The Buffalo Bills will head to Seattle for a primetime showdown on Monday night against the Seattle Seahawks. The Bills come into this one loser of two straight after losing at home to the AFC East-leading Patriots and seeing their record drop to 4-4 on the season. The Seattle Seahawks, the division leaders of the NFC West have put together a record of 4-3-1 on the season after having lost their last matchup against the Saints and tying the Cardinals a week prior. This matchup will pit together two teams in desperate need of a win in search of their identity, a game that can shape the outlook of two franchises this season.
The Bills have been shaken by injuries and this game will be no different as they will be without Marcel Dareus who made his season debut a week ago as well as Corbin Bryant and Brandon Tate. On the offensive side of the ball, the Bills look to be regaining some key components as LeSean McCoy is likely to play after missing a week with a hamstring injury. This a Bills team that has been reliant on the run offensively as they are second in the league in rushing compared to thirty-first in passing, as lopsided as it gets offensively.”You have to be patient with our running game because like you said, that team is very athletic. Sometimes they’re going to make some hits in the backfield on you, whatever it is, it may look ugly at times, but we got to be persistent I think with the running game,” said Bills head coach Rex Ryan.
In addition to returning injured players the Bills recently signed Percy Harvin out of retirement who is looking to get into football shape for the Monday night matchup against his former team. Harven stated,”at this point in my career, it’s important for me to listen to my body, listen to the coaches, and not just try to be that dog and feel like I can overcome everything. Like I said, I’m mentally where I need to be. I’m focused, very focused. I’m rejuvenated, so we’ll see what happens.”
This will be perhaps the best defense the Bills have and will face the entire 2016 season as the Seahawks rank in the top ten in all major defensive categories. Most notably the Seahawks are only allowing 89. yards on the ground per game this season, the one area the Bills have seen success offensively. The Seahawks defense is also second the league in points allowed per game, thanks in large part to the pressure they have been able to apply to the quarterback. As a team they have racked up 22 sacks on the season, 13 of them coming from Cliff Avril and Frank Clark along with their dominant defensive line.”There’re several teams that have really good defenses but they’re definitely in the conversation if they’re not (the best). Love the way they play. I mean this team flies around to the football. It’s everything you want as a defensive coach, you look for that kind of temperament,” explained Rex Ryan.”The collisions cause turnovers like these guys run, they hit, it’s not just the front-seven, it’s their whole team. Obviously, you got the two great safeties, hope the big guy takes a week off but we’ll see. I’ve been really impressed and I’m happy that (Michael) Bennett’s not going to play against us. Oh my goodness, that guy’s—I mean, wow. He’s unusual, a guy who can make so many plays from inside, outside, he’s all over the place but I’m glad he’s not going to play this week.”
The key for the Bills in this one will be the play of their defense against a banged up Russell Wilson. Wilson has been battling injuries all season long and the effect of which has shown up in the box score as he has not thrown for a touchdown in three straight games. A slump of sorts can be a positive sign for the Bills, something they can look to exploit. “Obviously he has been hampered. I think it’s pretty evident on film. The bad thing is he looks great in the pocket throwing and is accurate and everything else, so he’s beaten you in different ways. But you can see where he’s not, you know, he’s not taking off with it like he used to,” mentioned Rex Ryan.
