The Buffalo Bills are hoping to clinch their spot in the AFC playoff bracket this week with a win over the Cleveland Browns and a bit of help from around the league. While the Browns are 3-11, they aren’t a cake-walk opponent either.
Since the Browns’ Week 9 BYE Week, Cleveland has lost five games, but three were by 7 points or less. They also got that third win of the season against Las Vegas, and the offense has certainly looked a bit better with Shedeur Sanders under center, though consistency is still lacking.
Of course, defensively, the Browns are still one of the premier units in the league. A big reason why is Myles Garrett, though there are stud defenders dotted across every area of Cleveland’s defense. That’s why these Bills' offensive players need to be ready to step up to meet the challenge in Week 16.
The Cleveland Browns present a defensive test Buffalo Bills' offense must be ready for
James Cook
James Cook’s inclusion on this list has less to do with production and more to do with protecting the football. Cook has fumbled six times this season, four of them coming in the past three weeks. While Cleveland isn’t the best defense at forcing turnovers, one thing they are good at is forcing fumbles.
The Browns have forced 11 fumbles this season, which is tied with several teams for the sixth-highest total in the league, just five behind the league-leading Pittsburgh Steelers, who forced two fumbles on Cook three weeks ago.
Beyond the fumbles, Cook has been a major bright spot for the Bills’ offense down the stretch. He’s getting yards in bunches, keeping drives alive, and finding the endzone plenty enough. But the fumbles have become a major concern, giving Cleveland at least one strand of hope for a path to an upset victory.
Cook held onto the rock last week on 24 total touches with 111 yards from scrimmage. A similar performance from Cook, void of fumbles, will help Buffalo preserve their advantages elsewhere throughout the contest.
Michael Badgley
Technically, Michael Badgley isn’t an offensive player, but the Bills' fill-in place kicker for Matt Prater this week needs to be ready to nail his kicks when called upon to put points on the board. The Brown’s defense is one of the stingiest in the league, ranking third in yards allowed and second in first downs allowed.
While Buffalo’s offense has certainly proven it can score on just about anybody with its third-ranked scoring offense, Cleveland has a way of shortening drives and forcing them to end in kicks. Granted, Cleveland’s defense ranks 31st in average starting field position, so even just a first down or two can often put Buffalo in a position to at least put up a field goal attempt.
With Badgley filling in for Prater this week, the Bills might need to count on him for more than a few PATs and a field goal. Badgley made 10 of 11 kicks for the Indianapolis Colts earlier this season, but he was cut for missed PATs, going 18-21. He carries a career field goal percentage of 83.1 and has a career long of 59 yards.
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Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown
The Bills aren’t only trying to ensure victory this week, they’re also trying to prevent Myles Garrett from breaking an NFL record against their quarterback. Garrett has 21.5 sacks this season, putting him just 1.5 sacks away from breaking the NFL’s single-season sack record held by Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt.
Thankfully, Dion Dawkins and Spencer Brown are back in their starting spots at left and right tackle after missing some time prior to last week with respective injuries. Both will be tasked with taking Garrett on, as will the interior protectors for certain stunts and blitzes that Jim Schwartz loves to mix in with Garrett.
Garrett has gotten his sacks in bunches this year, grabbing his 21.5 sacks in just 11 total games. Still, he’s tapered a bit since getting seven sacks in two weeks in mid-November. Nonetheless, he’s recorded at least one sack in each of the past three games, including 1.5 last week against the Chicago Bears.
Allen has been sacked 33 times so far this season, matching the second-highest total in his career. Dawkins and Brown have combined to allow eight of those sacks.