ORCHARD PARK — Josh Allen was running for his life. He was going to get killed. The offensive line is in shambles.
Those were the narratives during the preseason and they intensified when Allen was sacked five times by the New York Jets in a 22-16 overtime loss in the season’s opening week. Right tackle Spencer Brown struggled and the Bills couldn’t run the ball against a stout defensive line.
Since then, as the offense is embroiled in a six-week struggle that resulted in the firing of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, the offensive line has been one of the few bright spots. The Bills have surrendered just eight sacks since Week 1 and have four games without allowing a sack, a year after having no such games.
Buffalo has allowed the second-fewest sacks (13) in the NFL — trailing the Kansas City Chiefs by one — and on pace for the fewest allowed since Allen’s first full season as the starter in 2019.
On Sunday, the Bills get another crack at a Jets front that leads the NFL in pressure percentage (29.6) and hurry percentage (11.8), while ranking sixth in total defense and seventh in points allowed. They believe that improved communication with new guards Connor McGovern and O’Cyrus Torrence has been the key to the turnaround over the last nine games.
“It all starts with what Mitch (Morse) sees on those calls and Mitch is comfortable with me now if I see something,” McGovern said. “The tackles are always talking, O’Cyrus is talking, just making sure everyone sees the same things and just trying to help Mitch out so he doesn’t have to do everything all by himself.”
The Jets rank 31st in blitz percentage (17.2), which means they use a deep defensive line rotation to get to the quarterback, but if there’s one area to attack, it’s in the running game. New York is third in passing defense (169.3 yards per game), but are 31st against the run, surrendering 138.4 per game and 24th with 4.3 yards per attempt.
Buffalo averaged 4.4 yards per carry during the first meeting, but had just 22 attempts, including 15 from running backs. But in the five games in which running backs get at least 20 carries, the Bills are averaging 155 yards rushing per game on 5.1 yards per carry, compared to 78 yards on 3.8 yards per attempt in the other five games.
Bills running backs are averaging 92.6 yards per game this season, the most since coach Sean McDermott’s first season in 2017, when LeSean McCoy was the focal point of the offense. They are also running for 4.7 yards per carry, the second-highest during the McDermott era.
James Cook ranks sixth in the NFL with 615 yards rushing this season and responded from a 16-play benching after an opening-play fumble by running for 109 yards on 12 attempts against the Broncos. But his season has been up and down, as more than half of his yards have come in three games.
But that communication along the offensive line, the Bills believe, can make a difference in the second meeting with the Jets.
“The way they play defense is gonna smudge the offense,” Torrence said, “so we just got to be patient with our calls and running the ball, being OK with getting 2-3 yards at times and not getting bored with getting stopped.”
Veteran coach Shula to work with QBs
Allen is set to have his fourth different quarterbacks coach since entering the NFL in 2018. This one, though, has more experience than any of the other three, including Brian Daboll.
McDermott confirmed Wednesday that offensive assistant Mike Shula would be spending more time with the quarterbacks following Joe Brady’s promotion to interim offensive coordinator after Ken Dorsey’s firing. Shula, whose father, Don, is the NFL’s all-time wins leader with the Baltimore Colts and Miami Dolphins, is in his 32nd season as a coach in the league, along with a four-year stint as head coach at Alabama.
Shula spent four seasons as the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers — where Dorsey was his quarterbacks coach during that time — and overlapped four total seasons while McDermott was the defensive coordinator there.
He also has six more years as an NFL offensive coordinator and has 13 seasons of experience as a quarterbacks coach, with stints with the Dolphins, Jaguars, Panthers, Giants and Broncos. That time should give Brady a secondary voice in his second shot as an offensive coordinator, which ended shy of two seasons with the Panthers from 2020-2021.
Shula was the offensive coordinator when Cam Newton won the NFL MVP in 2015 and was either coordinator or quarterbacks coach in Carolina for all three of Newton’s Pro Bowls, while also serving as Jacksonville quarterback coach when David Garrard went to the Pro Bowl in 2009.
“(Shula’s) been a good addition, ton of experience,” McDermott said. “He’s been in the head coach’s seat before, been an offensive coordinator multiple times, quarterback coach. When I first was introduced to Mike in Carolina, he was our quarterbacks coach and did a nice job with Cam Newton.”
Injury report
Defensive tackle Jordan Phillips (knee) and wide receiver Trent Sherfield (ankle) did not participate in Buffalo’s walk-through practice Wednesday. Cornerback Christian Benford (hamstring), safeties Micah Hyde (neck/stinger) and Cam Lewis (shoulder) and linebacker Dorian Williams (knee) were limited.