The Week 1 experience can often be an adventure. There’s always a feeling-out process in the first game, as rosters with a different twist from the previous one can bring on new wrinkles teams may not have prepared for without a lot of film available.
A roller coaster best describes the Bills’ 34-28 Week 1 victory over the Cardinals. The Bills’ defense couldn’t get a stop early on in the game, ceding a 17-3 lead to the visitors with only a few minutes left to play in the first half. It forced the offense to be nearly perfect the rest of the way.
But that’s just what franchise quarterback Josh Allen did, putting a touchdown on the board on four of their next five drives and accounting for 74 percent of the team’s yards. Even with 34 points scored, the Bills still nearly lost to the Cardinals but ultimately arrived at a victory and a 1-0 start to 2024.
What stood out? Here are several takeaways from the Bills’ helter-skelter Week 1 win.
Greg Rousseau delivers on summer of promise
The Bills defense was reeling in the first half. They couldn’t get themselves off the field, the pass rush wasn’t getting into the backfield well enough and the Cardinals were taking advantage of all the Bills’ individual weaknesses. But in the second half, fourth-year defensive end Greg Rousseau took over the game. Rousseau’s sack on third down of the Cardinals’ initial possession in the second half set the tone for the rest of the game. And then, just after the Bills’ offense was forced to punt for the first time on their ensuing drive, Rousseau answered right back with a strip-sack to put the Bills on the doorstep to take the lead, to which the offense obliged.
But Rousseau’s performance is a continuation of the massive potential he had shown all throughout training camp. The defensive end has always had the makings of becoming a top-tier pass rusher, and he was easily one of the best players all summer.
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“Those are things that, we’re not surprised at all with how he’s been doing,” defensive end A.J. Epenesa said.
“Domination. It’s awesome to watch,” defensive tackle Austin Johnson added. “I mean, he’s just a freak of nature.”
And it was more than just the sacks. He kept getting into the backfield, chipped in well on run support and even had a pass breakup on tight end Trey McBride late in the game. If this is the start of things to come, Rousseau could wind up being a major player on a defense in desperate need of difference-makers.
The defensive concern is real
Even though the defense pulled things together in the second half, their early-game performance provided massive reasons for concern moving forward. Even late in the game, when the Bills held strong to limit the Cardinals’ second-half points, Arizona clearly missed on some clear opportunities for points with busted coverage and dropped passes. The Bills showed they were concerned about second-year linebacker Dorian Williams in coverage, as they followed suit from a 2023 strategy to bring on a sixth defensive back on obvious passing downs. But it was clear that the Cardinals were targeting Williams with misdirection early in the game.
The safety play, particularly by Taylor Rapp, is another cause for concern in the coming weeks. He was caught out of position a handful of times and was bailed out by a poor throw on a play in which he was clearly beaten in coverage. Along with the uncertainty at free safety, teams will likely continue to make the Bills prove it’s not a weakness. And yet another significant injury to one of their best could make the defensive volatility even more concerning.
Taylor Rapp’s (left) performance and Taron Johnson’s (right) injury are causes for concern on the Bills’ defense. (Gregory Fisher / Imagn Images)
Although the Bills managed to bring in a victory on Sunday, the defense took on what could be one of the most crushing injuries they could have. With star linebacker Matt Milano sidelined for the foreseeable future following a torn bicep suffered in training camp, star nickel cornerback Taron Johnson played just seven snaps on the first series before leaving the game with a forearm injury. Although they first labeled Johnson as questionable to return, the team announced just after halftime that the nickel would not return to the game. That relatively quick rule-out is not a promising sign, especially with a quick turnaround to a Thursday night game for Week 2. The Bills will have to keep their fingers crossed that this isn’t an extended absence for Johnson.
In Johnson’s place was Cam Lewis, who went the rest of the way playing every defensive snap at the position. It wasn’t without error, as the Cardinals’ primary slot receiver, Greg Dortch, was their leading pass catcher. But it certainly helped that Lewis is in his sixth full season in the Bills’ defensive scheme, playing nickel corner for the vast majority of that time. There’s little doubt that Lewis will be the starting nickel corner for as long as Johnson is sidelined, but it does raise the question of how much the team will commit to nickel in all situations without their point man in Johnson. Johnson is the reason they switched to it in the first place in 2021. Should Lewis suffer an injury, their next move would likely be to put Ja’Marcus Ingram in at nickel.
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Don’t worry about Dalton Kincaid’s stat line
It was a forgettable debut for second-year standout tight end Dalton Kincaid, who was held to only one reception and 11 yards on two targets. The stat line could create some anxiety about the role of one of the most talented players on the entire roster. But his overall usage tells a far different story, and if the Bills continue down a similar path moving forward, some huge Kincaid games are coming in future weeks.
There was a natural concern about Kincaid’s role as it pertains to the presence of tight end Dawson Knox, because of how much they scaled back Kincaid’s role in 2023 after Knox had returned from injured reserve. The first two offensive series against the Cardinals did not alleviate those concerns, either. Knox had 11 snaps to Kincaid’s nine, closer to his late-2023 playtime percentages. However, as the offense failed to get going over their first two series, there was a clear shift in Kincaid being on the field. Head coach Sean McDermott alluded after the game to wanting to get Kincaid more involved, and his in-game message sunk in with offensive coordinator Joe Brady.
Kincaid went on to take 46 of the Bills’ final 52 offensive snaps. In the second half alone, Kincaid missed only three of their 41 snaps for a second half snap share of 92.7 percent. In addition to Kincaid’s usage, the proliferation of 12 personnel in the second half also saw a huge bump, with the team using it on 41.5 percent of their 41 offensive snaps. Last year, Brady made that more of a matchup tool than a staple, so it remains to be seen if the 12 personnel percentages will be sticky. But what should hold is Kincaid being out there in a full-time role. He’s a potential difference-maker. More productive days are likely ahead.
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Good debut for Tyler Bass, but with a caveat
Kicker Tyler Bass went through a tumultuous summer of training camp, specifically ahead of the preseason finale against the Panthers. Despite his struggles, the team stood by Bass both with their words and actions because of how effective he’d been in the past for the team. General manager Brandon Beane stood up for Bass and then backed it up by not adding a kicker to the practice squad. In their first game of the regular season, Bass was successful on all six of his attempts — four extra points and two field goals. While it was a good confidence builder, all six of those attempts were under 40 yards — the distances that Bass hasn’t had trouble with during the summer. Over the two practices leading up to the Panthers game, and in that preseason finale, Bass went 5-of-12 from attempts of 40 yards or more. So, while this is an encouraging start, Bass still needs to conquer the distance kicks to prove he’s out of his funk.
Bills MVP: QB Josh Allen — Allen issued an impressive, MVP-like performance in his first game. In the past, there has been some rust for Allen in Week 1 with turnovers, but that was not the case — even with an early mistake. Allen was the best player on the field, and if the defense forces him into more games like this one in 2024, this could be his best chance yet to be voted the NFL MVP, especially without a marquee receiver on the roster.
Bills LVP: Third down defense — They got better in the second half, but allowing first downs on seven of the Cardinals’ 13 attempts is unsustainable and will require Allen to go into superhuman mode more consistently should it continue.
Up Next: The 1-0 Bills head to Miami on a short week to take on the 1-0 Dolphins in an early AFC East showdown.
(Top photo of Greg Rousseau: Bryan M. Bennett / Getty Images)
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Publish date : 2024-09-08 12:30:00
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