Efe Obada has earned the trust of the Buffalo Bills’ coaching staff.
That was evident by the snap counts during the team’s 33-21 victory over the New England Patriots on Sunday at Gillette Stadium. Obada played 36 of the Bills’ 64 defensive snaps in the win. That was 59% of the defensive total, behind only defensive tackle Ed Oliver (43 snaps, 67%) in playing time along the defensive line.
Obada finished with one tackle. He also was penalized for roughing the passer in the second quarter, when he made helmet-to-helmet contact with Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones.
Here are four more takeaways from the Bills’ snap counts in their Week 16 win:
1. Isaiah McKenzie led all the receivers in playing time. It was no surprise with Cole Beasley and Gabriel Davis on the reserve/Covid-19 list that McKenzie would play a big role on offense. It was a surprise, however, that he got more snaps than even Stefon Diggs and Emmanuel Sanders in the win. McKenzie played 67 of 79 offensive snaps (75%), while Diggs and Sanders played 65 each (82%).
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2. Dawson Knox played every offensive snap. With the Bills going with just one true tight end on the game-day roster after making Tommy Sweeney a healthy inactive, it was clear Knox was going to play a lot. Still, it was somewhat surprising to see Knox played all of the 79 offensive snaps. That’s the first time in Knox’s NFL career he’s take every snap in a game.
3. Siran Neal worked into the secondary. The Bills’ cornerback played 13 defensive snaps, 20% of the total. That’s notable, because second-year veteran Dane Jackson, who has been the starter opposite Levi Wallace since Tre’Davious White got hurt, played 51 defensive snaps, which was 80% of the defensive total. It’s unclear if Jackson was dealing with an injury – there was no official announcement made by the team if that were the case – so it’s possible the coaching staff wanted to get Neal a look with the starters.
4. Isaiah Hodgins made his NFL debut. The 2020 sixth-round draft pick played four offensive snaps (5%) in his professional debut. Hodgins spent his rookie season on injured reserve and has been on the practice squad this season before being promoted to the active roster Saturday. Hodgins was not targeted in his four snaps.
Quote of the game
“I think we continue to learn lessons with this, in some ways, young football team and a young leadership group and it’s hard to follow up a season like last year with a similar season the next year. That’s part of the challenge and so I’m just very proud of the way the guys have persevered and the leadership group has stepped up I felt them, not only off the field, but on the field and their play as well.” – Bills coach Sean McDermott
Game ball: Isaiah McKenzie
You really can’t say enough good things about what McKenzie accomplished. To go from a healthy inactive in consecutive games earlier this season to setting career highs with 11 catches for 125 yards and a touchdown is a great personal comeback story. There is a good lesson there for all of us: Never stop working.
Stat of the game: 8-10, 80%
Combined, that was the two teams’ success rate on fourth down, as the Bills went 3 for 4 and the Patriots finished 5 for 6.
“We just felt like we had a good plan overall,” McDermott said of being aggressive on fourth down. “I would just say that those aren’t always easy decisions and I thought the offense did a great job of executing.”
Coming attractions
The Bills close the regular season with a two-game homestand. The first of those games is against Atlanta, which kept its faint postseason hopes alive with a victory against the Lions on Sunday. Here are three things to know about the Falcons …
1. Kyle Pitts is really coming on. The rookie tight end, the No. 4 overall draft pick in April, had his third 100-yard game of the season. Pitts has shown great improvement over the last month, and set the Falcons’ single-season yardage record for a tight end Sunday, breaking Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez’s record. Pitts now has 951 yards (Gonzalez’s record was 930) and is within range of Mike Ditka’s NFL record for receiving yards by a rookie tight end (1,076 in 1961).
2. They’ve been good in close games, and on the road. Atlanta is 7-2 in one-score games – conversely, the Bills are 0-5, and 5-3 on the road. Strangely enough, the Falcons’ win Sunday over Detroit was their first of the season at their home stadium. The Falcons were designated the home team for their game against the Jets in London.
3. Matt Ryan is moving up the record book. Atlanta’s veteran quarterback threw the 366th touchdown pass of his career Sunday, which tied him with former Giants quarterback Eli Manning for ninth place on the all-time list.
