What We Saw: Week 4

Another wild weekend of football culminated in one of the more memorable games in league history, and we watched all of it.

Ben Brown
What We Saw 3 Years Ago
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Introduction
Jaguars @ Bengals
Football Team @ Falcons
Texans @ Bills
Lions @ Bears
Panthers @ Cowboys
Colts @ Dolphins
Browns @ Vikings
Giants @ Saints
Titans @ Jets
Chiefs @ Eagles
Cardinals @ Rams
Seahawks @ 49ers
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Texans @ Bills

Final Score: Bills 40, Texans 0

Writer: Ben Brown (@BenBrownPL on Twitter)

 

Boy, this game was UGLY. It was absolutely pouring at kickoff and the rain continued throughout the day. Buffalo’s fans showed up in typical Bills Mafia form, with plenty of energy despite the harsh conditions, and it helped elevate Buffalo to a victory on Sunday. Not that they needed any help, because they were very clearly the best team on the field.

The game started with a sloppy fumble by Davis Mills on Houston’s first drive, and it was a sign of things to come for Houston’s offense on the day.

 

 

Houston had four total yards in the 1st half. Yes, four. Mills threw four interceptions and Jordan Akins also lost a fumble, meaning Houston turned it over five times to the elite Buffalo offense. Nobody wants to do that.

 

 

Buffalo started off slow, however, with Josh Allen throwing an interception on his first play from scrimmage.

 

 

Take a look at the Texans’ Twitter feed – this was the only highlight they posted from this game. Yes, this was pretty much the only good play Houston had all day. Allen airmailed a few more throws early in the first quarter before he finally seemed to figure it out, and he had himself quite the day.

We’ll get into the notable performances for Buffalo’s offense in the blurbs below. The only other thing worth noting about this game was that the feed cut out in the third quarter thanks to a power outage at the stadium.

 

 

We lost on-site announcers Beth Mowins and Tiki Barber and had to sit through the CBS studio guys bumble their way through much of the 2nd half without bringing much of anything to the broadcast.

 

 

Houston Texans

 

Quarterback

 

Davis Mills: 11/21, 87 yards, 4 INT, 3 sacks, fumble | 1 carry, 2 yards

 

Oof. On the bright side, Mills appeared to have an easier time throwing the football than Josh Allen did, at least in the first five minutes of the game. After that, it was all downhill. Honestly, the box score doesn’t really do it justice. Mills had NOTHING all day long. 28 of Mills’ 87 yards through the air came on their last drive, the two passes right before his fourth interception. At that point, it was already 40-0 and the Bills were clearly in prevent defense.

Mills’ first interception came on a ball he clearly should not have thrown, right into double coverage.

 

 

This wasn’t a pressure throw, just a bad decision. The offensive line did struggle throughout the game and Mills found himself scrambling out of the pocket often. Houston had no third-down conversions in the 1st half and only converted one in the second half.

Mills’ second interception was tipped at the line and wasn’t totally his fault. His final pick also wasn’t really his fault, as it slipped through the hands of the receiver right into the defender’s hands. But a pick is a pick and the final stat line was atrocious. The weather clearly impacted the game for both teams but Mills has a lot of work to do to become a competent starting QB in the NFL.

 

Running Back

 

Mark Ingram II: 6 carries, 24 yards

David Johnson: 5 carries, 21 yards | 4 targets, 3 receptions, 27 yards

Phillip Lindsay: 4 carries, -1 yards

Rex Burkhead: 1carry, -1 yards

 

Without being able to convert more than one third down in this game, Houston simply didn’t have enough plays for anyone to do much of anything from a fantasy perspective. The pecking order for these backs appears to be David Johnson, Mark Ingram II, and then Phillip Lindsay. Johnson started the game on their first drive and he had a 10-yard scamper on 3rd and 28. After the punt and the interception of Josh Allen, Lindsay was targeted on fourth and goal and would have had an easy receiving touchdown if Jerry Hughes hadn’t made a fantastic defensive play to deflect the pass.

 

 

According to the broadcast, this was the first possession Houston has had in the red zone this season that didn’t result in points. They very nearly had seven, though, and while it would have given Houston the lead I don’t think it would have mattered ultimately.

Ingram took the first carry of the second drive for a nice 10 yard run but ultimately was a non-factor. Phillip Lindsay took the first few carries of their third drive and was blown up in the backfield for a five yard loss. I don’t really have much more to say here about any of these guys. It was just a lost day for this entire team.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Brandin Cooks: 7 targets, 5 receptions, 47 yards

Jordan Akins: 1 target, 1 reception, 4 yards, fumble (lost) | 1 carry, 3 yards

Anthony Miller: 5 targets, 1 reception, 3 yards

Pharaoh Brown: 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards

Chris Conley: 1 target

 

Again, it was a rough one. Brandin Cooks was lucky to catch a 16-yard pass on their final drive of the game which helped pad the stats a little. He was blanketed by Tre’Davious White all day and simply wasn’t open at all for much of the day. Honestly, if you started Cooks you should be happy he put up 9.7 points for you in this one.

Anthony Miller caught a short screen on third and long, then broke it for 10+ yards but it was called back on a holding penalty. Most of his targets were uncatchable. This was my first time watching the Texans this season and boy, what a dumpster fire this team is going to be for fantasy purposes.

 

Buffalo Bills

 

Quarterback

 

Josh Allen: 20/29, 248 yards, 2 TD, INT, sack, fumble | 6 carries, 41 yards

Mitch Trubisky: 1/1, 8 yards | 4 carries, 10 yards, TD

 

Yes, the interception was clearly a poor throw and he had a few more bad throws early in the game that looked like he simply couldn’t get a good grip on the ball. About midway through the first quarter, however, he started to figure it out.

The first play that started to get them in a groove offensively was this run around the edge by Allen that went for 16 yards.

 

 

This appeared to get the team hyped and they rolled pretty much from this point on. Later in the drive, Allen connected with Dawson Knox for a 25-yard score that was opened up thanks to two great pump fakes that totally fooled the defense.

 

 

Yeah, you can say that Allen figured out how to throw it by the time the 2nd quarter rolled around.

 

 

At one point, Allen was nearly intercepted in the end zone when he threw a bad pass that slipped through the hands of Christian Kirksey. He also was unable to convert a fourth and three at the Houston 40 yard line. Other than that, Allen played very well and led them on a scoring drive almost every time Buffalo’s offense touched the field. All things considered, Allen played one hell of a game in the conditions.

Mitch Trubisky got involved in this one and scored a rushing TD of his own on their last drive of the game.

 

 

Running Back

 

Zack Moss: 14 carries, 61 yards, TD | 1 target

Devin Singletary: 14 carries, 79 yards, fumble | 1 target, 1 reception, 7 yards

Reggie Gilliam: 1 carry, 1 yard | 1 target, 1 reception, 8 yards

 

Devin Singletary was the lead back early in this one, and he consistently had chunk plays of five, six, or seven yards pretty much anytime he touched the ball. He was very efficient carrying the ball and looked dynamic at times. He was the better back on the day, but, unfortunately, he wasn’t able to get into the end zone. He did have a 42-yard run that would have put him over the 100-yard mark if not for a holding penalty that negated it. He also fumbled the ball late in the third quarter and lost some carries to Zach Moss, but he didn’t completely end up in the dog house (thankfully). Overall, if you roster Singletary you should feel good about his usage and how he looked in this game.

Moss had the best day fantasy-wise in this backfield but it’s clear that Buffalo will continue to split the carries evenly between the two. He had a chance at a breakaway TD in the 1st quarter but was just barely tripped up as he hit the hole. He still earned seven yards on the play but I do really think it would have been a much longer gain if not for an excellent play by the defender.

 

 

Moss ran for a really nice 17 yard gain that accounted for much of his overall total, but he was able to reach the end zone on a short punch-in that helped anyone who made the decision to start him this week. Moss’ only target also came on third and goal but the ball was a little high and out of his reach.

If this backfield were one player it would have been a monster day for your fantasy team. Instead, we had to split it between two equally solid players and anyone who rosters either player likely ended up a little disappointed considering the tasty matchup.

 

Wide Receiver/Tight End

 

Stefon Diggs: 10 targets, 7 receptions, 114 yards

Emmanuel Sanders: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 74 yards | 1 carry, 7 yards

Dawson Knox: 8 targets, 5 receptions, 37 yards, 2 TD

Cole Beasley: 2 targets, 2 receptions, 16 yards

Gabriel Davis: 1 target

 

Buffalo’s receiving core had no problem finding openings in the porous Houston defense pretty much all day long. Yes, Stefon Diggs had a monster day despite being held without a TD. Yes, Emmanuel Sanders looks to be a dangerous WR2 in this offense. The story of the day here is that Dawson Knox appears to be a legitimate threat in the red zone for Buffalo. Both of his touchdowns came in the red zone, and in fact, five of Knox’s eight targets came in the red zone. He nearly had a third touchdown that Allen threw to his back shoulder, except Knox turned inside instead and it resulted in an incompletion. It was just a miscommunication between the two that will likely get ironed out soon, and if so, look out.

 

 

Emmanuel Sanders made multiple high effort plays to extend drives, including a 20 yard gain while sliding onto his rear end to convert a third and long. He also converted another third-down catch late in the first half that led to a touchdown. Allen looked his way on multiple occasions when he needed to be bailed out, and Sanders was a reliable target for him. He also recovered a fumble after Stefon Diggs dropped it at the two-yard line. His veteran leadership and experience will come in handy for Buffalo this season.

I don’t think I need to say much about Diggs. He was a beast and caught pretty much everything thrown his way. He was tackled short of a touchdown once, and had he punched it in it would have been a much bigger day for anyone who started him, but you really can’t complain with his output in the pouring rain. Diggs is an absolute stud.

Gabriel Davis‘ lone target was in the back of the end zone and the ball was thrown over his head. He wasn’t needed in this game.

 

— Ben Brown (@BenBrownPL on Twitter)

Series Navigation
Introduction
Jaguars @ Bengals
Football Team @ Falcons
Texans @ Bills
Lions @ Bears
Panthers @ Cowboys
Colts @ Dolphins
Browns @ Vikings
Giants @ Saints
Titans @ Jets
Chiefs @ Eagles
Cardinals @ Rams
Seahawks @ 49ers
Ravens @ Broncos
Steelers @ Packers
Buccaneers @ Patriots

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