Bills Report Card: Offense Makes the Grade in Victory Over Patriots

Quarterback Josh Allen was never better with his decision-making in a game his team had to have.

In the season's most important game, the Buffalo Bills brought their "A" game despite being shorthanded at wide receiver and offensive line. They beat the New England Patriots, 33-21, in a game that would have been more lopsided if they had functioned better in the red zone.

Still, they became the first team never to be forced to punt against a Bill Belichick-coached team.

Let's get to the grades:

Quarterback: A+

Josh Allen has had better statistical games but may never have played as well as he did in this contest, going 30-for-47 for 314 yards and three TD passes and running 12 times for a team-high 64 yards.

He threw the ball away when necessary, tucked it and ran when necessary and was not sacked.

Put these Josh Allen throws in a museum 🖼 pic.twitter.com/oRXFNH78U2

— PFF (@PFF) December 27, 2021

Not only that, but he connected with seldom-used wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie (11 catches, 125 yards) as if he'd been part of the offense all along.

Running back: B

Devin Singletary and Zack Moss gave the Bills what they needed as ballcarriers, receivers and blockers in pass protection.

They just didn't get all that many touches in a game that featured the Bills finishing with a 35:09 to 24:51 advantage in time of possession.

But both have a come a long way in their ability to protect the football and in this game combined to average 4.7 yards on 22 touches (15 runs, seven receptions).

Tight end: C

Dawson Knox, the only tight end the Bills activated for this game, caught two of three targets for 11 yards and a TD.

The one he didn't catch proved costly, however. It was a drop in the end zone on third-and-goal. Then the Bills went for it on fourth down and failed.

Wide receiver: A

Stefon Diggs played through at least two injuries that we know of to finish with seven catches for 85 yards and a TD.

As we mentioned, McKenzie came through with career highs of 11 receptions and 125 yards. And he's in his fifth year.

Highest graded #Bills vs New England (min. 25% snaps)

1️⃣ Josh Allen: 90.7
2️⃣ Isaiah McKenzie: 89.2
3️⃣ A.J. Klein: 89.2
4️⃣ Micah Hyde: 81.2
5️⃣ Dion Dawkins: 77.7 pic.twitter.com/Jtgw52LxWB

— PFF BUF Bills (@PFF_Bills) December 27, 2021

McKenzie finished with the team's second-highest game grade (89.2), according to Pro Football Focus.

Emmanuel Sanders came back quickly from a knee injury to contribute two catches.

Offensive line: A

Shorthanded to start, the group was forced to adjust when guard Ike Boettger suffered an Achilles tendon injury.

All they did was respond with their finest game of the year with the help of little-used Ryan Bates and Pro Bowl left tackle Dion Dawkins, who wasn't going to play until being forced to when Boettger went down.

The line paved the way for 428 yards, 28 first downs and the second-highest point total scored against the league's top-ranked scoring defense.

Defensive line: B

Didn't hold up that well against the run and struggled to get to the quarterback when not helped by blitzers.

But Harrison Phillips had a good game and Ed Oliver flashed with two quarterback hits, including a sack.

Defensive tackle Star Lotulelei missed the game for personal reasons. There was no word as of Monday afternoon when or if he'll be back.

Linebacker: C+

The good news: A.J. Klein graded out as third-highest Bill in this game.

The bad: He played just 30% of the snaps as their third linebacker, with fellow linebackers Tremaine Edmunds (team-high eight tackles) and Matt Milano never leaving the field.

One of the reasons the Patriots were able to run the ball effectively was over-pursuit by the linebackers.

If the teams meet again in the playoffs, look for the Bills to clean this up.

Secondary: A

This experienced group limited Patriots quarterback Mac Jones to 14 completions in 32 attempts for 145 yards despite the absence of star cornerback Tre'Davious White.

Safety Micah Hyde finished with six tackles. His two interceptions raised his season total to five, tying fellow safety Jordan Poyer for the team lead.

Just wondering: Is there a better slot corner in the league than Taron Johnson?

Asking for a friend.

Special teams: B+

Tyler Bass made good on all three extra points and both field-goal attempts.

Rookie Marquez Stevenson helped with field position by averaging 11.3 yards on three punt returns and returned a kickoff 31 yards.

Matt Haack, under fire for poor punts, wasn't called on to punt at all in this leaud returning three punts While this group has cleaned up its act on penalties that wipe big returns off the board, it also isn't getting any more big returns.

The Bills bottled things up on the two kickoffs New England did try to return.

Coaching: A

The Bills started strong by getting a lead and never trailed, thanks to a sound offensive game plan by coordinator Brian Daboll and adjustments that kept them one step ahead of the Patriots the whole way.

Head coach Sean McDermott made it clear from the start that he was going to be aggressive on fourth-down calls, and it paid off with a 3-for-4 conversion rate.

The Patriots were 5-for-6 on fourth downs themselves but only 1-for-10 on third downs.

Nick Fierro is the publisher of Bills Central. Check out the latest Bills news at www.si.com/nfl/bills and follow Fierro on Twitter at @NickFierro. Email to Nicky300@aol.com.