SEATTLE 鈥 The Buffalo Bills wanted to start fast Sunday.
Consider it mission accomplished.
After four straight weeks of playing poorly in the first half, the Bills finally looked ready to go from the opening kickoff against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. The solid start propelled the team to a 31-10 victory that improved it to 6-2 and strengthened its grip on the AFC East. Losses by the Dolphins and Jets on earlier in the day meant that no other team in the division has more than two wins.
鈥淲e knew this was going to be a tough, tough game,鈥 Bills coach Sean McDermott said. 鈥淚t was. We knew we were going to have to play well in all three phases, and I think we did, at least at this point, enough to get the result that we were looking for.鈥
People are also reading…
The Bills won the coin toss and McDermott deferred his decision until after halftime, putting the defense on the field first on a gray, stormy afternoon.
It took less than a minute for that unit to force a three-and-out, as 6-foot-6 defensive end Greg Rousseau batted down Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith鈥檚 pass on the game鈥檚 first play from scrimmage. Two plays later, with Seattle facing third-and-9, Rousseau did it again, forcing a Seattle punt.
鈥淒efinitely this week, knowing how the weather might be rainy, we were like, 鈥楬ey, let鈥檚 go out there and step on them from the jump, from the first snap.鈥 I feel like that鈥檚 what we did,鈥 Rousseau said. 鈥淚 feel like everybody did a really good job of being locked in. I feel like the urgency was really there in the first quarter. Obviously, we鈥檝e lacked that sometimes this season (with the) slow starts. We鈥檙e working on it. We鈥檙e working toward being better in the beginning of the game.鈥
That work showed up Sunday right away.
It was the offense鈥檚 turn after the defense quickly got off the field, and quarterback Josh Allen delivered. His first pass was a 23-yard completion to tight end Dawson Knox, and the offense was on the move from there.
Allen completed his first six passes and 7 of 8 overall on Buffalo鈥檚 opening drive, which methodically made its way 90 yards down the field, culminating with a 2-yard touchdown pass from Allen to rookie receiver Keon Coleman, who made a one-handed catch on a fade route 鈥 much to the delight of several thousand Bills fans who鈥檇 made the cross-country trip.
Allen threw for 80 yards and James Cook ran four times for 24 yards as the Bills overcame three offensive penalties to reach the end zone.
鈥淔irst drive, go down there and get points 鈥 something we鈥檝e talked about repetitively over the course of the last couple of weeks,鈥 Allen said. 鈥淔elt good to go out there and get it done.鈥
One of the best drives of the season ended up being the longest in terms of plays (14) and longest since Week 7 of last season against the New York Giants (a 17-play touchdown drive).
The offense wasn鈥檛 done, either. Just before halftime, Allen found tight end Dalton Kincaid for a 12-yard touchdown pass with 18 seconds left in the second quarter. That capped a season-long 93-yard drive that lasted 12 plays, taking 4:26 off the clock.
It鈥檚 the first time since at least the 1993 season the Bills had two touchdown drives of 90-plus yards in the first half of a game and the first time in the NFL since Carolina did it against Detroit in Week 16 of the 2022 season.
鈥淚 think it takes the crowd out of it,鈥 Allen said of the sustained drives. 鈥淚t quiets them down quite a bit, which helps with communication. Helps really with just the whole vibe and momentum of the game. Crowds can be such a big part of it. I do want to shout-out Bills Mafia. That was a crazy scene walking off the field to the thousands of fans still here. Appreciate them coming out. Hopefully they enjoyed the game today.鈥
It鈥檚 a fair assumption that they did, and Allen鈥檚 play was a big reason why. He finished 24 of 34 passing for 283 yards.
Defensively, the Bills held the Seahawks to 0 yards on 10 carries in the first half, forced a turnover on downs in the red zone and held Seattle to a field goal after having a first and goal from the Bills鈥 2-yard line.
On that play, Rousseau stopped running back Kenneth Walker for a 1-yard loss. On second down, center Connor Williams鈥 snap sailed over the head of quarterback Geno Smith, leading to a loss of 19 yards.
The Seahawks鈥 sloppy play didn鈥檛 end there, either. Later in the second quarter, Smith tripped over one of his offensive linemen on a fourth-and-goal from the Bills鈥 1-yard line, leading to the turnover on downs. Rousseau touched him down. He finished with four tackles, two for loss, and one quarterback hit.
鈥淲e could have finished him a couple times,鈥 Rousseau said. 鈥淎t the end of the game, he was getting out. Sometimes that happens at the end of the game. It鈥檚 not going to be perfect.鈥
It might not have been perfect, but it sure was good enough.
The Bills led 31-3 after three quarters.
The Bills have held a lead of at least 21 points in four games this season 鈥 most in the NFL. The team returns home to face Miami at 1 p.m. Sunday with a chance to all but clinch the division in early November.
Bills running back James Cook rushes for a first down against the Seahawks during the first quarter Sunday at Lumen Field in Seattle.
Other observations from a mostly dominant day:
2. Austin Johnson, seriously, had an interception. The Bills鈥 6-foot-4, 314-pound defensive tackle had an interception in the third quarter. It was the first of his career at any level 鈥 high school, college or the NFL. Johnson鈥檚 interception came on a first-and-10 play in the third quarter with the Bills leading 17-3. Defensive end A.J. Epenesa provided good pressure on Smith, whose pass was deflected by defensive end Casey Toohill before Johnson grabbed it. That set the Bills up with a drive start at their 49-yard line, and the offense cashed in the takeaway when James Cook rushed it in from 2 yards out with 1:57 left in the third quarter.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an awesome moment to get that checked off the list,鈥 Johnson said of his first career interception. 鈥淚鈥檝e had a scoop and score for a touchdown in college, but never an interception, so that was cool.鈥
Somehow, McDermott remembered that fumble return for a touchdown that Johnson had for Penn State. The Bills鈥 coach laughingly said he doesn鈥檛 know how he remembers that, but Johnson sure does.
鈥淚t just bounced on the ground right to me and I just ran, had some good blocking, and ran 70-something yards for a touchdown,鈥 he said.
Wait. More than 70 yards?
鈥淵eah, I was tired the rest of the week,鈥 he said.
3. The officials鈥 arms had to be tired. If there is one major issue for the Bills to clean up despite the blowout win, it鈥檚 penalties. Buffalo was flagged a whopping 13 times for 85 lost yards. That鈥檚 far too many, and won鈥檛 be easy to overcome against better teams. The penalties came before the whistle, during the play and after, which won鈥檛 sit well with McDermott.
About the only good thing that can be said about the flags is that they were nearly equally distributed. The Seahawks got flagged 11 times for 82 yards lost.
The 24 combined penalties are the most in any NFL game this season, according to ESPN.
鈥淲e did a great job overcoming some penalties,鈥 Knox said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got to get that cleaned up.鈥
Sean McDermott speaks to reporters after Sunday's win in Seattle.
4. Allen鈥檚 streak came to an end. The Bills鈥 quarterback threw his first interception of the season, ending a streak of 300 straight passes without a pick, including the postseason 鈥 the longest of his career.
Allen鈥檚 streak of 231 straight passes in the regular season without an interception set a new Bills record, breaking the mark of 222 set by Tyrod Taylor in 2015.
鈥淚 think Amari Cooper slipped a little bit,鈥 Allen said. 鈥淐ould have put that maybe a little bit further behind. I put it on his body. It was a little wet. The guy made a good play.鈥
Cooper had a quiet game for the Bills, with just one catch for 3 yards.
5. Tyler Bass had no issues. For the second straight game after the Bills added kicker Lucas Havrisik to the practice squad, Bass was perfect. He made a 27-yard field goal in the third quarter to extend the Buffalo lead to 17-3 and hit all four of his extra points. Last week against the Titans, he made four extra points and a pair of field goals.
鈥淵ou鈥檙e only as good as your next kick, and we take it one kick at a time. Conditions were tricky, but the guys up front, the operation, it was good, and we were able to do our job today,鈥 Bass said. 鈥淵ou treat every kick the same. A 30-yard kick is the same to me as a 50-yard kick. It鈥檚 the same ball, so you just keep going.鈥
6. Fourth down has been no problem. Allen鈥檚 2-yard gain on a fourth-and-1 play from the Bills鈥 36-yard line early in the fourth quarter was the eighth straight time the Bills have converted fourth down to start the 2024 season. That鈥檚 the team鈥檚 longest streak of fourth-down conversions since at least the 1991 season. Allen鈥檚 ability as a runner in short-yardage situations is a big reason why the Bills are so good on fourth down.
7. Baylon Spector got another start. The third-year linebacker replaced the injured Terrel Bernard in Buffalo鈥檚 starting defensive lineup. Bernard missed his third game of the season, this one with an ankle injury after missing two earlier in the year because of a pectoral injury. Spector finished with five tackles.
Rookie linebacker Joe Andreessen, the Lancaster High School product, was back in the lineup for the first time since Week 5 at Houston as the Bills dressed just four linebackers.
Andreessen made a huge tackle covering a Buffalo kickoff in the third quarter, burying Seahawks returner Laviska Shenault Jr. at the Seattle 20-yard line.
8. Eli Ankou and Jalen Virgil each made their season debut. The Bills called up Ankou, a defensive tackle, and Virgil, a wide receiver, from the practice squad Saturday and they were active for the game. Ankou took the spot vacated by rookie DeWayne Carter (wrist surgery) and Virgil took the spot vacated by Curtis Samuel (shoulder). Samuel missed his first game of the season.
