Buffalo Bills vs. New England Patriots: Storylines for Wild Card Weekend

Does Isaiah McKenzie play a prominent role for the Buffalo Bills?

One of the big changes from the first to second matchup for the Buffalo Bills was Isaiah McKenzie getting the start at slot receiver. He started the game due to Cole Beasley being on the Reserve/COVID-19 list and had a career game with 11 receptions, 125 receiving yards, and one touchdown.

While McKenzie has not been able to replicate that performance in the final two regular season games, he has seen his snaps on offense increase with over 20 snaps in each game. The question for this game is do the Buffalo Bills give McKenzie more opportunities this week considering how well he played and the Patriots seemingly not having an answer to slow him down.

The Bills entering this game likely will not have an all-or-nothing mentality and will give both McKenzie and Beasley a chance to make plays. Brian Daboll will have the luxury of seeing how the Patriots are defending the passing game and decide on the player that gives them the best chance to be successful.

When in man coverage the Bills can have McKenzie on the field to utilize his speed to run away from defenders while Beasley plays more against zone by leaning on his route running and experience of finding the soft spots in those zones.