1. Josh Allen gives updates on his foot injury
It was halfway through the fourth quarter against the Buccaneers that Josh Allen sprained his foot, but that didn't stop him from leading the Bills back from a 27-10 deficit and force overtime.
Heading into this week's game, the Bills had a walkthrough practice on Wednesday and Sean McDermott announced that he would be limited. The team will be taking his injury one day at a time and relying on the information that the medical staff provides. After practice, Allen explained how his foot is feeling three days removed from the injury.
"Feeling good," Allen said. "We got a few more days to be able to rehab. Obviously, I'd love to play. I guess we'll have to reevaluate some things in a couple of days. But as of right now, it feels pretty good and I'm fortunate enough to have the training staff that we do getting to work on it around the clock."
If Allen can't suit up on Sunday, Mitchell Trubisky will get his first start as a member of the Bills. Because Allen was limited on Wednesday, Trubisky was able to get a bigger share of reps. Allen has full confidence in Trubisky if he does play against the Panthers.
"It's no different than any other week," Allen said. "He approaches it as if he's going to play every single week. I love the guy to death. He's awesome, and an awesome teammate. Guys love him, guys gravitate towards him. So, I can see why we went out and got him, and I'm just thankful we did."
2. Jordan Poyer explains the difficulties of playing defensive back with inconsistent calls
Pass interference penalties are one of the toughest calls to make because they are so subjective, and it seems that something that gets called in one game might not get called in another. That makes the job of a defensive back so much harder.
In Sunday's game against the Buccaneers, Levi Wallace got flagged for a PI while he was covering Mike Evans on what was an underthrown ball by Tom Brady. There was much discussion of this call after the game and former NFL referee Terry McAulay said on Twitter that he thought the play didn't deserve a flag.
After practice, Jordan Poyer was asked if it's harder to play defensive back with the inconsistencies of the pass interferences calls. Poyer said it makes it extremely hard and that they have to play it almost perfectly every time.
"I really never agreed with bailing a team out based on a bad throw," Poyer said. "When you watch games on TV at home and you see maybe a quarterback who's just trying to get the ball out of his hands and so he throws the ball down the field and he underthrows it. Those are the hardest ones as a defender to defend because at that point you're maybe hip to hip and down the field, and you know the ball is coming so you got to keep running but you don't know where the ball is coming at. The receiver does because he's obviously looking back and now, he's got to come back to the ball."
"That might be the hardest play as a defensive back to make because now your momentum is running forward, the receiver is trying to get back to the ball and even if you do turn around, nine times out of 10 that receiver's going to basically grab you or try to figure out a way to come back to the ball."
3. Josh Allen talks about the common thread through the Bills losses this season
After a 4-1 start, the Bills have gone 3-5 and are currently on a two-game losing streak. In 2020, the Bills were 4-1 in one-score games and this season they are 0-5. They are just a few plays away from having a vastly different record, but they haven't been able to hit on those plays this year. Allen explained the common thread through all their losses this year.
"I think it's execution and situational football," Allen said. "Red zone, for example, we've got to be better in that aspect, and again, there's a lot of shoulda, coulda, wouldas in our season this year, and a couple plays go our way instead of the other way, talk might be a little different. But again, that's the ebbs and flows of the game of football. That's why we love it, that's why we play it, that's why we've got to learn from it."
Through 14 weeks of the 2021 season, the Bills have a 59% red zone percentage compared to 62% in 2020. There is a big difference between three and seven points when you get down in the red zone and can have a big impact on an outcome of a game. With little room for error down the stretch, Allen knows that they need to learn from the past and execute better through all four quarters of the game.
"That's why we've got to use it to our advantage in the next few weeks, starting again Sunday with the Carolina Panthers," Allen added. "A really good defense that we've got to be ready for, and we've got to utilize everything we've learned in the past going forward. And it's only going to help us out in my opinion."
4. Jordan Poyer on how the team can get back on track after back-to-back losses
Since Jordan Poyer came to Buffalo in 2017, the Bills have only lost back-to-back games seven times. And since 2019, the Bills are 10-3 following a loss. This Bills team in the Sean McDermott era have done a good job of being able to come back after a loss and not get into a bad losing streak.
With four games remaining in the regular season, the Bills are the seventh seed in the AFC and need to stack wins in order to keep a playoff spot. After practice on Wednesday, Poyer explained how the team can get back on track and end the season on a high note.
"Just continue to work, that's really all you can do," Poyer stated. "Obviously nobody wants back-to-back losses. I can't remember the last time we had one, but we got the right guys in the locker room to continue to work. And like I said, we got to use that momentum from last weekend. I understand we are a talented football team and need to really come out and show that. Had a good day at practice today and just got to continue to stay positive and continue to work. That's really it. Hone down on the details and come ready to play."
5. Josh Allen has a lot of confidence in Gabriel Davis
After exploding onto the scene in his rookie year, Gabriel Davis hasn't gotten as much playing time in 2021 but he continues to make the most of his opportunities. Against the Buccaneers, Davis had five receptions which tied a career-high for most in a game. With Emmanuel Sanders considered week-to-week with a knee injury, Davis will see his playing time increase as the regular season wraps up.
His quarterback, Josh Allen, appreciates the patience that he's seen from Davis this season and knows that he can count on him in the biggest of all spots – like late in the game against the Bucs. Allen is excited to see what production they get out of Davis with an increased role.
"To see him make that play through some of the adversity that he's been through this year, limited opportunities," Allen said. "One, it's good for his confidence, my confidence, but I think the coaching staff's confidence in him going forward. And again, I've got the utmost confidence, respect and love for Gabe Davis, for what he does each and every day, how hard he works, how humble he is, the type of person that he is. So again, an increased role for him, I don't think he's going to flinch at all. This is something that he wants and is ready for."
