The Buffalo Bills offense may be one of the best since Josh Allen took over as the starter. With Allen under center with one of the league's best offensive lines, the team has opened up running lanes for one of the league's best running backs, James Cook. The protection has also helped Allen throw to an improved receiver corps led by DJ Moore.
With the individual talent already being there, Allen and this unit have found a way to work together and play as an 11-player unit when on the field. However, Bills Mafia has yet to see a dominant blowout victory in which the Bills sustain drives and stay away from turnovers.
Let's take a look at what adjustments the Bills offense needs to make after bye week.
4 tweaks Bills offense must make before facing Ravens this Sunday
1.) Smarter decision making from Josh Allen
Josh Allen's high-powered style of play and willingness to make off-platform throws have mostly positive results. But as expected, it has also led to costly mistakes and poorly timed interceptions. That's how Allen will be expected to play for the rest of his NFL career. It wouldn't hurt if he were smarter about avoiding turnovers; he has nine touchdowns and four interceptions in six games.
He also has a tendency to get a bit hyped up and wants to make the big play with his legs, especially when he reaches the end zone. Allen will need to work on being calmer in the pocket during high-intensity moments, especially when the Bills are in the red zone and about to score more points.
2.) Consistant success from James Cook
It also helps a superstar quarterback like Allen when the running back is led by the reigning rushing champion, James Cook. The speedy back is key to helping the Bills sustain drives and run the clock down in a 4-minute offense. When the Bills can hand the ball off to Cook, it protects Allen from taking a big hit when he is running the ball.
Cook's footwork and mobility also create big plays for big-play wide receivers and even open up Cook as a pass-catcher on halfback screens in the backfield. The one caveat with having a fast and dominant running back in Cook is that he has a tendency to fumble the ball, especially when a defender punches the ball out of him from behind.
After the Week 5 overtime win over the Rams, head coach Joe Brady challenged Cook by limiting his snap counts if he kept fumbling in big moments. Instead of complaining, Cook took it to heart and rushed for 95 yards on 22 carries and 1 touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 6, but more importantly, he didn't fumble all game.
3.) More big plays from the passing offense
With Week 8 finally here, the Bills know their best ball is ahead of them, and they hope to juice up their passing game with more spectacular plays. The team hopes to marry Allen's deep-ball plays to Moore while trusting Cook to hold on to the football when running out the clock.
While the team doesn't have the salary cap money to add more talent to the receiving corps, the Bills will rely on Khalil Shakir's talent and the chemistry with the other receivers.
With Brady still calling the offense as head coach, he wants to mimic the look of Sean Payton's Denver offense, using a mix of deep balls and quick screens to keep defenses on their toes.
4. Versatile offense to control tempo and lead
Some of Brady's strengths as a playcaller include mixing up the playbook, running the ball down constantly, and using Allen to make big-time throws when needed. He should keep adding running plays and short-yardage tush pushes to tire out the defense late in the game.
They should also keep running the ball at will with Cook to set up Allen's arm downfield because if Allen can't throw, Cook can't run. Lastly, they need to make this offense so unpredictable that it can adapt to these high-pressure, loaded-box defensive schemes.
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