Buffalo Bills could be throwing away the best shot they have had at a Super Bowl since more than thirty years. City Buffalo Bills are unable to capitalize on the fall of Baltimore Ravens and Chiefs, Buffalo’s biggest AFC rivals. Both teams have fallen below.500. After their 23-19 loss in Houston to the Texans on Thursday night they are in danger of falling themselves. The Bills now stand at 7-4 and two games behind the New England Patriots, who lead the AFC East. They’re only one game in front of the Texans, who sit at 6-5, in the wild-card race. Buffalo was able to take the lead in the AFC East and gain the advantage of home field for the playoffs. They may not even make the playoffs after another loss on Friday night. The Texans’ defense is real, and it’s spectacularThe Texans’ offensive struggles have been mystifying for two years now. They can’t run the ball consistently and their passing game is erratic, regardless of whether the quarterback is Davis Mills or C.J. Stroud.But Houston was all over Bills QB Josh Allen on Friday night, sacking the quarterback a career high eight times. (Edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. lead the way with 2.5). They also did their best in the pocket to make Allen uncomfortable. The Texans constantly collapsed it around him and forced him to move, which disrupted any rhythm the Bills passing game might have mustered.The front-line combo of Anderson (10.5 sacks on the season) and edge rusher Danielle Hunter (11) is as potent a 1-2 pass rushing punch as there is in the league, and it’s a big reason why the Texans have the No. It’s no surprise that the Texans are ranked No. 1 in NFL defense. Houston will eventually need the offense to do something — anything — if they want to make any postseason noise, but the defense should be enough to at least give them the chance. 2. James Cook shoulders the Bills’ hopes of a Super Bowl runAs good as Allen is, he’s simply not repeating his MVP season from a year ago. Maybe that’s not all his fault, but it doesn’t matter at this point, since his top running back seems more equipped to handle a bigger share of the offensive load if they’ll give it to him.Cook was good last season, rushing for 1,009 yards and 16 touchdowns, but he has become a great running back this year. He had 116 yards against the Texans and is now up to 1,084 on the season, which currently ranks him second in the NFL in rushing yards (behind Indianapolis’ Jonathan Taylor).Allen is still capable of carrying this team when necessary, but there really isn’t a need with a running back on the roster who’s on pace for nearly 1,700 rushing yards. Cook should be relied upon even more by the Bills. They seemed to abandon him for long stretches on Thursday night when they got even a little bit behind, even though they never trailed by more than one score.Using Cook more will take pressure off Allen and make life easier for their passing attack – especially in the face of a strong pass rush. Cook should be their offensive engine. Allen should have been a top pick for the Bills. It was difficult to believe that Brandon Beane, Bills GM, felt satisfied when he looked at the receiving corps of his team in the offseason. It’s almost impossible to believe he still felt that way at the trading deadline, too.Yet Buffalo did nothing then, just like they did nothing in the offseason, to get their MVP quarterback what he needs most – a true, No. It’s almost impossible to believe he still felt that way at the trading deadline.Yet Buffalo did nothing then, just like they did nothing in the offseason, to get their MVP quarterback what he needs most – a true No. And there’s really no excuse. It’s just roster malpractice. Maybe Beane is OK because somehow the Bills still rank in the top 10 in passing, but that’s all because of Allen. Henry To’oTo’o is one of Texans’ 8 sacks against Josh Allen. (Tim Warner/Getty Images) Just imagine how good he would be if he had a receiver that even ranked among the top 40 in the league.The best he’s got is wide receiver Khalil Shakir, who led the team with a mediocre 76 catches for 821 yards and four touchdowns last season. He was clearly limited on Thursday, even though he had eight catches for 110 yards and a costly fumble. He’s now up to 54 catches for 564 yards on the season, which are mediocre (at best) numbers for the best receiver on his team.The Bills’ offense hasn’t looked like its old self the last two seasons, really, and the lack of a top receiver is a huge reason why. It’s a mistake that Beane can’t make again this offseason. Find a No. Bills Super Bowl hopes will be impacted by his ability to find a No. The Texans need Stroud back – and looking like he did as a rookieMills had a nice, two-game run, but he really showed his limitations on Thursday night against a mediocre Bills defense (16-of-30 for 153 yards and two touchdowns). He had plenty of opportunities to open up a big lead in this game, but he could not get the passing game going at all.Now, Stroud hasn’t been great this season (or last season, for that matter), but his upside is much higher. There is hope in Houston that he’ll be back for Week 12, and the Texans will clearly need him if they want to do anything on offense at all.But Houston will need the old Stroud, the one who looked so promising as a rookie, not the one who has struggled ever since. They need at least someone capable of making plays since the Texans rushing game just isn’t good enough to carry the offense behind an average offensive line.Houston needs to get the passing game going, which won’t happen consistently with Mills at the helm.4 ½. What’s next?It won’t get any easier in the coming weeks for the Bills, who travel to Pittsburgh (6-4) next Sunday and then return home to face the Bengals (and probably quarterback Joe Burrow) on Dec. 7. But the big one for them — massive considering they still have their sights set on a sixth straight AFC East championship — comes Dec. 14 in New England against the team they’re chasing, the Patriots (9-2)As for the Texans, they’ve clawed their way back into the playoff picture after their 0-3 start and now are just one-half game back of the final spot. The Texans have two games that could make or break their season. They play Indianapolis (8-2) at Kansas and then at Indianapolis. City The next two weeks will see the Colts (5-5) and Chargers (7-4). Ralph Vacchiano reports for FOX Sport and is a NFL Reporter. He previously covered the Giants for SNY TV and the Jets in New York for 16 years. Follow him on twitter at @RalphVacchiano. Want to get great stories straight into your inbox every day? Sign up for a FOX Sports account or create one. Follow leagues, players and teams to receive daily personalized emails.
2025-11-21 04:55:25
4 Takeaways From the Texans’ Win over the Bills
