The Buffalo Bills leaned heavily on defensive end Joey Bosa on Thursday night against the Miami Dolphins.
Emphasis on heavily.
Bosa played a whopping 87% of the defensive snaps in the Bills’ 31-21 victory at Highmark Stadium, lining up on 53 of 61 defensive snaps.
“Sometimes the way the game plays out, plays out a certain way, only having eight D-linemen up, and that’s not a cop out by any means, but we need to get that down and we will get that down,” defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said of Bosa’s usage.
Bosa had one tackle and one quarterback hit in the win. Here are four more observations on the snap counts following the Bills’ Week 3 win:
1. Three linebackers got substantial work. Middle linebacker Terrel Bernard played all 61 defensive snaps, which isn’t a surprise. Dorian Williams played 75% of the snaps (46 of 61), getting the start in place of the injured Matt Milano. That also makes sense. What stands out is linebacker Shaq Thompson played 21 snaps (34%), and nickel cornerback Taron Johnson played 40 snaps (66%).
2. Ray Davis barely played. The team’s No. 2 running back did not get a carry and saw the only target that went his way in the passing game fall incomplete in playing just four offensive snaps (7%).
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3. Deone Walker had a big impact. The rookie defensive tackle impacted Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa on the pass that ended up being intercepted by Terrel Bernard. It was one of a handful of impact plays Walker made in just 19 defensive snaps (31%).
4. Christian Benford didn’t miss any time. The Bills’ No. 1 cornerback was slow to get up after being run into by teammate Taylor Rapp, but Benford was still able to play all 61 defensive snaps.
Player of the game: Josh Allen
The Bills’ quarterback continued his dominance of the Dolphins, completing 22 of 28 passes for 213 yards and three touchdowns − a quarterback rating of 134.1. Allen became the fastest player in NFL history to reach 300 total touchdowns, including the postseason.
Stat of the game: 0
Let us explain: The Bills are now 3-0, have scored more than 100 points (102 exactly), have fewer than 15 penalties, have rushed for more than 150 yards per game and averaged more than 250 net passing yards per game. In the history of the NFL, that has never been done before by any team over a three-game span.
Quote of the game
“I think it’s just the mindset. We talk about it all the time. The ball is the most important thing. We know it’s not going to be perfect. Offenses around the league are good. That’s a known fact. But for us, it comes down to taking the ball away, especially in the critical moments of the game. That’s something that we preach and something that we believe in and something that we’ve been pretty good at.” − Bernard.
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Jay Skurski
News Sports Reporter
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