Buffalo Bills: 5 takeaways from Bills vs. Lions from the stands

Three standouts on defense

With Matt Milano out, the team needed a few playmakers to step up and make plays. To me, Lorenzo Alexander, Jordan Poyer and Shaq Lawson were the three players that made a difference.

Alexander was all over the field when he was out there on Sunday. He made several key tackles and was able to stick with his man in coverage. On one play, I saw the 35-year-old Alexander lay out to intercept a pass and had it just sneak through his hands. Not all of his plays show up on the stat sheet, but Alexander is still making plays at his age and I hope the Bills re-sign him to keep his play and leadership around.

Coming from the back end of the defense, Jordan Poyer was also all over the field. He led the team with 11 tackles and was strong in coverage and in the run. I saw him take LeGarrette Blount head on and take him down to stuff a run play.

Poyer and Hyde are both so versatile in the secondary with the ability to cover and tackle, but their playmaking ability on the back end makes them even more dangerous.

With the Pro Bowl rosters being announced this week, I feel as both players were snubs. Poyer is one of the most complete safeties in the league despite his size. He is a sound tackler and can cover with the best of them. As for Alexander, he has been a major impact player at his age and leads the team in sacks.

Shaq Lawson stood out to me because of his ability to knock the ball down at the line. It is something I heard he had been working on in the offseason and it seems almost every time a ball in batted down at the line it comes off Lawson’s had. He may not ever become the defensive end he was drafted to be, but he is a well-rounded player who has found a knack for getting in passing lanes.