Buffalo Bills run game will be key to a win in Week 11 against Jets
By Alfred Ezman
The Buffalo Bills sit right at .500 (5-5) on the season as they head into a matchup with the New York Jets. It will be a revenge game for Buffalo as they look to draw even with the Jets on the season after a 22-16 week one loss in Metlife Stadium. The Jets are looking to complete a season sweep of the Bills for the first time since the 2016-17 season.
The Bills are looking to draw ahead of .500 with a win that would end a 2-game losing streak. A key to this will be exposing New York's run defense. The Jets run stopping has not been pretty in 2023, they are 31st in the league in yards per game (138.4).
Buffalo Bills run game looks to have better performance against New York Jets
It seems strange as Buffalo was held to under 100 total rushing yards against New York in Week 1, but as time has gone on, the Bills' run game and Jets run defense have seemingly evolved into different identities.
The Bills' last opponent, the Denver Broncos, is the only team worse than the Jets in allowed yards per game. And on Monday night, Buffalo was able to rack up 192 total rushing yards with lead back James Cook having a 100 yard game himself. It was his second 100+ yard game this season. Cook also had his best yards per carry average on the year at 9.1.
Latavius Murray also had a great night for Buffalo with a 7-yard average for 68 total yards. He also got into the endzone against Denver. It was by far the 33-year-old veteran's best game of the season.
The run game was one bright spot in Buffalo's fifth loss of the season. They did what they could and needed to do against the worst run defense in the NFL based off of yardage. With the Bills remaining at home and welcoming in another poor run defense, both Bills' running backs, Cook and Murray, should be able to gain their footing against them. This will be huge for Buffalo's offense to help them win.