ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — It was a watershed game for the Bills.
Last December, Buffalo was 6-5, looking to end a 16-year playoff drought, and headed to Oakland to face a Raider team that had won five straight games and eight of the previous nine.
A win at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum would establish the Bills as a postseason contender with a victory over a quality opponent on the road.
Sure enough, then-coach Rex Ryan’s crew played inspired football and, with a minute to play in the third quarter, Buffalo was on top, 24-16. But over the next seven and a half minutes, the Raiders went on a 22-0 run en route to a 38-24 win.
Oakland finished 12-4, tied for the second-best record in the AFC, and claimed a wild-card playoff berth. The Bills lost four of their last five to go 7-9, Ryan being fired before the finale.
Well, tomorrow afternoon at New Era Field, the Bills (4-2) again are bidding for playoff legitimacy and have the advantage of their home stadium where they’re hosting a Raiders team off to a stumbling start.
Oakland (3-4) won its first two games, lost four straight, then got a miracle victory a week ago Thursday, edging Kansas City, 31-30, on a 2-yard touchdown pass that was preceded by a TD connection called back for offensive interference, two plays nullified by defensive holding and the winner to Michael Crabtree on an untimed down.
Quarterback Derek Carr was 29-of-52 passing for 417 yards and three touchdowns.
But the QB, four weeks from suffering fractured transverse processes in his back against Denver, hasn’t been the player he was last season, due to the injury. The Raiders lost that his injury game to the Broncos and the following week to Baltimore with former Buffalo QB EJ Manuel taking Carr’s place.
This Raiders team is also a bit different from last season. Carr and his two highly-skilled wideouts — Crabtree and Amari Cooper — are back but running back Latavius Murray, who scored twice against the Bills, is now with Minnesota and veteran placekicker Sebastian Janikowski is on injured reserve with a back injury. In addition, running back Marshawn Lynch won’t play tomorrow as he’s suspended for a game after pushing an official in the win over Kansas City.
Meanwhile, Carr is still a concern.
The Bills didn’t allow a touchdown pass for the first 15 quarters of this season, but in Game 5, Cincinnati’s Andy Dalton threw for 328 yards and a TD in a 20-16 victory and, last Sunday, in beating Tampa Bay 30-27, they let Jameis Winston throw for 384 yards and three scores.
That’s 712 yards and four touchdowns passing the past two games.
“It’s a concern; I don’t take those things lightly,” said Bills coach Sean McDermott, who has a defensive pedigree. “We’ve got to look at everything. From what we’re doing schematically, personnel, and that starts with me making sure we’re doing the right things. We’ve got to make sure we’ve got some things buttoned up on that end, and we continue to affect the quarterback. Quarterbacks drive this league, and we have to do a good job of affecting (them).”
But even Buffalo defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier isn’t totally sure why the Bills passing ‘D’ has struggled the last two weeks.
“Probably a combination of things,” he said. “We’ve probably got to get a little tighter coverage and figure out a way to get a little more pressure on the quarterbacks. We’re going to face one (Carr) that’s more than capable this week of putting up big numbers as well. But the key is, even if some of those guys get their numbers, we’ve got to find ways to take the ball away during the course of a drive and either score on defense or put our offense on the short field.
“We’re going to try to do some things to slow (him) down as much as we can.”
But that situation is complicated by two critical injuries in the Bills’ secondary.
E.J. Gaines, the cornerback acquired in the trade of Sammy Watkins to the Rams, won’t play due to a hamstring injury and safety Jordan Poyer is nursing a knee sprain suffered in Tampa Bay’s lateral-fest on the final play last Sunday.
Veteran Shareece Wright will likely take over for Gaines while first-year safety Trae Elston will replace Poyer if he can’t go. However, the biggest key might be Buffalo upping its pass rush as it has only 13 sacks in six games.
The good news for Buffalo is that, in the win over the Bucs, the Bills rediscovered their offense as quarterback Tyrod Taylor threw for a season-high 268 yards while the running game produced its second-best output of the season, 173 yards, including 91 by feature back LeSean McCoy, who scored his first two touchdowns of the season (1 and 7 yards).
But Buffalo’s biggest edge might just be New Era Field where the Bills are 3-0 this season, making McDermott the first head coach in franchise history to win his first three home games.
“Playing here … No. 1,” he cited as a major advantage. “I’ve come in here as an opponent, and it’s not easy to play here. Being on the other side of it now, I can’t tell you how much we appreciate the support of the fans. From everyone in the RV lot to where they park in the backyards of the houses that line Big Tree (Road) and Abbott (Road), it’s a unique setting (and) that ’s refreshing in a way, the fans get into it (even) in the parking lots … they’re special.”
