NFL Game of the Week - Bills vs Rams
The NFL is kicking off its season Thursday evening with a must-see matchup. The Buffalo Bills are traveling to SoFi Stadium to take on the defending Super Bowl champion, the Los Angeles Rams.
Breaking Down Offenses
For the Bills, quarterback Josh Allen is entering his fifth season and is expected to perform even better than in 2021, where he completed 63.3% of his passes and threw for 4,407 yards.
Allen’s legs add another ripple to this offense, as he rushed for 763 yards last season.
Running back Devin Singletary, who is entering his fourth season with the Bills, put up career-high marks in 2021. His 870 rushing yards and seven touchdowns proved him to be an asset for this team.
Also looking to have another big season is wide receiver Stefon Diggs, who led all other Bills receivers in receptions (103), yards (1225) and touchdowns (10). 2022 marks what will be his eighth NFL season and his third with the Bills.
Expectations are high for this offense, regardless of its offensive coordinator switch. Ken Dorsey, Allen’s quarterback coach last year, now holds the job after Brian Daboll became the head coach of the New York Giants.
In the 2021 regular season, the Bills offense ranked third at 28.4 points per game. The Rams finished seventh in that category.
Matthew Stafford and the Rams are fresh off their Super Bowl victory. The team’s offense ranked fifth in average passing yards per game, and that’s no surprise considering Cooper Kupp’s record setting year.
Kupp led the NFL in receptions (145) touchdowns (16) and yards (1947), which earned him the Offensive Player of the Year award.
Stafford is a more stagnant quarterback compared to Allen; you won’t see him take the ball himself too often. So, for the running game, the Rams will rely on running back Cam Akers.
After battling back from an Achilles injury, Akers was a key piece in the team’s Super Bowl run and is looking to get back to his explosive nature. The offense will need the power from the backfield considering they ranked 25th in average rushing yards per game.
Discussing Defenses
The Buffalo defense was rock solid in 2021. It ranked first in the league in several areas, including points allowed per game and yards allowed per play. The defense’s weakness, if any, was giving up an average of 109.8 rushing yards per game — yet even that stat ranked 13th in the league.
Defensive tackle Aaron Donald headlines a formidable Rams defense that ranked sixth in rushing yards allowed per game. In all other categories, they fell around the middle of the pack.
Edge rusher Von Miller will be returning to SoFi Stadium as a Buffalo Bill. Nearly a month after being crowned a Super Bowl Champion, Miller signed a six-year, $120 million contract with the Bills. He is expected to have a huge impact as an edge rusher to propel the Bills defense to greatness in 2022.
What to Expect
Given that it is the first game of the year, emotions will be high on both sides of the field.
The Rams will be unveiling their championship banner prior to kickoff, but they’ll have to push that victory to the back of their minds if they want to win Thursday night. Buffalo is hungry; not only for the win, but to hopefully acquire their own rings this season and that starts in Week 1.
It will be a close game that will come down to whoever makes the least mistakes.
Prediction: Bills 30, Rams 27
Amanda Vogt is a first-year student majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact her, email her at aev5215@psu.edu.
