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Previewing Bears vs Bills Week 9 with BuffaLowDown

By Mike "Boomer" Burzawa

BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 9: Nathan Peterman #2 of the Buffalo Bills huddles with the offense in the second quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on September 9, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 9: Nathan Peterman #2 of the Buffalo Bills huddles with the offense in the second quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on September 9, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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GREEN BAY, WI – SEPTEMBER 30: Davante Adams #17 of the Green Bay Packers is tackled by Tremaine Edmunds #49 of the Buffalo Bills and Taron Johnson #24 during the fourth quarter of a game at Lambeau Field on September 30, 2018 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
GREEN BAY, WI – SEPTEMBER 30: Davante Adams #17 of the Green Bay Packers is tackled by Tremaine Edmunds #49 of the Buffalo Bills and Taron Johnson #24 during the fourth quarter of a game at Lambeau Field on September 30, 2018 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

2. The Bills offense has been pretty bad this season, scoring 13 points or fewer in six of their eight games. What’s been holding them back? Can they do anything this week to turn things around against a Bears defense that has been a little bit more vulnerable in recent weeks without Khalil Mack?

The problem is the offense as a whole. The offensive line has struggled, the quarterback play has been dismal and the wide receivers can’t get open fast enough. All the parts hurt the others. But the most glaring issue has been quarterback play. Derek Anderson gave it his all but he doesn’t know the offense well enough and he is just not starter material. As for Peterman, he makes mistake after mistake.

The only way the Bills can turn it around is if Peterman somehow has the game of his life. The offensive line has not allowed anything to get going in the running game, so it will take a huge game through the air from the Bills just to get back into the end zone.

3. As bad as the Bills offense has been, their defense has been really solid. We’ve seen them shut down the Bears’ NFC North rival Vikings a few weeks ago and held the Patriots down for much of last Monday night’s game. What’s been the secret of their success? How do they plan to attack Mitch Trubisky and the Bears offense? What weakness could the Bears try to exploit?

Buffalo Bills
Buffalo Bills /

Buffalo Bills

Forcing takeaways has been the key for the Bills defense. That was the case against the Vikings when Kirk Cousins turned the ball over three times. Along with that, there is a great balance from the defensive line to the secondary. Rookie Tremaine Edmunds has also been a force at linebacker, but he is in concussion protocol this week and could miss Sunday’s game.

My expectation for Sunday is that the team will focus on stopping the run. That means loading the box early and often and forcing Trubisky to throw the ball to pick up first downs. The problem is that the Bears have proven to be quite talented on offense, so the gameplan only does so much.

The turning point in this game for the Bears may end up being field position. If the Bills are stagnant on offense and keep punting the ball, the Bears may eventually wear down the Bills defense, who has shown the ability to hold strong early. But as we saw Monday, that only lasts so long.

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