The Buffalo Bills advance to 6-1 on the season after a tough, yet weird 36-10 win over the Baltimore Ravens. There was a ton of excitement around this game because of the history of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. However, that fell off quickly due to Lamar Jackson playing just one snap before suffering a thumb injury that took him out of the game early on.
Even then, the game was close up until the middle of the 3rd quarter which was a bit concerning for the Bills. However, Buffalo managed to outscore the Ravens 20-3 in the 2nd half to win while scoring 30+ points once again.
There is a lot to take away from this game, but the Bills get the win and now they get an extra day of preparation for Week 9 on Monday Night Football where they will take on the Minnesota Vikings.
Immediate reactions from Bills' Week 8 win over Ravens
1.) What an absolutely weird game
There was so much hype around this game, especially since Lamar Jackson was returning after missing the last 3 games for the Ravens. When you think of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson, you think of a dynamic matchup where it typically comes down to the wire. However, Jackson only played one snap before suffering a thumb injury on Baltimore's first offensive play of the game, being ruled out for the rest of the game.
Backup Tyler Huntley came into the game, but then he suffered a toe injury and was eventually ruled out. The Ravens had to bring in third-string quarterback Joe Fagnano had to come in and complete the game. It completely threw off the Ravens' offense for the entire game.
While Baltimore's defense kept it close up until halfway through the 3rd quarter, this is one of those wins where it happened in a way that almost no one expected.
2.) Josh Allen is setting himself up to be the best QB Bills have ever had
Josh Allen finished the game throwing for 289 yards and have 3 total touchdowns. Allen's first passing touchdown had given him the franchise record for the most pasing touchdowns, passing Jim Kelly who had 258 touchdowns which includes the playoffs.
At this point, Allen is on his way to having a majority of the Bills' franchise records but we all know that in order to solidify himself as the best QB in franchise history, he has to bring a Lombardi Trophy to Western New York.
3.) Bills' defense had every reason to succeed
With the injuries to Baltimore's quarterback room, the Bills' defense (who have been atrocious this year) had all the reasons to shine and that is what they did indeed. They only allowed the Ravens to gain 144 total yards of offense and forced 3 takeaways.
In addition, the Ravens only gained 10 total first downs all game long. There was no reason why Buffalo's defense shouldn't have been successful considering the circumstances they were given.
4.) Derrick Henry was a non-factor against Bills
While Derrick Henry was able to get into the endzone once, he was a non-factor for this Ravens offense once the gameplan for them changed. Henry only had 11 carries for 53 yards with his longest run of the game being 12 yards.
Buffalo's run-defense has been solid this year, but we all know that Henry is an absolute stud when he gets going. It was important for him to be limited, and Buffalo did a great job doing it.
5.) DJ Moore was well-missed
After missing the last two games for the Bills, DJ Moore made his return and made his impact with 4 catches for 82 yards and a score. His longest catch went for 49 yards over Marlon Humphrey that help put the Bills in scoring position to go up 23-10.
The offense is more dangerous when Moore is healthy and out there creating plays. Seeing his connection with Josh Allen was a fantastic sight for Bills fans.
6.) Tyler Bass gained even more trust from Bills Mafia
Coming into this game, Tyler Bass had not attempted a field goal of 50+ yards. Against the Ravens, he successfully converted on 3 field goals in which 2 of them went for 50+. On the day, Bass finished with 12 points and going 3/3 on field goals and 3/3 on PAT attempts.
Bass also set a new record for the most consecutive field goals made, and he's also made six consecutive field goals of 50+ yards, which is tied for the longest streak in Bills history.
7.) Post-bye week success continues for Bills
Make this 12 consecutive wins coming out of the bye week for the Bills. The success continues on for Buffalo with extra rest and it came against another AFC team that they now have the tiebreaker over. Not to mention, the Bills have also put the Ravens down even more in the AFC North.
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