The Buffalo Bills offense managed just 160 total yards in Sunday's 13-7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. For analyst Matt Sabuda, the play calling and ineffective performance by quarterback Tyrod Taylor were surprisingly similar to the poor efforts that have been so common in recent years for the Bills.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say that he (Taylor) looked like the sequel to Trent Edwards, same number 5 and everything." Sabuda said of Taylor's performance in which he completed 15 of his 22 passes for only 111 yards.
"He seemed panicked, often rushing his throws, definitely didn't seem to see the field and often when he got passes off, they were overthrown," said Sabuda, who didn't place all blame upon Taylor.
"What was absolutely baffling though was the play calling, particularly the lack of a single deep pass attempt. It's even more puzzling considering that Taylor led the league in percentage of pass attempts beyond 20 yards last season. This is supposed to be one of his strengths."
While the offense did not live up to the standards set in 2016, the Bills defense showed signs of a turnaround after struggling much of last season.
"I can't emphasize enough how impressed I was by the defense. They really gave up only one single impact play which was the long touchdown pass. Otherwise, they were as good as the offense was bad," said Sabuda while offering a reminder that one game does not make the whole season.
"But they have their work cut out for them."