Let Josh Cook

The Bills’ conservative offensive game plan nearly cost them in the first half. If it weren’t for a heroic effort from Allen at the end of the 1st half and in the 4th quarter, we would’ve had a long week as Bills fans. I understand wanting to lean on James Cook and the run game – but if this is who Josh Allen is nowadays, you HAVE to throw the fastball as much as possible. Let him be a difference maker from the jump.

That doesn’t mean abandon the run altogether, but Allen looks like he was reaching a new level in the 4th quarter Sunday Night and you have to ride that hot hand as long as you can. Live and Die by Josh Allen should always be the motto, but especially after seeing how special he was last week, it would be a disservice to this roster not to let him do his thing.

Make Justin Fields a passer 

The Jets looked impressive last week, largely due to the rushing threat and quick passing game of Justin Fields. He often got the ball in Breece Hall and Garrett Wilson’s hands. The Bills’ run defense was suspect against Baltimore. There’s plenty of reason to think the Jets will be able to run a bit in this game. However, Justin Fields is not even close to the passer that Lamar Jackson is and while Breece Hall is excellent, he’s no Derrick Henry.

The Bills’ defensive game plan will allow them to focus on taking away the run more often than they could against Baltimore because they should be daring Fields to throw. And when they had Lamar in dropback situations last week, they pressured him. Ed Oliver will be out, so maybe the Bills won’t be as effective in the pass rush, but making Fields a pure passer in this game is a good start to a path to victory.

Communication is key

The back end of the defense lacked communication throughout the game. After watching the all-22 (yeah, we do that now), there were too many instances of confusion between the linebackers and secondary, leading to breakdowns that Lamar Jackson was happily exploiting. Playing the Ravens in week 1 is the ultimate stress test, but having better communication in the back seven will guarantee an improvement this week.

Taylor Rapp and Cole Bishop specifically looked like they had ZERO chemistry and were constantly questioning each other pre-snap. Get the house in order. Know your role. Play sound defense and good things will happen. It’s been a hallmark of McDermott teams in the past and last week showed they have much growing to do.