A look back at the Buffalo Bills’ Week 4 win over the Atlanta Falcons.
I’ll say it again.
What a win. What a weekend.
Travelling down south to beat the Atlanta Falcons was the type of win the Buffalo Bills have been searching for, for quite some time.
It was an impressive win to say the least and the type of victory that could boost the Bills into their bye week next week. At the very least, Buffalo carries some steam into Week 6 when it takes on the Cincinnati Bengals.
The injuries to Jordan Matthews and Ramon Humber are troubling, but for now, we’ll forget about that.
You know the drill, this column profiles the players who took steps forward and also regressed each week. Welcome to Risers and Fallers.
Risers
Charles Clay
Tyrod Taylor said in the preseason that he was going to get Charles Clay the ball more often this season.
Boy, has that been the case through four weeks.
Clay was stellar once again this past Sunday. The tight end caught five passes for a season-high 112 yards. He even came in as Pro Football Focus’ top tight end for the week, with an 89.5.
Clay forced three missed tackles, and his 5.33 yards per route run led all tight ends in Week 4, according to PFF.
Our highest graded TEs from Week 4 pic.twitter.com/7o0VIqvtAb
— PFF (@PFF) October 4, 2017
With the injury to Jordan Matthews, Clay will become an even bigger focal point in the Bills’ passing game. At this point, Clay, Taylor and LeSean McCoy are Buffalo’s only consistent offensive weapons.
Micah Hyde
Micah Hyde came up huge for the Bills time and time again this past Sunday.
With two interceptions, he was a star for what has been an impressive secondary this season. In fact, Hyde had the second-highest grade for the Bills, behind only Clay, in their win against the Falcons. He scored an 87.
"“We like going places being the underdog, having that underdog role. We know what we have to do week in and week out to get wins and stay focused,” Hyde said on PFT Live recently, via Pro Football Talk. “We’re going to be counted out plenty more times this year and that’s not going to change our mindset of what we’ve got to do going into the game.”"
Hyde’s three interceptions at the quarter-mark has him tied for the league lead.
Steven Hauschka
When the offense has sputtered out just short of the end zone, Steven Hauschka has continued to bail his team out. This includes against the Falcons.
Hauschka kicked fourth-quarter field goals of 56 and 55 yards to both ice Atlanta and secure his second straight AFC Special Teams Play of the Week honor. He became the first Bill to do so.
"“It feels great,” Hauschka said, via BuffaloBills.com. “This is what I prepared for all offseason. All training camp this is where the work pays off. Just to have that mental focus, that endurance, those great leg swings. That’s what it’s all about.”"
The Bills kicker has now made 11 straight 50 yarders dating back to last season when he was with the Seattle Seahawks.
Jerry Hughes
If the Bills were going to take down Matt Ryan and the high-powered Atlanta offense, they were going to need a strong showing from their pass rushers. That’s what they got.
Facing a tough test in Jake Matthews, Jerry Hughes came to play against the Falcons.
Hughes’ strip sack in the second half proved to be the defining play as TreDavious White scooped up the ball and ran the other way to score.
The talented pass rusher also had a quarterback hit and four hurries. An impressive game against a talented offensive lineman.
"“You’ve seen Jerry Hughes’ play,” Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said, via BuffaloBills.com. “Jerry’s one of the premier pass rushers in our league. It’s smart to pay attention to Jerry Hughes.”"
Fallers
Marcell Dareus
Once again the talented, yet struggling defensive tackle works his way into the “fallers” portion of this column.
Marcell Dareus played just 22 snaps against the Falcons. It was the lowest on the defense. He registered just one hurry.
Now he’s lost his starting job.
Cedric Thorton has moved ahead of Dareus on the depth chart. However, Bills head coach Sean McDermott said that if Dareus continues to get healthy things could change moving forward.
"“I think we moved in the right direction,” McDermott said, via NYup.com. “He continues to get the treatment he needs to get at this point and take care of the business off the field with respect to the treatment. I think we’re trending in the right direction. “You hope second week back as opposed to the first, you would think logically that would make sense. We’ll just see. I won’t know until we get off the field today.”"
His health did impact the number of snaps he saw against the Falcons.
Next: BLD Podcast: Can the Bills best Cincinnati?
Dareus will have the chance to bounce back against the Bengals this weekend.