We’ve got an extra week of Buffalo Bills football as they have escaped with a 27-25 win over the tough Baltimore Ravens. The Bills fixed their mistakes that they made against the Ravens back in Week 4 and won the meaningful game against them. With this win, Josh Allen remains undefeated against Lamar Jackson in the playoffs and the Bills finished 10-0 at home this season.
The Bills now get a chance to take their shot by taking down the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs. The Chiefs have completely owned the Bills in the postseason the last couple of years. However, this Bills team feels different than prior ones. There is more chemistry and more of a bond amongst the roster.
As the Bills now turn their attention to the Chiefs, it’s important to point out who stood out in the win and who was a disappointment.
Who are winners and losers for the Bills from win vs. Ravens?
Winners:
DT Ed Oliver
It’s been a struggling season for Ed Oliver, but he had a great game against a Ravens team that we all knew was going to pound the rock. Oliver seemed to always be near the ball throughout this game and had a couple of nice stops in the backfield. Oliver will need to bring this energy next week to Kansas City.
K Tyler Bass
Tyler Bass keeps on delivering for the Bills and he came up big for the Bills in this game. In addition to going 3/3 on PAT attempts, Bass was perfect in field goal attempts which included a 51-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to keep the Bills ahead of the Ravens.
It is very possible that next week’s game could come down to a field goal for the Bills and Bass is showing that the Bills can trust him. Let’s just hope that it doesn’t just to be on the safe side.
WR Khalil Shakir
I swear, Khalil Shakir almost never drops anything and he showed it once again. On seven targets, he had six receptions for 67 yards which included a team-high 34 yard reception. He can be used in short yardage situations as well as down the field. He is Josh Allen’s go-to guy and he came up big for the Bills against a Ravens defense who has improved their pass-defense in recent memory.
S Damar Hamlin
It was a fantastic night for Damar Hamlin. He not only led the team in total tackles (8), but he also sacked Lamar Jackson and forced a fumble as well, which was a turning point in the game. In fact, without that forced fumble on Jackson, who knows if the Bills even end up winning this game.
Hamlin was unreal in this secondary and he helped contain a tough Ravens offense. The big question is whether or not he can repeat that success next Sunday.
DE Greg Rousseau
It’s a matter of time before Greg Rousseau gets his contract extension and hopefully it’s with the Bills. He’s consistently creating pressure and his ability to stop the run has massively improved. He helped keep Jackson in the pocket and was able to let a free defender go into the backfield to make a play behind the line of scrimmage.
Losers:
CB Rasul Douglas
It was a bit of a rough outing for Rasul Douglas. He seemed to struggle to take on man-to-man coverage and got called for holding once again against Mark Andrews. While Douglas wasn’t a liability, he definitely wasn’t an asset. Douglas has to clean it up for next week unless he wants to be on the wrong end of a highlight play against the Chiefs.
WR Amari Cooper
When Josh Allen targeted Amari Cooper for the first time in the fourth quarter, the first thing that came to mind was “woah, Cooper does play for the Bills!” He had just a lone target in this game and was a non-factor once again. Cooper hasn’t been much of an impactful player since Week 17 for the Bills. Maybe next week will be a different story.