Each and every week, WKBW.com will review the tape, and bring you how each player graded out in the previous week, with the help of the Game Pass app on NFL.com. Before we get to the rankings, first, an explanation of how they are done.
Every Tuesday, when the All-22 film becomes available, we’ll go through and watch each play and every player on each play as many times as necessary, to assess a letter grade for that game to the player. It is subjective analysis, and it’s important to note that we do not know the play calls and full responsibilities. With that written, the grades stem from technique, outstanding efforts, and presumed liability.
Only players that take a snap on offense or defense are accounted for, and players with under ten snaps, unless they have a significant impact on the game, will not be factored into weekly rankings.
Season-long grades are tallied and documented, with each individual game’s grade being weighted for how much the player was on the field in a given week. The season-long grades are at the bottom of the column.
Now, the individual player grades of the Bills versus Washington:
1) DE Jerry Hughes
Plays on the Field: 52/57
Grade vs. Washington: A-
- Hughes continued on with his outstanding regular season with one of his more impressive outings of 2015. He was getting into the backfield, providing solid run support, and did all of that without committing any silly penalties in the process. There were times that you could see frustration of the game getting to Hughes, but he kept his cool and didn’t get flagged for anything. The most impressive part of his day was that it came against left tackle Trent Williams, who has had another good season to add to how well he’s played since entering the league. Hughes ripped right by him to mark his fifth sack of the season — which isn’t a good indication at all of how well he’s played thess season
2) LB Manny Lawson
Plays on the Field: 55/57
Grade vs. Washington: A-
- For the second straight week, the Bills depended on Manny Lawson to line up next to Preston Brown as an inside linebacker on basically every play, and for the second straight week Lawson stood tall with a very good performance. In fact, against Washington, this was Lawson’s best showing to date in 2015. He helped set up his teammates to control the line of scrimmage against the run, he got right by his blocker to drop a rush attempt for an eight yard loss, and batted away a couple of passes. Lawson has really taken to the scheme and in the wake of multiple injuries, has become one of the team’s better defenders over the last two weeks.
3) WR Sammy Watkins
Plays on the Field: 64/67
Grade vs. Washington: A-
- Another week, and another standout performance from the second-year wide receiver Sammy Watkins for the Bills. While the majority of his day didn’t occur until after the blowout-status was established in Washington. Even though the defense was trying to keep anything from beating them deep down the field, Watkins was still able to take the top off their efforts. It’s been an outstanding second half of the season for Watkins, who added another two-touchdown performance to his sophomore year in the NFL. He has become an indispensable player for the Bills.
4) C Eric Wood
Plays on the Field: 67/67
Grade vs. Washington: B+
- On Sunday, Eric Wood turned in his third straight solid performance, which has helped put the Bills in line for offensive success. Against Washington, Wood was a sound run blocker, got out in front and helped clear the way on screen attempts, and for the most part, had an above average day protecting Tyrod Taylor.
5) LT Cordy Glenn
Plays on the Field: 67/67
Grade vs. Washington: B+
- Against Washington, Cordy Glenn was most effective as a run blocker, as the Bills dominated on the ground down the stretch of the game. He helped pave the way for both Karlos Williams and Mike Gillislee in the second half, which kept the Bills in the game until the early stages of the fourth quarter. He whiffed on a pass block attempt against Preston Smith in the second half which gave up a sack, but, was in control at all other stages of the game — just as it has been all season long.
6) HB Mike Gillislee
Plays on the Field: 19/67
Grade vs. Washington: B+
- If it weren’t for the running game in the third quarter, the Bills may have never mounted that mini-comeback of theirs in the third quarter. There was some spectacular blocking in front of him, but Mike Gillislee followed his blocks all the way down the field for a 60-yard touchdown. He also made a couple of people miss on a later run that almost went for a first down. He has been a breath of fresh air to the offense, considering all the injuries that we’ve seen pile up on the team.
7) HB Karlos Williams
Plays on the Field: 13/67
Grade vs. Washington: B+
- In his first game back from a shoulder injury, Karlos Williams was the most impressive running back on either team for his sheer ability to keep plays alive when they look like they’re dead. On multiple occasions, the big runner snuck through an area where it seem like the play was going to end, and built on it for additional yardage. He trust what he sees, and uses his combination of size and speed to get down the field in a hurry. If the Bills need to be without McCoy over the final two weeks of the season, that will give Williams a great chance to learn on the job about how to be a feature back.
8) DT Marcell Dareus
Plays on the Field: 47/57
Grade vs. Washington: B
- Dareus did quite well early on against Washington, making a pair of flash plays in the second half against the run. However, when the Redskins started piling up points and yards through the air, Dareus disappeared a bit and didn’t have his normal, disruptive day. He still had a solid outing, just not his best output considering what we’ve seen before from him.
9) LG Richie Incognito
Plays on the Field: 67/67
Grade vs. Washington: B
- Only caught off-balance a couple of times, Incognito turned in a solid performance to bounce back from one of his weakest showings of the season last week. Like Wood and Glenn, Incognito was especially good at clearing out lanes for the Bills runners on the left side of the line.
10) DT Corbin Bryant
Plays on the Field: 50/57
Grade vs. Washington: B
- A restricted free agent at the end of the season, Corbin Bryant has had a surge near the end of the season to prove his worth as a dependable third defensive tackle on the roster. In Week 15, Bryant again showed the ability to hold his ground against double teams and to penetrate the backfield against the run. He certainly isn’t in the league of Kyle Williams or Marcell Dareus, but he is certainly a suitable spot starter for the Bills that they should re-sign.
11) CB Nickell Robey
Plays on the Field: 30/57
Grade vs. Washington: B
12) TE Nick O’Leary
Plays on the Field: 13/67
Grade vs. Washington: B
13) RG Kraig Urbik
Plays on the Field: 12/67
Grade vs. Washington: B
14) FB Jerome Felton
Plays on the Field: 12/67
Grade vs. Washington: B
15) QB Tyrod Taylor
Plays on the Field: 67/67
Grade vs. Washington: B-
16) DE Mario Williams
Plays on the Field: 50/57
Grade vs. Washington: B-
17) TE Chris Gragg
Plays on the Field: 50/67
Grade vs. Washington: B-
18) HB LeSean McCoy
Plays on the Field: 31/67
Grade vs. Washington: B-
19) RG John Miller
Plays on the Field: 55/67
Grade vs. Washington: B-
20) WR Robert Woods
Plays on the Field: 55/67
Grade vs. Washington: B-
21) WR Chris Hogan
Plays on the Field: 50/67
Grade vs. Washington: B-
22) CB Ronald Darby
Plays on the Field: 56/57
Grade vs. Washington: C+
23) S Bacarri Rambo
Plays on the Field: 57/57
Grade vs. Washington: C+
24) DT Stefan Charles
Plays on the Field: 17/57
Grade vs. Washington: C+
25) S Corey Graham
Plays on the Field: 56/57
Grade vs. Washington: C+
26) RT Jordan Mills
Plays on the Field: 67/67
Grade vs. Washington: C+
- For the third straight week, Jordan Mills has started a game. In all three of those starts, Mills has been one of the three worst players on the field for Buffalo. He allowed multiple pressures in the backfield and missed a couple of assignments in the run game as well. With the Bills eliminated from playoff contention, and now with Seantrel Henderson’s season being over due to an illness, The Bills should think long and hard about starting second-year player Cyrus Kouandjio over the likes of Mills, because he really does not warrant a starting position.
27) LB Preston Brown
Plays on the Field: 57/57
Grade vs. Washington: C-
- In three weeks without having Nigel Bradham on the field, Preston Brown has posted his three worst grades to date in 2015. Brown had a very rough first half, whether it was in coverage or in run support, and struggled to get off blocks on numerous occasions. The sophomore slump is a very real thing for Brown, and it’s been noted by more than just yours truly. According to ProFootballFocus.com, Brown is the fourth-worst (91st overall) run defending linebacker in the entire NFL. The Bills need much, much more from one of the linebackers they thought so highly of heading into the season.
28) CB Leodis McKelvin
Plays on the Field: 56/57
Grade vs. Washington: D+
- At this stage of his career, it’s quite clear for Leodis McKelvin: He just isn’t a boundary cornerback anymore. He struggles to stay with his man, when the ball is in the air, and now he’s added problems with missed tackles to his repertoire. McKelvin hasn’t been able to get out of his own way since Stephon Gilmore went down with a shoulder injury, and it appears he’ll continue to see the time now that Gilmore is done for the year.
Players with 10 snaps or below (that were inconsequential to the game)
OT Cyrus Kouandjio (10)
DE IK Enemkpali (10)
DT T.J. Barnes (9)
S Duke Williams (9)
WR Marcus Easley (8)
HB Boobie Dixon (5)
QB EJ Manuel (2)
WR Marcus Thigpen (2)
G Ryan Groy (1)
LB A.J. Tarpley (1)
LB Kevin Reddick (0)
CB Mario Butler (0)
S Jonathan Meeks (0)
Season-to-date GPAs (minimum 100 snaps)
1) DT Kyle Williams 3.32 (1)
2) DT Marcell Dareus 3.28 (2)
3) WR Sammy Watkins 3.26 (7)
4) LT Cordy Glenn 3.26 (3)
5) DE Jerry Hughes 3.25 (4)
6) LG Richie Incognito 3.19 (5)
7) HB LeSean McCoy 3.19 (6)
8) CB Stephon Gilmore 3.08 (8)
9) WR Percy Harvin 3.01 (10)
10) CB Ronald Darby 2.98 (9)
11) DT Corbin Bryant 2.96 (11)
12) DE Alex Carrington 2.92 (13)
13) T Cyrus Kouandjio 2.92 (12)
14) HB Karlos Williams 2.91 (15)
15) DE Mario Williams 2.88 (14)
16) S Aaron Williams 2.84 (16)
17) QB Tyrod Taylor 2.80 (17)
18) TE Charles Clay 2.77 (18)
19) WR Chris Hogan 2.74 (19)
20) C Eric Wood 2.72 (24)
21) WR Robert Woods 2.72 (20)
22) CB Nickell Robey 2.72 (22)
23) TE Chris Gragg 2.71 (21)
24) LB Manny Lawson 2.70 (30)
25) LB Nigel Bradham 2.69 (23)
26) FB Jerome Felton 2.66 (26)
27) S Bacarri Rambo 2.63 (25)
28) TE Matthew Mulligan 2.63 (27)
29) S Duke Williams 2.61 (29)
30) DT Stefan Charles 2.59 (28)
31) DE IK Enemkpali 2.54 (33)
32) S Corey Graham 2.53 (31)
33) LB Preston Brown 2.47 (32)
34) G Kraig Urbik 2.46 (35)
35) CB/S Leodis McKelvin 2.28 (34)
36) RG John Miller 2.18 (37)
37) RT Seantrel Henderson 2.17 (36)
38) RT Jordan Mills 2.16 (38)
39) QB EJ Manuel 1.38 (39)
**Last week’s rank in parentheses
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