ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. - Geno Stone had spent seven weeks on the outside looking in, cut, parked on the practice squad and waiting for another shot. On Sunday, with the Buffalo Bills short-handed in the secondary, he finally got it - and against the Baltimore Ravens, the team he played for from 2020 to 2023.
Stone’s return to the field came in Buffalo’s 36-10 win, and he wasted little time making himself visible. On Baltimore’s opening drive, he stepped up to stop Justice Hill on third down and helped force a punt after just three plays. Later, just before halftime, he tracked emergency quarterback Joe Fagnano, jumped into the throwing lane and tipped a pass that Davison Igbinosun intercepted.
Stone said he had a read on where the Ravens were likely to go.
“I knew Zay, to that point, really hadn’t had a target,” Stone said of Flowers. “So I’ll just make sure I was on Zay’s side. I should have picked it off, but IGB got his first one so he could have it.”
He finished with five tackles, including one for loss, plus a pass defended. Te’Cory Couch, who started at slot corner in place of injured Dee Alford, was part of another new-look back seven and said Stone’s presence mattered right away.
“He’s seen a lot of football,” Couch said. “He has a bunch of energy and he’s fun to play with.
He keeps everybody going even when something bad happens; he’s picking everyone up. It’s just an honor to play with him.”
For Stone, Sunday carried extra weight. He said it was the first time he could remember not playing during a football season since he was a kid, and he made a point of showing up every day with the right mindset while helping however he could. Even after getting cut in August, he said Jim Leonhard believed in him during the preseason.
So what did Leonhard tell him before his first game of the year?
“Nothing. Just go be me,” Stone said.
Stone also said he spent the offseason and camp working on tackling after it was an issue last season. His early hit on Hill felt like a statement.
“I got a lot to prove this year myself,” he said.
The Bills’ secondary was also dealing with the absence of C.J. Gardner-Johnson, who entered Sunday with nine missed tackles and was ejected from the Raiders game for spitting at an opponent. He is eligible to return next week, but Buffalo will have to decide whether the job is still waiting for him.
Cole Bishop, who said Sunday was the most cohesive the defense has looked all season, also had a strong day with a strip sack and a tackle for loss. He said he has been adjusting to playing much more man coverage in Leonhard’s scheme.
On Stone’s long road back to the field, Bishop was glad to see him get his chance.
“That’s my guy,” Bishop said. “He’s gone through a lot with the practice squad situation, and everybody is hoping to be on that 53. So I was excited for him to go out there today and make some plays.”
When asked whether a performance like this means Buffalo already has the answers to its early-season secondary issues in the locker room, Stone didn’t offer much.
“Hey, I’m here,” he said. “That’s all I gotta say.”
In Other News...
Josh Allen Just Added Another Massive Mark To Bills History
Josh Allen keeps adding to a Bills record book that already has his name all over it, and the latest milestone came against the Ravens. With another touchdown pass, Allen moved past Jim Kelly for Buffalos franchise lead in combined regular-season and postseason touchdown passes, reaching 259 and doing it in fewer games than the Hall of Fame quarterback.
The bigger picture for Buffalo is that this is not just a ceremonial marker. Kelly still owns the teams regular-season touchdown pass record, and Allen is close enough to make that next chase feel very real as the season continues. For a quarterback who has already reshaped the franchises modern era, this is another reminder that the Bills history is still being rewritten in real time. [Read more 🡒]
Ed Oliver Revealed What Helped Him Through A Brutal Offseason
Ed Oliver was back on the field for the Bills in Week 8 against the Ravens after missing a month with a knee injury, but the return carried more than the usual weight of a midseason comeback. After the game, Oliver talked about how much the defensive line room meant to him during a brutal stretch away from football, when simply getting through the day was the bigger challenge.
The Bills have leaned on Oliver as a difference-maker up front, and his presence matters even more when the season starts to tighten. What stood out most from his postgame remarks was the way he pointed to the people around him, a reminder that sometimes the most important support in an NFL locker room has nothing to do with scheme or snaps, and everything to do with getting a teammate through the hardest part of his life. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Passing Game Hinges On One Crucial Week 8 Receiver Call
D.J. Moores status has become one of the key Week 8 questions for Buffalo as the Bills prepare to face the Ravens. The receiver has been limited in practice while wearing a non-contact jersey, a sign the team is still managing the shoulder injury that has already kept him out the past two games after he first hurt it in Week 2 and then aggravated it in Week 4.
For a passing game looking to get back on track, Moores availability matters well beyond the injury report. Buffalo will not have a final answer until the inactive list is released before kickoff, leaving one more layer of uncertainty around whether he can suit up against Baltimore or whether the Bills will have to adjust again without him. [Read more 🡒]