These are three players on the Buffalo Bills that are trending up after win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
While the result was the same, which was a Buffalo Bills win and they remain undefeated on the 2020 season, they got some plays from unlikely players. These are players that may not have been a big part of the team’s gameplan the first three weeks of the season but could see their role expanding in the coming weeks.
Josh Norman
This was the first game Josh Norman was active for the Buffalo Bills as the veteran corner was placed on injured reserve at the start of the year. Norman had suffered a hamstring injury during training camp and the team elected to let him get a little bit more time to heal up. That decision has appeared to pay off.
Josh Norman was put on the field early out of necessity as Levi Wallace suffered an ankle injury six plays into the game. While the secondary still has some things to work out, Norman actually had a pretty solid game.
One of the things that were noticeable in this one was a certain toughness that Norman brought to the secondary. He made some hard tackles and had a key play when he forced a fumble and then recovered it.
The addition of Josh Norman should be a big boost for a passing defense that currently is averaging the eighth-most passing yards per game in the NFL.
Cody Ford
The second-year offensive lineman has bounced around a bit in the early part of his NFL career. Last season, Cody Ford was the Buffalo Bills primary right tackle however he has shifted inside to guard at the start of the season with the addition of Daryl Williams at the right tackle.
Ford started at right guard in Week 1 and Week 2 but moved to left guard last week against the Rams. The reason that Ford is trending up is that it appears the coaching staff has finally committed to a position for Cody Ford.
The reason this is because during the game against the Las Vegas Raiders, starting right guard Brian Winters suffered an injury that forced him to leave the game. It would have certainly made sense to move Ford back to right guard, where he played to start the year and move Quinton Spain back to his position of left guard.
However, the Bills elected to keep Ford at the left guard position and replace Winters with Spain. The Buffalo Bills should be close to getting back Jon Feliciano from his pec injury and when he all signs point to Cody Ford being the team’s starting left guard.
Gabriel Davis
The Buffalo Bills fourth round pick didn’t see a high volume of targets, he actually only saw one, but made it count by coming down with a 26-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Josh Allen.
The reason that Gabriel Davis is trending up is not because of this one game but what he has done through the first four games of the season. The Buffalo Bills have seen their top receivers suffer injuries during the season with John Brown missing a significant part of the game against the Los Angeles Rams and then against the Las Vegas Raiders it was Cole Beasley.
It has been Gabriel Davis who has stepped up and has helped this passing attack continue performing at a high level without missing a beat.
The question becomes how does offensive coordinator Brian Daboll and the coaching staff get more work for Gabriel Davis when there isn’t an injury. There is no question that the Buffalo Bills found a steal with the selection of Davis in a year that the wide receiver class was deep and one of the best in a very long time.