Marshawn Lynch suspended for game against Buffalo Bills
By Connor Price
The Buffalo Bills will play the Oakland Raiders without Marshawn Lynch this week, but is that necessarily a good thing?
Marshawn Lynch has been underwhelming if not disappointing for the Oakland Raiders this season. According to ESPN, Lynch has gained 266 yards on the ground in seven games, and 3.7 yards per rush.
His teammates Jalen Richard and Deandre Washington have gained 4.5 and 2.3 yards per rush respectively. The difference is that they are threats out of the backfield, and that is the direction that the prototype of running backs is headed.
The Raiders seem to have no problem being without Lynch for the game against the Buffalo bills; a massive game for either team. Raiders’ coach, Jack Del Rio, even went as far to say:
"“They don’t have the size and the power but they have a little more quickness, [but] they catch the ball a little easier, better route-runners, things like so. So, if you’re playing a little more wide open, in some respects, they give you a little more juice,” Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said of Lynch’s backups, Jalen Richard and DeAndré Washington. “Marshawn give you the power back when you want to finish people and in tough situations. Those guys give you more than a change of pace.”"
Buffalo has been one of the better defenses in the NFL when it comes to defending the run. They rank 7th in the NFL in rushing yards allowed (84.5 YPG), but that shouldn’t be what they’re worried about this Sunday.
Defending the pass is where they struggle. The Buffalo Bills have played some serious passing offenses this year including the Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos, Cincinnati Bengals, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The wide receivers on each of those teams are extremely talented. The Bills have allowed 258.7 passing yards per game, 26th worst in the NFL according to ESPN.
The Oakland Raiders will miss him in short yardage and kill-the-clock situations, but the Buffalo Bills shouldn’t be too happy to not see him on the field Sunday.
The Buffalo Bills will host the Oakland Raiders at 1 o clock Sunday, October 29th.
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Do you think the Oakland Raiders will struggle without Marshawn Lynch? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!