NFL
By: Charlie Gross
The Buffalo Bills head to Chicago to face the Bears on Saturday afternoon, in a game that might be cold enough for even Mike McDaniel. While Buffalo is undoubtedly a team comfortable playing in the cold and snow, this weather tends to be an equalizer. Severe weather can even the playing field for a bad team who is playing a good team. The Bears are a young team with some talent but have nowhere near the Bills’ talent. Chicago is where the Bills were 4 or 5 years ago. They have a young, talented quarterback who is still developing and needs more talent around him to really be successful. Regardless of the winner, the weather and Justin Fields should make this a closer game than some people think. Let’s jump into my keys for the game.
When Buffalo Has The Ball
I have to start with the weather again. This has the potential to be a real old school rock em sock em slugfest. While Buffalo has an elite passing offense, it seems like they will have to rely on their stable of runners and the offensive line to secure a victory against the Bears. Josh Allen is still the place where we start no matter if we are talking about passing or running. Allen is the best runner on the team and it wouldn’t surprise me if we see a lot of quarterback power and runs like that. Having a 6’5″ 250 pound quarterback running through your secondary has to be a nightmare for any defense. The rest of the Bills running backs are solid but unspectacular. Devin Singletary is the “workhorse” of the bunch and the one whom the team trusts the most. Nyheim Hines and James Cook are similar backs who add a speed and dynamic pass-catching element to the Buffalo offense. I could see a scenario where all these players get close to if not over 10 touches apiece.
A running game can’t go anywhere without good offensive line play. Buffalo has an average offensive line, to begin with, but will be without one of their best linemen in Mitch Morse, who has been ruled out with the sixth concussion of his career. This means that Ryan Bates, who’s returning from an ankle injury, will probably be the starter at center while Greg Van Roten gets the start at right guard. As I said before the Bills’ line is average but hopefully, they will rise to the occasion and be physically dominant in the run game.
If the weather is good enough for a passing attack I expect Buffalo to be dominant. While Jaylon Johnson has been a nice player for the Bears at cornerback, they don’t have the talent to keep up with the likes of Diggs, Knox, Davis, Beasley, and whoever else the Bills dress.
Buffalo On Defense
Chicago’s main weapon is Justin Fields, who is big like Josh Allen and runs kind of like Allen as well. The Bears also might get Kahlil Herbert back at running back. Both of these players present a huge challenge to the Bills, who are one of the worst tackling defenses in the league. Buffalo’s defense really needs to be mindful of their gap integrity and really wrap up when tackling. Justin Fields is great at breaking tackles and making defenders miss in open space. Luckily for the Bills, Chicago doesn’t have close to the passing attack that Miami does, which means Buffalo can go back to playing a more familiar defense in terms of depth of the linebackers and safeties. Look for Tremaine Edmunds, Ed Oliver, and Jordan Poyer to have big games this week against the Bears.
Prediction
While I do believe that if there is severe weather it will be an equalizer, I still think Buffalo just has too much talent for Chicago to handle. In a game that might see both quarterbacks run for 100 or more yards, I’ll pick the Bills to win. 23-10
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