Week 3: What Went Right

The Bills’ dominating 37-3 win over the Commanders was a highlight reel of a game.  Each week the Bills seem to come back stronger and more polished.  Aside from a few bad play calls, the offense looked efficient with Stefon Diggs getting 111 yards and James Cook rushing for 98 yards.  However, the defense was the star of the show this week, holding the Commanders to only a field goal for the entirety of the game.  Many defensive players made a huge splash this week – they are the focal point of what went right for the Bills during this matchup.  

1.  Terrel Bernard 

Terrel Bernard was thought to hopefully be the replacement for Tremaine Edmunds who the Bills let go in the off season, but there was a lot of concern over Bernard’s ability to fill this void.   Bernard has surpassed all expectations after week 3.  Bernard recorded 2 sacks, a fumble recovery, and an interception.  Any of those plays on their own would have been impressive, let alone all of that in one game.  He looked absolutely explosive.  Because of this, Bernard earned himself AFC Defensive Player of the Week.  Faith can be restored that Bernard will continue to be the MLB that the Bills were longing for, and maybe more.  With this dominant performance, the Bills are hopeful that Bernard is able to deliver in the coming week’s big matchups.  

2. Interceptions!

Not allowing the Commanders a touchdown is largely thanks to all of the interceptions by the Bills defense.  Epenesa, Hyde, White, and Bernard each had an interception during this game.  For fourth year DE AJ Epenesa, it was his first career interception and touchdown.  These interceptions are good for two reasons – they get the ball out of the enemy’s hands and they give the defense the confidence to be able to do it again.  After the interceptions, the defense looked unstoppable.  This type of defensive pressure is exactly what the Bills were hoping would come together in the off season, and they just might’ve gotten it.  Not to mention, the Bills are still without Von Miller.  Once Von Miller is back, this defense could be at an even higher level.

3.  Tyler Bass

Tyler Bass played a huge role in the Bills’ win this week, putting up 13 points.  Even after intense rain pregame, Bass was able to come out of it with 100% accuracy.  This earned Bass AFC Special Teams Player of the Month for September.  Bass has been a reliable player for the Bills.  It’s easy to forget the days of not being able to rely on the kicker and crossing your fingers that it makes it through the uprights.  Having a talent like Bass really gives the team an edge up in games like this, and will continue to have a huge impact all season with closer matchup ahead in the schedule.

It’s no doubt that the defense played a crucial role in this game, and the momentum can’t stop going into week 4.  The Bills are facing a Miami Dolphins team that put up 70 points last week, so a strong defense is going to be vital.  Improvement has been clear with each week so far, so it’s onward and upward to week 4 for the Bills.