
WLB<\/td>\nMatt Milano\u00a0Q<\/td>\nDorian\u00a0Williams<\/td>\nEdefuan Ulofoshio<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
MLB<\/td>\nTerrel Bernard<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SLB<\/td>\nJoe Andreessen<\/td>\nBaylon Spector<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LCB<\/td>\nRasul\u00a0Douglas Q<\/td>\nJa’Marcus\u00a0Ingram<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SS<\/td>\nTaylor \u00a0Rapp\u00a0Q<\/td>\nCole \u00a0Bishop\u00a0Q<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
FS<\/td>\nDamar Hamlin\u00a0Q<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
RCB<\/td>\nChristian Benford<\/td>\nKaiir Elam<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
NB<\/td>\nTaron\u00a0Johnson<\/td>\nCam\u00a0Lewis<\/td>\nBrandon Codrington<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

LDE is Greg Rousseau from Miami.\u00a0 The 6\u20196\u201d 260-pound end was taken in the 2021 draft by Buffalo in the 1st<\/sup> Round (#30).\u00a0 He leads the D-linemen in tackles with 46, added 16 Tackles For Loss (TFL) and 7.5 Sacks.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 82.2 good for 15th<\/sup>.\u00a0 Veteran DaQuan Jones is still producing at 33-years-old.\u00a0 The 6\u20194\u201d 320-pound LDT from Penn State was taken in the 2014 Draft by TEN in the 4th<\/sup> Round (#112).\u00a0 He has 22 Tackles on the year and added 5 TFLs and 2 Sacks.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 66.2 good for 43rd<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

Ed Oliver is an undersized DT from Houston. He stands just 6\u20191\u201d 287-pounds but is a very disruptive player.\u00a0 Oliver was selected in the 2019 Draft by Buffalo in the 1st<\/sup> Round (#9).\u00a0 On the year he has 22 Tackles, 2 TFLs and 2 Sacks.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 68.4 good for 34th<\/sup> rank.\u00a0 AJ Epenesa isa 6\u20196\u201d 260-pound Edge player out of Iowa.\u00a0 Buffalo selected him in the 2020 Draft in 2nd Round (#54). On the season he has 32 tackles, 5 TFLs and 5 Sacks.<\/p>\n

Von Miller has seen limited time but is still an effective pass rusher.\u00a0 The 6\u20193\u201d 250-pound Edge player was taken in 2011 Draft by DEN.\u00a0 The 35-year-old 13-year vet is a future Hall of Famer.\u00a0 He has been selected to the 1st<\/sup> Team All Pro 3 times, 2nd<\/sup> Team All Pro 4 times and selected to the Pro Bowl 8 times.\u00a0 On the season he has 12 Tackles, 5 TFLs and 4 Sacks.\u00a0 For his career he has 127.5 sacks.\u00a0 Only three players with 127 sacks have not made the Hall of Fame, and two of those were because they were not eligible yet.<\/p>\n

At Linebacker Dorian Williams a 6\u20191\u201d 230-pound backer out of Tulane, leads the team in tackles with 100.\u00a0 He also contributed 5 TFLs and no sacks.\u00a0 He has replaced Matt Milano for most of the season and has a PFF rating of 62.8 good for 93rd<\/sup>.\u00a0 Matt Milano played his 1st<\/sup> games of the season 3 weeks ago.\u00a0 The 6\u2019 223-pound linebacker from Boston College was a 2017 draft pick by Buffalo in the 5th<\/sup> Round (#163).\u00a0 He missed nearly all of 2023 and a majority of this year too.\u00a0 Terrel Bernard got the playing time last season when Milano was out and played very well.\u00a0 The 6\u20191\u201d 234-pound backer out of Baylor has 86 Tackles, 5 TFLs and a sack.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 49.9 good for 149th<\/sup>.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0Joe Andreessen started his 1st<\/sup> game last week.\u00a0 The 6\u20191 232 UDFA out of Buffalo University has a 40.9 rating by PFF.<\/p>\n

In the secondary Rasul Douglas a 6\u20192\u2019 209-pound CB out of West Virginia mans the LCB spot.\u00a0 He was taken in the 2017 draft by PHI in the 3rd<\/sup> round (#99).\u00a0 For the season he has 55 Tackles and 5 TFLs.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 60.7 good for 118th<\/sup>.\u00a0 Taylor Rapp is a 6\u2019 208-pound Safety out of Washington.\u00a0 He was taken by the Rams in the 2nd<\/sup> round of the 2019 draft 2nd<\/sup> round (#61).\u00a0 For the year he has 75 Tackles and 2 TFLs.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 63.3 good for 79th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

Damar Hamlin is the leading candidate for Comeback Player of the Year after suffering that near death experience last year. \u00a0The 6\u2019 200-pound Safety out of Pittsburgh has 83 Tackles and 2 TFLs on the year. \u00a0He was taken in the 2021 draft 6th<\/sup> round (#213) by Buffalo. \u00a0His PFF rating 61.2 ranked 96th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

Christian Benford plays the RCB.\u00a0 The 6\u20191\u201d 205-pound Villanova product was taken in the 2022 draft by Buffalo in the 6th<\/sup> Round (#185).\u00a0 On the year he has 58 Tackles and a sack.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 79.1 good for 11th<\/sup>.\u00a0 In the slot the Bills have Taron Johnson a 5\u201911\u201d 192-pound CB out of Weber State.\u00a0 The 2024 UDFA has 58 Tackles and a sack on the season.\u00a0 His PFF rating is 61.3 good for 113th<\/sup>.<\/p>\n

Special Teams <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
<\/td>\nStarter<\/td>\n2nd<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
PK<\/td>\nTyler Bass<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
P<\/td>\nSam\u00a0Martin<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
H<\/td>\nSam Martin<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
PR<\/td>\nBrandon Codrington<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
KR<\/td>\nBrandon Codrington<\/td>\nTy Johnson<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LS<\/td>\nReid\u00a0Ferguson<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tyler Bass has been a bit inconsistent.\u00a0 He ranks 8th<\/sup> in scoring with 113 points on the season but has missed 4 FG out of 26 attempts and missed 4 Extra Points in 54 attempts.\u00a0 Sam Martin ranks 17th<\/sup> in Punting Average per Kick and 23rd<\/sup> in net Average with 41.1.\u00a0 Brandon Codington ranks 5th<\/sup> in Punt Returns with a 11.2 average per return. \u00a0On Kickoff returns if he had enough returns to qualify, he would have been ranked 4th<\/sup> in the league with a 27.8 yards per return.<\/p>\n

Comings and Goings<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The Patriots released Liam Fornadel from the Practice Squad.\u00a0 Fornadel signed with the Patriots Practice Squad after a tremendous 2024 season with the DC Defenders of the XFL League where he was named to the All-XFL team.\u00a0 Fornadel played at James Madison.<\/p>\n

Alex Erickson is a 32-year-old 8-year Pro was signed in his slot.\u00a0 The Wider Receiver \/ Punt Returner played for 6 teams in the league. The 6\u2019 190-pound receiver out of Wisconsin led the NFL in Kickoff Returns in 2016 and has 113 receptions for 1373 yards in his career.\u00a0 Marcus Jones has missed all the practices this week with a hip issue.<\/p>\n

Christian Barmore has been placed on the NFI list.\u00a0 In a statement by the Patriots, “are placing defensive lineman Christian Barmore on the reserve non-football illness list after he experienced some recurring symptoms that required further evaluation. We appreciate everything Christian did to return to the team this season, but our top priority is Christian’s health and wellbeing. We know that he will continue to receive tremendous care and we want to ensure that he gets the time he needs to come back stronger than ever.” Sounds like a re-occurrence of the blood clot issue.<\/p>\n

DT Jacquelin Roy was placed on IR last week, ending his season.\u00a0 Look for the Pats to elevate a DT from the Practice Squad.<\/p>\n

I anticipate kicker John Parker Romo will also receive an elevation to the roster for the game.\u00a0 Joey Slye missed another Field Goal and the team is getting weary of his inconsistent play.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This week the Patriots face their division rival Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park.\u00a0 The Bills are contenders for the AFC championship and are playing very good football coming down the stretch.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":50366,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-56873","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-patriots-news"],"yoast_head":"\nMORSE: Patriots Week 16 Opponent: Buffalo Bills<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This week the Patriots face their division rival Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park.\u00a0 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