Getty Antonio Williams rushes in a game against the Miami Dolphins.
The Buffalo Bills could be forced into a change at running back after the ground attack was grounded in an upset loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Buffalo’s offense sputtered in the 9-6 loss on November 7, with running backs Devin Singletary and Zack Moss gaining a total of just 22 yards on nine carries. Though quarterback Josh Allen added another 50 yards on five carries, many of those yards came on scrambles after his protection broke down quickly. With Moss potentially missing next week’s AFC East showdown with the New York Jets, the Bills could be making a change at running back.
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Changes Could be Coming
Moss missed the end of the loss to Jacksonville after suffering a head injury, and remained in concussion protocol during the week. The team noted that he missed practice on Wednesday, putting him in danger of missing Sunday’s game against the Jets. As Bradley Gelber of USA Today’s Bills Wire noted, the Bills could turn to their practice squad to give a chance to Antonio Williams.
“With Zack Moss in the concussion protocol, looks like the #Bills hand will be forced to try a different combo with Singletary at RB… guessing Matt Breida, but there’s also Antonio Williams. Maybe that’s a good thing to see if it makes any difference,” he wrote.
Bills’ injury updates: Zack Moss, Tremaine Edmunds to miss practice
Some Bills fans have been yearning to see what Williams can do in extended action after he excelled in last year’s season finale. In Buffalo’s 56-26 win over the Miami Dolphins on January 3, Williams had 12 carries for 63 yards and two touchdowns, but has not seen any action this season as he remains on the practice squad.
Bills Running Game Struggling
As the Buffalo News noted, Sunday’s loss to the Jaguars was the culmination of a month of poor games from the team’s running back tandem. Over the last four games, Singletary and Moss combined for 182 yards on 54 carries.
After Sunday’s loss, Bills head coach Sean McDermott said pointedly that the backs haven’t been good enough.
“That’s a huge issue right now for us,” McDermott said, via the Buffalo News. “You’ve gotta be able to run the football when it’s handed off. I think we were at nine carries for what, 22 yards with the backs? That’s not good enough.”
McDermott has been equally critical of the offensive line, saying the team needed to win more battles up front. He added that some things will need to be fixed this week, but wouldn’t say if that involves any changes to the starting lineup.
Sean McDermott on the struggles of the offensive line today
Offensive coordinator Brian Daboll took on some of the blame for the offensive troubles, saying the team needed to keep itself out of more difficult situations.
“It’s an area that we’re working hard to improve,” offensive coordinator Brian Daboll said Monday. “Positive plays in that area have been tough to find here as of late and we need to do a better job and it starts with me. Two-dimensional, one-dimensional, there’s situations that come into play. Is it first down, is it second and long … we probably had far too many second-and-long or third-and-long situations, whether that be from the run or the pass. And, again, I’ll take ownership of that.”
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