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Buffalo Bills: Keys to victory and final score prediction for Week 7

By Kendall Mirsky

ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 13: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills looks to pass during a game against the New York Jets at Bills Stadium on September 13, 2020 in Orchard Park, New York. The Bills defeated the Jets 27-17. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
ORCHARD PARK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 13: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills looks to pass during a game against the New York Jets at Bills Stadium on September 13, 2020 in Orchard Park, New York. The Bills defeated the Jets 27-17. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /
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Buffalo Bills
Sep 13, 2020; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills running back Zack Moss (20) runs with the ball in front of New York Jets defensive tackles Nathan Shepherd (97) and Steve McLendon (99) during the third quarter at Bills Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports /

Buffalo Bills need to establish the run

Through six games of the season, the Bills have yet to have a performance that proves to any opposing team that they should fear the Buffalo Bills’ ground attack. The only week that should concern opponents is Week 1 against the Jets, but even then the Bills leading rusher was Josh Allen. In addition to being the leading rusher in that game, Allen also led the team in rushing attempts with 14.

In Week 7, it would be nice to get the running backs going against yet another poor rushing defense. After the Jets’ last game, they traded their top run stuffer and 1-tech defensive tackle Steve McLendon. Even with McLendon, the Jets are ranked 20th in total rushing yards allowed, but they are better on a per rush average ranking 11th in the league.

Additionally, the Bills drafted Zack Moss this year to pair him with Devin Singletary, the way they believed Singletary would pair up with Frank Gore last season. However, to this point in the season, Moss has only played in three games and has been largely unproductive, similar to Gore during his time with Buffalo.

However, the issues in the running game this season seems to be more about issues on the offensive line than they are about the play of the running backs. During this past week, the Bills released offensive guard Quinton Spain in a mysterious fashion. This was after he had been a healthy scratch and taken a step backward on his performance from last year, thus not living up to the value of his contract extension. In better news, Week 7 may be the week the Bills finally activate offensive guard Jon Feliciano off of Injured Reserve.

It may be a stretch, but Feliciano plays with a certain fire and competitive edge that hasn’t been shown on the Bills offensive line this season. Bringing this type of tenacity back into the mix could be exactly what the offensive line needs to create consistent holes for Moss and Singletary. For Week 7 and onward, the Bills need to establish Moss and Singletary as threats in the running game in an effort to ease closing games by churning the clock and keeping possession away from their opponents.

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