After the Buffalo Bills started 4-0 this season (first time since 2020), they have been looking to go to their first Super Bowl. The team has shown many improvements each game, but is lacking in some major ones that could inhibit their chances of making the "big game".
Let's examine some areas that require improvement for the team to continue thriving, despite the 4-0 start.
How can the Bills improve going into Week 5?
Offense
While OC Joe Brady has had this unit buy into the "everybody eats" philosophy, that doesn't mean he's immune to constructive criticism when fans feel he needs it to better himself every day. In the fourth down and one call late in the fourth quarter against the New Orleans Saints, on Sunday,
Josh Allen should have handed the ball to James Cook and had him do what he was doing all game long, and run it up the middle to keep the drive alive.
Instead, he may have overthought the analytics of that play and ran an end-around with WR Elijah Moore that the Saints snuffed out perfectly. That drove the team back for a loss on the play and a turnover on downs.
While it didn't cost the team in the end, they came out on top with the win. Brady made a rare mistake, and while it's okay to be critical in that moment, it's what makes him human. Being a young coach, he'll definitely learn from that, especially with the big Sunday Night matchup on primetime against the New England Patriots this Sunday.
Defense
This past offseason, the Bills invested in free agency and in the draft to make them one of the best pass-rushing units in the NFL. Instead, they have been nonexistent, and that was the case against Spencer Rattler last Sunday. It seems the Bills kept backing off from blitzing, which allowed Rattler to throw intermediate passes on third and long to convert the first down all day long.
Unlike Brady, who earned criticism for that blunder on fourth and one, DC Bobby Babich doesn't deserve criticism for his defense scheme. His scheme is designed to rush the passer, but it's a work in progress when you have a young defense.
In addition, having a young and talented defensive unit means that the good moments are there, but there are also growing pains where the youth and inexperience are evident. The one positive sign is that it can only improve from here, and perhaps by the end of the season, opposing quarterbacks will no longer want to complete a pass against this pass-rushing unit.
As for the run defense, they are ranked 31st in the league, but that number is skewed, as the Bills gave up a significant amount of rushing yards against RB Derrick Henry in Week 1. Since then, the Bills have been able to contain the run, thanks in part to rookie DT Deone Walker emerging as a dominant run defender.
Don't forget, DT TJ Sanders is another rookie in the lineup, and although it doesn't show up in the stats, he has contributed in a way that helps opposing offenses get into third-down and long situations. Overall, the offense appears efficient despite Brady's mistake, and the defense is still in the process of development. Still, it's coming together, and it's expected to be one of the NFL's generational units for years to come.