Thad Brown: Bills prove they still have their fastball

It was a long ten days for the Bills.

I heard from a large chunk of BillsMafia since the loss to Houston. Many wanted Sean McDermott tarred and feathered. They wanted to shoot Brandon Beane out of a cannon. And those were the nice ones.

There won’t be anyone from Buffalo searching for Super Bowl tickets just yet, but Sunday’s win in Pittsburgh quieted the angst for a moment. The Bills got their season back on the rails by doing what they do best. They pounded the rock.

But this time, they did it without their best people.

Spencer Brown and Dion Dawkins were bystanders for this game. The first game in 16 years the Bills played without their two starting offensive tackles. Ryan Van Demark and Alec Anderson were more than up for the task as replacments.

The result was a new record for opponents in Acrisure Stadium. Buffalo ran for 249 yards. It was the most for any team the Steelers hosted in 50 years. Since O.J. Simpson and the Electric Company charged into to Pittsburgh for a 310 yard day in 1975. The Juice had 227 of that.

“I’m so proud of both those guys,” Josh Allen said. “It was very cool to see them get their opportunity tonight and they took advantage of it.”

James Cook rolled up 144 yards–his second biggest game of the season–on a career high 32 carries. He wasn’t alone. Ray Davis averaged seven yards a pop with 62 on nine rushes. Allen set a new record for TD rushes by a quarterback with his 76th and replaced Cam Newton as the all-time most threatening QB with the ball in his hands near the goal line. Allen still isn’t even 30 years old. He’s going to put that record where no one will ever find it.

No tricks were needed with Van Demark and Anderson. The Bills did all the things they always do in the run game. They did them over and over. Even the legendary T.J. Watt dumbfounded by the avalanche that buried his defense.

“I’ve never seen a team run the same play that much and have that kind of success,” Watt said. “I’m out of words for it.”

It doesn’t get any better for a Joe Brady offense. When he finds something that’s working, he’ll bash a defense with it again and again until they stop it. And then he’ll go back to it later. Brady doesn’t overthink. He’s not busy re-inventing the wheel. He knows the Bills O-line and Cook often present an advantage and he’s not afraid to spam it.

The game plan was ruthless in its logic. Van DeMark and Anderson against the Steelers’ elite pass rush was the A-1 concern. Brady never gave that rush much of a chance. Passes were gone quickly with screens and slants. Even if one of those slants turned into an early interception, the strategy made sense. A top five pass rush managed just one quarterback hit all evening. Sure, the game script and the ridiculous run success helped, but that’s good coordinating work for a man some thought might not have survived last weekend.

Joey Bosa made the game-changing play with the sack-fumble on the first play of the second half and I thought it was a good example of what was best about this Bills defense against the Steelers. Something that had nothing to do with Bosa.

It took four and a half seconds for Bosa to reach Aaron Rogers. That’s damn good coverage. Four and a half seconds where Cole Bishop was locked up man to man with D.K. Metcalf. And won. Buffalo was covering six on five because Christian Benford was in on a blitz. They still won. They were winning all night. Rodgers didn’t even complete 50 percent of his passes. That’s something he hasn’t done in five years.

Pittsburgh’s receiving core isn’t exactly Jamar Chase and Tee Higgins, but one group excels just fine. Steeler tight ends are top seven in receptions and receiving yards. They have the second most touchdowns. The Bills secondary is number one by a lot limiting tight end production. This was good on good. Buffalo’s good was way gooder.

That’s not to diminish Bosa’s work. Even if it took a while, getting to the quarterback and forcing a turnover is an elite skill. That’s the skill the Bills paid 12 million dollars to acquire. Bosa has been consistently applying pressure most of the year. He’s been good, but that play has been missing. The later the season gets, the more Buffalo will need a couple more of those.

Don’t look now, but the Bills also shut down someone’s run game. Pittsburgh’s 58 yards rushing were a Buffalo season best. The offense might have set records, but it took a half to close the leaky faucet of turnovers and penalties. McDermott and Bobby Babich had their side of the ball ready from the start. The only points allowed were on a 39-yard field. Six of nine third downs were stopped. Plus a 4th down.

This might have been an even better defensive game than the shellacking in Carolina. If only Buffalo could play ancient quarterbacks every week.

After his big game, Cook shared a text he sent to the two backup tackles that morning.

“I told them I trust them and believe in them. ‘Let’s go. Let’s go get a win’,” Cook said. “They texted me ‘I love you brother. Let’s go’.”

This is what the Bills do. They believe. They believe in the process. They believe in the roster 1 thru 53. They believe in Allen. It’s part of why Allen has never lost consecutive starts twice in the same season. He’s now 26-9 after a loss. Only Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes follow losses so well among QBs who entered the league with Allen.

The Bills also likely believe they can make another late run. It’s fair to still be skeptical. The receivers remained mostly invisible. Keon Coleman handled his off-field business enough to grab a key touchdown. Brandin Cooks contributed right away with a conversion on the game’s first third down. There wasn’t much needed from the receivers with the run game dominating, but five catches for 32 yards isn’t soothing any nerves. Not against a fairly middling Pittsburgh defense.

After a week and a half of wondering if there’s still much anything left to believe in on this team, the Bills proved what they have against the Steelers. They have a young secondary on the rise. A QB that makes defenders feel like they’re trying to catch a pickup truck at the goal line. Maybe even a game-changing edge rusher.

And the Bills can run the hell out of the ball. They can do it with lots of different people and even if a defense knows what’s coming. That’s the Buffalo fastball and it was humming this week in Pittsburgh.

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