1. Buffalo breaks into the top 10 in several power rankings
After moving to 3-0 on the season for the first time since 2011, national outlets are noticing and have Buffalo breaking into the top 10 in several weekly power rankings.
NFL.com has the Bills climbing six spots from last week into the No. 6 spot.
Dawson Knox, have a day. With the Bills down three late in the fourth quarter, Buffalo's rookie tight end hauled in a Josh Allen pass and morphed into an evolutionary Gronk. His 49-yard catch-and-run sent New Era Stadium into a frenzy and set up the Bills' go-ahead touchdown. The seven-play, 78-yard drive was a minor masterpiece by the Bills, and provided the latest evidence that Allen has taken the next step as a quarterback in Year 2. Buffalo had coughed up a 14-0 lead in this game, and a loss would have undone much of the progress of the season's first two weeks. But Allen -- with a huge helping hand from his Baby Gronk -- wouldn't allow that to happen. The Bills are 3-0 and welcome the 3-0 Patriots to their house on Sunday. This is the biggest Bills game in a longtime. Circle them wagons!
Here is how the Bills moved up in rankings from Week 3 to Week 4:
NFL.com: 12 to 6
ESPN: 15 to 12
Bleacher Report: 14 to 8
SI.com: 13 to 12
Yahoo: 9 to 7
Washington Post: 10 to 9
The Big Lead: 23 to 14
CBS Sports: 10 to 6
2. Jordan Poyer says mantra 'calm breeds calm' was on display Sunday
Safety Jordan Poyer joined The Jim Rome Show on Tuesday to relive Sunday's win and preview the Patriots matchup. Poyer explained the meaning behind calm breeds calm. It's something many players embody especially in the fourth quarter when the game is on the line.
"You look at a sudden change in a game where something happens, I'll just give an example, the defense has to go out there and make a stop or win the game," Poyer said. "Like Sunday, the defense had to go out there and win the game. Nobody blinked, nobody on defense decided to blink. It was just another time of us going out there and showing what you have to do. It was nothing more, nothing less. We had to go out there and win the game and that's what we did. It just shows the mental toughness that our team and the guys in our locker room show. It's fun to be a part of."
Poyer is part of the fifth ranked total defense in the league. In year three with the Bills, he believes this is the strongest defense he has played on.
"I was in Cleveland for four years and we weren't very good out there during that time," Poyer said. "Being out here, this is now my third year out here, we have had some really good defenses out here. But this is now our third year in this system, a lot of the guys' third year in the system, some guys second year in the system. I think just being in this system with all these guys the same amount of years, just the way we are able to communicate, able to talk to each other watching film and on the football field. It's a fun group to be a part of and I think we understand we can be a really elite defense if we just keep working."
The team knows they have work cut out for them ahead of Sunday's game against the Patriots. Poyer understands how important film study is when going up against a talented quarterback in Tom Brady.
"Man, going to have to study all week," Poyer said. "They do a lot of really good things. Obviously Tom [Brady] has control of that offense, he has some weapons on that side of the ball that he can get the ball to. Main thing you've got to stop the run, you've got to be able to affect Tom and get him off his spot. We've got to be able to take the ball away and hopefully not just take the ball away, but score."
The safety hopes for an even better atmosphere on Sunday than the home opener.
"It's going to be electric," Poyer explained. "It's going to be one for the books. Definitely a great opportunity for this football team to go out there and show we can play with the elite. Obviously that's a really good football team in New England and they're coming to Buffalo and we want to show them who we are."
3. Bill Belichick compliments QB Josh Allen
Quarterback Josh Allen is the only quarterback drafted in the top 10 of the 2018 draft with a winning record as a starter. Four of his eight wins came as the result of a fourth quarter comeback. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick praised Allen's athletic ability when the ball is in his hands.
"He can pretty much do everything with the ball in his hands," Belichick said. "He's got a tremendous arm so every spot on the field is available. Deep sideline, you have to cover a lot of the field. He's athletic and can extend plays and he can run with the ball and make yards with the ball in his hands. He's hard to tackle. He's hard to tackle in the pocket. He doesn't just run to run. He can run and make yards, but he can also avoid and extend plays and make big plays in the passing game on extended plays. The receivers do a good job of getting open and uncovering in man or zone on those, so he's a problem because of the way he extends plays both as a runner and as a passer. And he's hard to tackle. He's a problem."
Belichick knows just how many added weapons they have on the roster this year and how it makes it difficult for a defenses preparation.
"Like any young player at that position, more experience brings more confidence," Belichick said. "He sees things and recognizes them quicker. He has a good group of receivers. They have a lot of depth at receiver and play all those guys and the same at tight end. They have good backs. DiMarco is a good skill player too. They have a lot of options. Coach Daboll keeps it moving with different personnel groups and many formations. The game planning element in the Jets game was a big check-with-me game at the beginning of the game and last week against Cincinnati wasn't, so they do a lot to keep a defense off balance. But Allen does a good job of recognizing things and getting the ball to his playmakers and extending plays when they don't open up quickly. He can extend plays and give it a little more time to develop."
