Buffalo Bills: Keys to victory and final score prediction for Week 8
Coming off a less than impressive victory over the New York Jets, the Buffalo Bills head back home to Orchard Park to face the New England Patriots in Week 8.
After underwhelming performances from both the New England Patriots and the Buffalo Bills in Week 7, they will both have a lot to prove in this Week 8 contest. Although the Bills won in a somewhat dominating fashion, it did not feel like the Bills were dominant relative to how they have performed so far this season. Fans have gotten used to games with a lot of offensive output from the Bills, and while the Bills did score on six occasions last Sunday, they were all field goals from rookie kicker Tyler Bass.
Although the Bills’ defense dominated the Jets offense from about midway through the second quarter until the end of the game, Bills fans were left with more to be desired with Bass missing two field goals in addition to the six he made. Being in a scoring position eight times in one game and only putting up 18 points is unacceptable. However, the defense pulling their weight and thrusting the Bills to victory last week is exactly the kind of thing the Bills needs to build upon moving forward.
Entering Week 8, the Bills are 5-2 and still have not played a full game of complementary football. A game where the offense is clicking like it was the first four weeks of this season, while the defense is playing lights out like fans have been accustomed to since head coach Sean McDermott’s arrival to Buffalo.
On the other side of things, the Patriots have had a miserable month of October, playing three games without a win. Obviously, things are different for the Patriots this year without Tom Brady at quarterback. After their last few performances and current standing in the division, they should play with a high level of desperation and urgency.
If the Patriots lose this game to the Bills in Week 8, it could mean the beginning of the end for their race to win the AFC East this season. These are the keys to victory for the Buffalo Bills this Sunday against the Patriots.