Josh Allen’s stat line against the Chargers looked nothing like the electric start he had put together through the first two weeks, and Bleacher Report reflected that with a C- grade for the Bills quarterback.
In Buffalo’s Week 3 win over Los Angeles, Allen was picked off twice and lost a fumble, giving him his first turnovers of the season. He finished 16 of 26 for 204 passing yards and did not throw a touchdown pass, though he still found the end zone twice on the ground.
"You're not going to win very many games turning the ball over that much," Allen told reporters. "Sometimes the ball bounces the other way.
That's what happens. ... We've got to clean a lot of stuff up."
Even with the rough outing, Allen remains the early MVP favorite. Through three games, he has thrown for five touchdowns and run for six more, while completing 65.1% of his passes for 786 yards.
The performance against the Chargers stood in sharp contrast to what Allen did in Week 2 against the Detroit Lions in the opener at Highmark Stadium. In that game, he completed 20 of 31 passes for 248 yards and three touchdown throws, looking every bit like the NFL’s best player.
Buffalo has rolled to 33.7 points per game over its first three contests, and Allen has been at the center of nearly all of it. He has accounted for 90 percent of the team’s touchdowns and 79 percent of its yardage.
That production helped put Buffalo in rare company early. The Bills are only the third team in NFL history to start 2-0 while allowing 30-plus points in each of those games. Allen’s numbers through the opening stretch have also been historic on their own: against the Lions, he recorded his fourth career game with at least three passing touchdowns and two rushing touchdowns, and only Kordell Stewart, with two such games, has done that more than once in league history.
Allen also joined Ernie Nevers in another exclusive club, becoming the second player in NFL history to pile up at least nine total touchdowns and four rushing touchdowns over a five-day span. Nevers did it from November 24-28, 1929, when he scored all 59 of the Cardinals’ points in two wins, 19-0 and 40-6.
On top of that, Allen became the first player in NFL history to record at least five passing touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns through the first two games of a season.
Still, the quarterback’s focus is bigger than awards. He wants the championship that has eluded Buffalo, and he made clear after the Chargers game that the turnovers had to be cleaned up.
The Bills now turn to Week 4 against the New England Patriots. New England is 1-2 after going to the Super Bowl last season, and Drake Maye has seven turnovers this season. Buffalo enters the matchup as a heavy favorite.
Allen and the Bills have twice reached the AFC Championship Game in his tenure, only to fall to Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs both times. That’s the backdrop as Buffalo keeps pushing toward what Allen wants most.
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Bills Fans Have Every Reason To Be Furious Over That Flag
Buffalo fans had every right to bristle after Gregory Rousseau was flagged for roughing the passer on a hit against Justin Herbert, because the call landed right in the middle of the NFLs ongoing confusion over what, exactly, the league wants defenders to do. The roughing the passer rule, especially the so-called body weight standard, has been a source of irritation for years, and this one looked like the sort of play that leaves viewers wondering whether the officials are enforcing the rule as written or as interpreted in the moment.
The frustration only grows when a similar situation in another game involving Patrick Mahomes is part of the conversation, because inconsistency is what makes these penalties feel so hard to swallow. For the Bills, the issue is bigger than one flag. It is about a rule that can swing a drive, alter a game plan, and leave a defense feeling as if it is being asked to thread an impossible needle every time it gets near a quarterback. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Sit Atop The AFC For One Very Convincing Reason
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What has set Buffalo apart is the way it has handled business on the field, with the performance of key players and the most recent game results giving the Bills the edge in this informal race. Kansas City and Las Vegas are still unbeaten, too, but for now the Bills sit atop the AFC for a reason that goes beyond the standings alone. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Have 48 Hours To Make One Tough Roster Decision
Phidarian Mathis is back on the Bills active roster after serving his suspension, and that return has put Buffalo on a short clock to sort out the numbers. The move gives the team 48 hours to make a matching roster decision, a familiar kind of late-summer bookkeeping that can quickly turn into a meaningful call for a club trying to keep depth intact on both sides of the ball.
The likeliest path appears to involve rookie guard Armaj Reed-Adams landing on injured reserve, which would open the necessary space without forcing Buffalo to part with one of its defensive linemen. DeWayne Carter and Mike Danna remain among the players the team seems inclined to keep in the fold, but until the Bills actually file the corresponding move, the roster picture stays unfinished. [Read more 🡒]