What We Saw: Week 3

Los Angeles Rams @ Buffalo Bills

If you don’t believe in momentum in sports, you might as well just ignore this game. Halfway through the 3rd quarter, the Bills were totally in control leading 28-3. However, following a strange Josh Allen interception the world turned upside down and Jared Goff led the Rams to a lead. Ultimately a questionable pass interference penalty and Tyler Kroft‘s second touchdown led the Bills to a wild victory. Let’s dive in and see what we saw.

Los Angeles Rams

Quarterback

Jared Goff: 23/32, 321 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT, 2 sacks | 2 carries, 4 yards, 1 TD

Maybe there is something to the West Coast team playing a 1:00 game because Jared Goff looked asleep for the better part of half the game. With 6:28 to go in the 3rd quarter, Goff had a line of 11/19, 108 yards, and an interception. However, four-straight touchdown drives are a surefire way to turn that line around. The first half was one for Goff to forget, as the Rams marched the ball down to the Buffalo 24 yard line on their opening drive. But Goff took sacks on 2nd and 3rd down and rookie kicker Sam Sloman missed a 53-yard field goal. On their second possession, Goff threw an interception. On the third possession, the Rams marched down the field, but had the drive stall and settled for a 30-yard field goal. The second half was significantly better after the momentum shifted. Goff looked revitalized, and thanks to two Bills turnovers, the Rams were helped by two short fields. Goff also led the Rams on a 10 play, 97-yard touchdown drive, and overall this performance against a tough Bills defense was an encouraging one.

Running Backs

Darrell Henderson, Jr.: 20 carries, 114 yards, 1 TDs | 3 targets, 1 reception, 6 yards

Malcolm Brown: 7 carries, 19 yards | 2 targets

With Cam Akers out, Darrell Henderson drew the start for the Rams, and oh boy did he look good. Henderson finished the game with 8 plays that went for 7 yards or more and overall he looked fast and electric, while Malcolm Brown looked like he was running in mud. Henderson even saw 4 red zone carries versus Brown’s 1. This is now two straight weeks that Henderson has found the end zone and looks to have taken over as the lead back for the time being. Cam Akers is waiting in the wings when he recovers from his injury, but with the Rams emphasizing the run (32 carries in a game they trailed 21-3 at the half) this is a backfield to invest in, and Henderson appears to have the lead job for now.

Rams final HB snap count
Darrell Henderson 34
Malcolm Brown 34

— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) September 27, 2020

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

Cooper Kupp: 10 targets, 9 receptions, 107 yards, 1 TD

Robert Woods: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 74 yards, 1 TD, 1 fumble | 3 carries, 30 yards

Josh Reynolds: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 60 yards, 1 fumble lost

Tyler Higbee: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 40 yards

Gerald Everett: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 34 yards

So much of these stats came while the Rams were in catch-up mode. The first thing I noticed was that the tight ends were not featured in this game. In fact, Tyler Higbee‘s first target of the game came midway through the third quarter. Not what I expected after a huge, three-touchdown game.

Cooper Kupp looked good and had a couple of really nice catch and runs. Just one of his targets was considered a deep target and he saw just one target in the red zone – the touchdown. You have to love how the Rams use Robert Woods, as they scheme to get the ball in his hands. Woods saw three carries, one deep target, and a couple of screen-plays set up for him, including this 25-yard catch and run after Goff was nearly sacked.

https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1310295286007226368

One thing to note – if you’re just checking the box score, you’ll see fumbles from Van Jefferson, Robert Woods, and Josh Reynolds. All of these are from the lateral play on the final play of the game. Definitely a little misleading there.

Buffalo Bills

Quarterback

Josh Allen: 24/33, 311 yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT, 4 sacks, 1 fumble lost | 4 carries, 8 yards, 1 TD

It was a tale of two halves for Josh Allen. He looked brilliant leading his team in the 1st half, but the Rams pass rush got to him in the second half, forcing turnovers on a fumble and a flukey interception in the second half. For fantasy purposes, Allen was great and he didn’t even need to rack up the rushing yards. He’s a top-end QB1 moving forward. Here’s the Allen pick. The catch would’ve been negated by an offensive pass interference penalty regardless, but I’m not sure about the interception call.

This has been called an interception for Josh Allen. #Bills pic.twitter.com/Bwsqwd6bbu

— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) September 27, 2020

Running Backs

Devin Singletary: 13 carries, 71 yards | 5 targets, 4 receptions, 50 yards

With Zack Moss ruled out with a toe injury, Devin Singletary handled the running back workload. T.J. Yeldon was his backup but saw just 3 touches. Singletary had three carries that went for 10 or more yards and made an excellent move on a screen pass that broke him free for 34 yards. While Moss is out, this type of workload makes Singletary a back-end RB1 to a high-end RB2.

Devin Singletary cuts on a dime…@motorsingletary | @BuffaloBills | #BillsMafia

📺: #LARvsBUF on FOX
📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports app: https://t.co/9RobDGGsOD pic.twitter.com/JslpFXj6w6

— NFL (@NFL) September 27, 2020

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends

Cole Beasley: 7 targets, 6 receptions, 100 yards

Gabriel Davis: 4 targets, 4 receptions, 81 yards

Stefon Diggs: 6 targets, 4 receptions, 49 yards, 1 TD

Tyler Kroft: 5 targets, 4 receptions, 24 yards, 2 TDs

John Brown: 2 targets

John Brown left this game after the first series with a calf injury. Rookie, Gabriel Davis saw the field because of the Brown injury and made the most of his playing time. Davis caught all four of his targets, including a 39-yard deep ball. Davis makes for a decent stash in case Brown misses extended time.

Stefon Diggs saw a solid amount of Jalen Ramsey but still managed a good fantasy day. Before finally finding the end zone in the 3rd quarter, Diggs had two additional touchdowns negated – one due to the ball touching the ground and one due to a penalty.

Ah, the classic Cole Beasley big week. There will be 2-3 more of these sprinkled into the season, but your guess is as good as mine as to when it will come. However, if Brown were to miss time, Beasley is a sneaky PPR flex play, and he may be playable regardless while this offense keeps humming. He also made this incredible catch on 3rd and 22 to keep the final drive alive.

Cole Beasley gets the first down🤭🤭🤭 #BUFvsLAR
pic.twitter.com/FjYkM3OMqL

— CJR Sports (@Sports_CJR) September 27, 2020

With Dawson Knox out in concussion protocol, it was the Tyler Kroft show. Kroft caught an easy 1-yard touchdown on a play-action fake, where his defender thought Allen was planning on running the ball. His second touchdown of the day was the game-winner.

2 TDs ✅
1 game winner✅

Tyler Kroft ends it in Buffalo. #FantasyFootball | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/k6U7tpo4fB

— QB List (@TheQBlist) September 27, 2020

-Rich Holman (@RichardoPL83)