Getty Cole Beasley catches a pass against the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Footbal
Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills wide receivers put the rest of the NFL on notice Monday when the third-year quarterback had another career night in a 34-24 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football.
The 24-year-old completed 32 of his 40 passes for 375 yards and four touchdowns to four different receivers. It was his sixth game with at least 300 passing yards and his third game this season with four touchdown passes. Allen has been good this year, but his wide receivers have been even better.
Cole Beasley had a career-night on Monday with nine catches for 130 yards and a touchdown. Stefon Diggs surpassed 1,000 receiving yards for the third straight season, catching 10 passes for 92 yards. He is also tied for the lead league with 90 receptions.
Rookie Gabe Davis, who caught his team-leading fifth touchdown pass, and Isaiah McKenzie also got into the mix.
Throughout this season, offensive coordinator Brian Daboll has been like a kid in a candy store with his play calls and the offense has just been bringing them to life. With the talent the Bills have, their offense is difficult to stop because defenses basically have to pick their poison and they have to do it quickly.
“You gotta figured it out in a hurry because you know as a group all we think about is getting open and catching the ball and Josh knows that,” Bills wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie said during a video conference call after the game. “We are going to get open for him regardless of the fact, so when it’s time to get open we gotta get open, and the guys that are covering us gotta be ready and be prepared to cover us.”
Not many teams have been able to figure it out. Not even a Robert Saleh led defense could on Monday. The Bills have been doing it without wide receiver John Brown as well. So, their offense is only going to get more dangerous as the season goes on. But the special thing about the Bills receivers is how much they respect their quarterback.
Throughout his career, Allen has always used his legs to extend plays but during his first two seasons, he would look to run rather than pass. That has changed in year three. The 6-foot-5 signal-caller has used his legs to extend plays in the backfield while keeping his eyes downfield for open receivers and they’ve done whatever they can to get open.
“He just gives you the confidence to go out there and win because you know he’s going to find you,” Beasley said in a post-game video conference call. “I was a little disappointed in my play last week so I was excited to get another chance to play better for my teammates and anytime you have a guy like that throwing you the ball you never want to lose the route or let him down because you know he’s looking for you and you know he’s going to get it there.”
Monday’s victory was just another example of that. Allen dropped dimes all over the field as he tallied his third game this season with 375 or more passing yards, three or more passing touchdowns, and at least a 130 passer rating.
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Stefon Diggs’ Impact on the Bills Wide Receivers Room
Buffalo’s offense was decent last year as Allen threw for 193.1 yards per game but the addition of Diggs in the offseason has taken Buffalo’s offense to new heights.
He’s caught 90 passes for 1,037 yards this season and has four receiving touchdowns. He’s had over 100 yards in four games and set a season-high against the Miami Dolphins in Week 2 with eight catches for 153 yards and a touchdown. Not only has Diggs given Allen another target but he’s opened up things for the other receivers.
“When he is in the game, he is effective, when he touches the ball, he is effective, even if he doesn’t touch the ball, the other team is like we gotta watch him,” McKenzie said during his video conference call. “If they are watching him, they can’t watch everyone else and that’s how everyone else is getting in the end zone.”
His impact off the field has been just as crucial too. Throughout this season, Allen and the rest of the Bills receivers have been adamant about how Diggs has helped them learn and how they’ve grown as a group, bouncing ideas off of each other. Before Buffalo’s Week 10 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals, he strongly announced how good Cole Beasley has been this season.
“Cole Beasley is always open,” Diggs said the week before Beasley caught 11 passes for 109 yards and a touchdown.
Allen has had strong feelings about what he’s brought to the team as well.
“He’s one of the best in the league, if not the best wide receiver in the league,” Allen said during his post-game video conference call. “He’s constantly getting open, he’s constantly making plays and he brings a lot of juice and a lot of energy to our team. We’re lucky he’s on our team.’
Killer Bease
Diggs hasn’t been the only Bills wide receiver to step up though. Beasley has been just as dangerous for Allen as he’s torn up teams from the slot this season.
He’s caught 66 passes for 797 yards and four touchdowns this season and has four games with 100 yards or more this season.
As teams have adjusted their coverages against the Bills this season to take away the over the top passes, Beasley has thrived on underneath routes against zone coverages and Monday was another example of that.
“He’s extremely quick, and he’s just like a go-getter,” Bills offensive tackle Dion Dawkins said after the game on Monday in a video conference call. “He’s out there, he has fun, he says his little comments and he just goes hard at 150 miles per hour and just continues to do it over and over again.”
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Bills WR Says ‘All We Think About Is Getting Open’ After Signature Win