Packers @ Bills
Final Score: Bills 19, Packers 0
Writer: Joe Orlofski (@joeorlofski on Twitter)
Quarterback Josh Allen led the Bills to the second-most points in the NFL last year, right behind the Green Bay Packers. And he made a big point in this one that he is coming for the number one spot. Allen looked sharp in the first half of play, and it appears as though the Bills will be happy with throwing the ball a ton.
The Packers’ offense under Jordan Love looked solid, however, they were unable to score thanks to penalties, bad throws, and a very good Bills’ defense. The future does look bright for the Packers, and Cheeseheads should be happy figuring that Aaron Rodgers is done after this season.
Let’s take a look at some of the more fantasy-relevant players in this game.
Green Bay Packers
| Preseason Week 1 | Preseason Week 2 |
Quarterback
Jordan Love: 12/18, 149 yards, INT | 3 carries, 16 yards
Kurt Benkert: 7/11, 61 yards
Jordan Love returned after a one-week absence and was facing a lot of the starters on the Bills, one of the best defenses last year. Love started well, making a nice 29-yard pass to Reggie Begelton.
.@jordan3love ➡️ @LUcrew_Frenchy
2️⃣9️⃣-yard gain!
#GBvsBUF | #GoPackGo📺 @nflnetwork
📱 https://t.co/bE19jZCodD pic.twitter.com/QYQaYJ8oji— Green Bay Packers (@packers) August 28, 2021
Begelton was wide open so it was a throw most Quarterbacks should make. From there, the Packers ran the ball a lot so Love really didn’t do much else on this drive. He threw a decent pass on 4th and goal to Begelton but he couldn’t make the tough catch.
Love’s second drive was a bit more clunky, however, he did have a lot of defenders in his face and had to throw on the run a few times. That included an ill-advised throw that resulted in an interception.
Micah makin' moves. 😤 pic.twitter.com/NNq34QGCvc
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 28, 2021
Love obviously was under duress, but he made a bad decision by chucking it off his back foot. That created an underthrow that was easily picked off by the defender.
Love finished off the half with some good throws, including a 27-yard pass to Malik Taylor. Taylor definitely made the catch of the game, which you can see below. Love also showed his legs on this drive, rushing for 10-yards. Love doesn’t run often, so don’t get used to it.
The story of this first half for Love was that he was efficient and sharp (besides the interception), but was unable to punch the ball into the endzone.
Love continued to play in the second half. The drive ended with a punt and he didn’t see the field again.
Kurt Benkert came into the game late in the third quarter. Benkert has looked solid this preseason, but he won’t see much of the field this year. He throws well on the run. He too was driving down the field and made a nice 20-yard throw that was called back due to a ticky-tack interference call. They ended up with fourth and inches that they went for and were stuffed. It was a toss play that was a bad toss by Benkert that caused Dexter Williams to have to pause to catch it.
Running Back
AJ Dillon: 7 carries, 18 yards | 1 target
Kylin Hill: 7 carries, 37 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 7 yards
Patrick Taylor: 6 carries, 19 yards | 2 targets, 1 reception, 15 yards
Dexter Williams: 5 carries, 28 yards | 1 target
AJ Dillon started once again but was met with a lot of resistance in this one. Dillon got the carries near the goal line but was unable to punch it in.
Kylin Hill came in later in the drive once again and just looked more shifty than Dillon. He has looked amazing this entire preseason, making guys miss with his cuts but also running over defenders with his strength. I may be harping on this a lot, but he really does look like a deep sleeper (and great dynasty add). Hill continued his hard running on the second drive, rushing for an 11 yard gain.
#Packers rookie Kylin Hill is gonna be a problem this season 😤😤 https://t.co/45nylGpRy0
— Joe (day 1 dontayvion wicks fan) (@joepkipp) August 28, 2021
Hill continued to get the ball late in the second quarter, making a nice six-yard gain even after slipping. He also caught a pass for seven yards that brought the Packers to the ten yard-line. Hill then gained another seven yards on a hard run. Like seriously, I can’t gush about Hill enough. I might buy this dude’s jersey just by watching these three preseason games. Anyway….
Patrick Taylor came into the game in the third quarter and had a tough time getting anything going on the ground. He was facing some Buffalo starters still, which is difficult when the Packers have a backup line.
Dexter Williams came in late in the third quarter and had some solid carries, including a 12-yard carry on his first attempt. Like I have mentioned in past articles, Williams is on the bubble and might make the team but won’t have any fantasy relevance.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Malik Taylor: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 69 yards
Reggie Begelton: 6 targets, 4 receptions, 51 yards
Amari Rodgers: 7 targets, 6 receptions, 41 yards
Josiah Deguara: 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards
Jace Sternberger: 2 targets
Dominique Dafney: 1 target, 1 reception, 23 yards
Just a quick note: Wide Receiver Devin Funchess was released by the Packers with an injury settlement. Funchess sat out 2020 due to COVID and then had a great first preseason game before getting hurt. I guess the Packers feel comfortable with their current receivers.
Tight End Josiah Deguara (rookie) got the start with Jace Sternberger and there are some high hopes for him to start behind Robert Tonyan. He only had one catch in this one.
Reggie Begelton has had some hype over the past few seasons and is fighting for a roster spot. He has made some big plays this preseason, including the 29-yard catch mentioned above.
Malik Taylor has also had a great preseason and made a good catch on the first drive.
On the second drive, it was all Begelton, making a few short catches that kept the drive going.
On the final drive of the half, Taylor made an amazing sideline catch, hauling in a 27-yard pass.
.@jordan3love connects with @Taylor12Malik!
#GBvsBUF | #GoPackGo📺 @nflnetwork
📱 https://t.co/bE19jZCodD pic.twitter.com/MaUjOdqtCz— Green Bay Packers (@packers) August 28, 2021
Taylor made another catch on the next play.
Amari Rodgers made his first catch on the final drive of the half, turning a short catch into a nice gain with his legs.
In the third quarter, Taylor continued making catches and should make the team. He may not have a ton of fantasy relevance, but he is someone to look out for in the future, especially if Adams does leave.
Rodgers did most of his damage with Quarterback Kurt Benkert, but most of his catches were short passes. He should make the team as a rookie but might have to wait a few years to see fantasy relevance.
Buffalo Bills
| Preseason Week 1 | Preseason Week 2 |
Quarterback
Josh Allen: 20/26, 194 yards, 2 TD | 1 carry, 4 yards
Jake Fromm: 10/16, 87 yards | 3 carries, 17 yards, TD
Davis Webb: 3/6, 23 yards | 2 carries, -2 yards
Josh Allen got the start in this one, probably as a dress rehearsal for the start of the NFL season. The Bills ran the no-huddle on the first drive. Allen was sharp on the first drive, only throwing one incompletion. He finished the drive with a beautiful 31-yard touchdown pass to Wide Receiver Gabriel Davis.
Coming in HOT‼️@JoshAllenQB | @DavisGB1
📺: WIVB + @NFLNetwork + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/to0ftDZ5x4
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 28, 2021
It was a beautifully thrown ball, but give credit to the speedy Davis for creating separation.
On the second drive, Allen started with a bomb to Emmanuel Sanders, who couldn’t catch up to it. The drive ended up sputtering out after an off-target pass by Allen on third down.
Allen continued to look sharp on the third drive, making some good plays using his legs, including a short run on fourth down to extend the drive. He also made a great pass across his body, while running, to Beasley.
Nothing we love more than Josh Allen on the run.
📺: WIVB + NFLN + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/rF2Ypcekn3
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 28, 2021
Allen capped off this drive with a short three-yard touchdown pass to Zach Moss, who looked like the best back for the Bills in this game.
Jake Fromm came into the game during the third quarter. The second-year signal-caller out of Georgia figures to be fighting for the backup job in Buffalo. He made some nice throws and overall looked solid, including a nice throw to Jake Kumerow, who couldn’t keep his foot in bounds near the goal line. Fromm finished the long drive with a great 16-yard scramble for a touchdown.
Fromm's got wheels!
📺: WIVB + NFLN + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/JQMqF0skWi
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 28, 2021
Davis Webb came into the game in the fourth quarter and really didn’t do much of note.
Running Back
Devin Singletary: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 8 yards
Zach Moss: 4 carries, 10 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 3 yards, TD
Matt Breida: 1 carry, 16 yards
Kerrith Whyte: 5 carries, 11 yards | 4 targets, 3 receptions, 16 yards
Devin Singletary was the first back on the field for the Bills and was targeted on the first play of the game. Singletary didn’t receive a single carry, although the Bills didn’t hand the ball off at all on the first drive so take that with a grain of salt.
Zach Moss came in on the second drive and got the first carry of the game for the Bills. He only gained one yard.
Matt Breida came in on the third drive and got a jet sweep that he took for 16-yards. It was his only carry of the game. It really seems like the Bills will be content to just throw the ball this season. Moss continued to get carries, making a nice gain that was called back due to a holding call early in the drive.
Moss once again had a big gain (15 yards) that was called back due to holding. He easily could have had 30 extra yards rushing had those penalties not been called. Moss made a nice touchdown catch in traffic to give the Bills a 14-0 lead.
Allen and Moss workin' the middle!
📺: WIVB + NFLN + The Bills App pic.twitter.com/b5ybqkRaea
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 28, 2021
Kerrith Whyte came into the game in the third quarter, and will probably have no relevance in fantasy. He showed some nice burst and made a few bigger plays, but he seems firmly cemented behind Moss and Singletary for now.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Gabriel Davis: 5 targets, 5 receptions, 75 yards, TD
Cole Beasley: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 52 yards
Emmanuel Sanders: 8 targets, 4 receptions, 27 yards
Dawson Knox: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards
Nate Becker: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 33 yards
Tanner Gentry: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 29 yards
Brandon Powell: 1 target, 1 reception, 15 yards
Jake Kumerow: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 15 yards
Marquez Stevenson: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 15 yards
Jacob Hollister: 2 targets
Steven Sims: 2 targets
Cole Beasley returned from the COVID list this past week and made the most of this game, starting off right away with a catch across the middle for a short gain. Gabriel Davis also made his presence known on the first drive, catching a nice 13-yard pass to extend the drive. Tight End Dawson Knox started at the position and made his only catch on the first drive. Newly added Emmanuel Sanders also saw action, catching three short passes throughout the drive. The drive was capped with the 31-yard touchdown to Davis.
Davis continued to shine, making a nice move on a defender to extend a play. Along with star Wide Receiver Stefon Diggs, Davis could make this receiving corps even more dangerous.
Beasley made a nice 14-yard catch on the third drive where he had to dive down to make the catch. He was targeted on a long throw the very next play but it was too far.
In the second half, former Packer Jake Kumerow made a few short catches. It’s unsure whether he will make the roster, but with so many receivers in front of him, he probably won’t see the field a lot.
— Joe Orlofski (@joeorlofski on Twitter)