What We Saw: Week 7

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Titans @ Bills

Final Score: Bills 34, Titans 10

Writer: Brett Ford (@FadeThatMan)

The Buffalo Bills hosted the Tennessee Titans on Sunday afternoon in Orchard Park, with hopes of extending their lead in the AFC East while the Titans were looking to avoid a second-straight loss. Two teams clearly headed in opposite directions, this seemed like a mismatch on paper. However, the Titans jumped out to an early lead, taking advantage of a sluggish Bills start. Buffalo turned things around quickly though, scoring a second-quarter touchdown on just two plays. That quick-strike score was the start of 34 unanswered points as the AFC East leaders hammered the downtrodden Titans, 34-10. Let’s dig in.

Three Up

Amari Cooper – He must be thrilled with the change of scenery, change of culture, and most importantly, change of quarterback.
Keon Coleman – Showed burst and toughness with some great plays, including a whole lot of YAC.
Josh Allen – The Bills cut Josh Allen loose in this one, throwing the ball 33 times despite dominating the entire second half. Fantasy managers like that.

Two Down

Curtis Samuel and Mack Hollins – What little fantasy relevance they had has disappeared with the arrival of Cooper to Buffalo.
Calvin Ridley – Targeted 17 times over the past two games combined, Ridley has caught just three passes in that stretch.
DeAndre Hopkins – He was completely eliminated from the Titans’ attack.

Tennessee Titans

Quarterback

Mason Rudolph: 25/40, 215 Yards, TD, INT | 5 Carries, 13 Yards, 3 Fumbles (1 Lost)

Mason Rudolph did as much as he could as a backup quarterback getting a spot start on the road against a division leader. He was forced to throw the ball 40 times, completed 62.5% of his passes, and even connected on a touchdown pass for an early lead. However, he did commit a pair of turnovers and was harassed by an active Buffalo defensive front that generated 11 quarterback hits and three sacks. The decision-making wasn’t as egregious as Titans fans may have been used to, but he also took fewer risks than Will Levis usually does. Aside from the touchdown drive to open the game, there really wasn’t much to celebrate for Rudolph. Time will tell if he’ll get another shot at starting or not once Levis is healthy.

Running Back

Tony Pollard: 16 Carries, 61 Yards | 6 Targets, 2 Receptions, 4 Yards

The good news is that Pollard is an undisputed bellcow back in this offense and is seeing the usage as such. The bad news is that the Titans’ offensive line is the group blocking for him. Pollard was on the field for 65 out of 73 offensive snaps, ran 31 routes, and had 22 opportunities, but he was unable to turn that amazing workload into 70 yards from scrimmage, and could only pull in two receptions on six targets. Chalk this one up to a good player on a bad team and hope that he can channel his inner Chuba Hubbard and begin thriving as a garbage-time touchdown guy.

Wide Receiver/Tight End

DeAndre Hopkins: 1 Target

Hopkins was on the field for 44 snaps – nearly two-thirds of the offensive snaps – and was targeted just once and couldn’t even generate positive yardage. He’s still easing his way back from injury, but that’s not an excuse for him to only see one target. This is a passing game that I am getting as far away from as possible for the rest of the season.

Tyler Boyd: 3 Targets, 3 Receptions, 19 Yards

Chig Okonkwo: 4 Targets, 4 Receptions, 50 Yards

It’s kind of sad to get excited about a four-catch, 50-yard performance – but for a tight end this season that’s not a bad line! Chig Okonkwo is still in a rotation with fellow tight ends Nick Vannett and Josh Whyle but is being used much more in the passing game than the other two guys, and getting the most snaps out of the trio. In almost any other offense, Okonkwo would have a solid floor and a respectable ceiling, but with the Titans struggling to distribute the rock, Okonkwo is more of a bye-week fill-in type.

Nick Westbrook-Ikhine: 4 Targets, 2 Receptions, 10 Yards, TD

Nick Westbrook-Ikhine has now caught touchdown passes in back-to-back games. Is this something? Probably not, other than a good reason not to roster any other Titans wide receiver.

Calvin Ridley: 9 Targets, 3 Receptions, 42 Yards

After last week (8 targets, no receptions) it’s hard to blame Calvin Ridley for not showing maximum effort. But the man is making a lot of money to go out there and make plays. And he just isn’t. It’s time to cut and run.

Calvin Ridley is BACK! https://t.co/RPzyXi8KYG pic.twitter.com/vXJ4dWW5aE

— Chuck Bass (@ChuckFBass) October 20, 2024

Josh Whyle: 4 Targets, 3 Receptions, 34 Yards

Nick Vannett: 4 Targets, 4 Receptions, 25 Yards

Rudolph is almost exclusively going to check down and throw between the hashes. That’s where these guys run their routes.

Buffalo Bills

Quarterback

Josh Allen: 21/33, 323 Yards, 2 TDs | 3 Carries, 1 Yard

Allen threw for 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns as the Bills chucked the ball around the yard against a Titans run-funnel defense. Despite leading for the entire second half, Allen attempted a season-high 33 pass attempts and posted his first 300-yard passing game of the year. It wasn’t all rainbows for Allen, who started the day 1-for-5 throwing. He struggled to get the offense going in the first quarter but connected with Keon Coleman for a 44-yard completion in the second quarter to spur the Bills’ first touchdown drive and was excellent from then on.

Keon Coleman is pretty good after the catch!!#GoBills #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/PeZzZ0TRja

— Dave Myers BIB (@DaveMyersBIB) October 20, 2024

Are we seeing the beginning of “Old Man Josh Allen?” Through seven games, Allen has run for just 179 yards and three touchdowns and has only run for one touchdown in his last six games. The Bills are clearly making an attempt to protect their franchise quarterback from any unnecessary contact, limiting his ground game – much to the chagrin of fantasy managers. Allen is doing enough through the air to appease most, but his floor and ceiling are both lower than they have been in the past without the dual-threat production he’s shown in his earlier seasons.

So what is he doing? Well, for one – he’s taking care of the football. For years, Allen was accused of playing ‘Hero Ball’ and trying to force throws, taking unnecessary risks. Not this season. He’s thrown 189 passes this season without an interception.

Running Back

James Cook: 12 Carries, 32 Yards, TD

Are James Cook managers concerned after the Bills’ RB1 touched the ball just 12 times and was on the field for just 29 of 55 offensive snaps? Cook got neither the third-down snaps nor the short-yardage snaps but did manage to find the end zone for the Bills’ first score of the day. Maybe it’s because he’s still easing back from injury, but I would be concerned with the way he was used this week, especially in a game that was well in hand throughout the second half.

Ray Davis: 5 Carries, 41 Yards, TD | 1 Target, 1 Reception, 6 Yards

Ray Davis looked like an elite running back on his limited touches, averaging eight yards per carry and breaking off a 22-yard scamper and a 16-yard touchdown run. His scoring rush was probably the best run of the day by either team, as he eluded a tackler at the line of scrimmage, ran through some arms, and followed his blockers to the painted area.

Ray Davis cannot be stopped!!! 😤

📺: @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/qQyaqrxfUL

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) October 20, 2024

Ty Johnson: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 4 Yards, TD

For the second time this season, Johnson found the end zone on his only touch of the day. Cook managers (and now Davis managers) are likely petitioning for him to be jettisoned into the sun.

Wide Receiver/Tight End

Khalil Shakir: 7 Targets, 7 Receptions, 65 Yards

Khalil Shakir is still Josh Allen’s most-targeted receiver, but his underneath role and short-yardage prowess leave something to be desired – especially for those who were hoping for a fantasy breakout. He’ll get his, but it won’t be the breakout that we all hoped for in the preseason as an alpha wide receiver.

Amari Cooper: 7 Targets, 4 Receptions, 65 Yards

Amari Cooper must be excited to have catchable balls on a regular basis in Buffalo. In his first game with his new team, he connected for a touchdown (after asking Coleman what to do on the audible). With the upgrade at quarterback and offensive context, Cooper immediately jets up the wide receiver rankings and with time could become the alpha wide receiver that the Bills were lacking prior to his arrival.

Looks like Amari Cooper didn’t know the audible when Josh Allen checked the play. He looks to Keon Coleman who either tells him what to do or he makes it up 😂 TOUCHDOWN! pic.twitter.com/8jnXw1e4sQ

— Josh Allen Stats (@JoshAllenStats) October 20, 2024

Dalton Kincaid: 6 Targets, 3 Receptions, 52 Yards

Old reliable, Dalton Kincaid runs his five-yard outs, catches the ball in stride, and turns the corner upfield for as many yards as he can every game. Kincaid sort of faded into the background in this one as Coleman and Cooper stole the spotlight. He’ll still be doing the same thing next week though.

Keon Coleman: 7 Targets, 4 Receptions, 125 Yards

Coleman might finally be figuring things out, and just in time to make a very formidable wide receiver attack with the newly-acquired Cooper flanking him. With the defense now forced to focus elsewhere, Coleman made the most of his opportunities, and came EVER so close to an even bigger fantasy day. Somehow, this was ruled an incomplete pass as he didn’t quite gain control of the ball until after he went out of bounds.