Buffalo Bills defense & run game dominate New York Jets as they improve to 2-0

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Dominant may not be a strong enough word to describe what we saw from the Buffalo Bills against the New York Jets on Sunday afternoon. Buffalo controlled the game from start to finish, beating New York 30-10. With the win, the Bills improved to 2-0 to start the season, while the Jets are now 0-2.

So, where do you start with such a dominant win? We’ll go with the Bills' defense because it was a night-and-day difference from what we saw in the season opener. Despite injuries to starters Ed Oliver and Taron Johnson, the Bills shut the Jets down. The rushing attack from the Jets was ineffective, and the passing game was invisible. Up until garbage time, Jets quarterback Justin Fields had three completions on 11 attempts for 27 yards. Running back Breece Hall, who many expected to have a big game, averaged less than three yards per carry and finished with just 29 yards.

It was a complete effort from the defense, but Joey Bosa was the Bills' most dominant player. In the first quarter, he forced a fumble that led to a Bills field goal. He added a sack later in the game, which was his first as a Bill.

Practice squad call-up Zion Logue also recorded half a sack, on a tandem wrap-up with Greg Rousseau. The pass rush wasn’t relentless all day, but it was effective when it needed to be.

Then there was the Bills' run game. It was simply phenomenal. James Cook had 132 yards and two touchdowns and averaged more than six yards per carry. His biggest play came on a 44-yard highlight reel run that sealed the win for the Bills late in the first half. Josh Allen added 59 yards on the ground, including a huge 40-yard rush on the Bills' opening drive of the game.

As a passer, Allen had a pedestrian day. He joked after a game last season that he felt like the kid in the group project that didn’t have to do much work and still got an A. As I watched this game, I felt that way again. He didn’t make any costly mistakes and knew exactly what the plan was and how to execute it.

Bove’s Take:

What a performance this was from the Bills. I think it was very reasonable to be concerned about the defense, especially against an offense that poses some similar strengths to Baltimore. As it turns out, that was greatly exaggerated.

The run defense was stout, and the pass coverage locked down Fields. It felt like every Jets series was eventually third and long, and the Bills would force them off the field.

And to the Bills' credit, they set the tone early. They came out of the gate fast and forced a three-and-out on their first defensive series. The offense marched down the field, with some help from dumb Jets penalties, and took a 7-0 lead. On the Jets' second drive, they fumbled the ball on their first play. It felt like, at that point, the game was already out of reach for New York.

I believe the defense is better than what we saw in Week 1, but not as dominant as what they showed in Week 2. The Jets offense just doesn’t have many weapons, and their passing attack is well below NFL average. The Bills will face far more explosive offenses this season, but it’s hard to be better than they were on Sunday. For crying out loud, the Jets had three points until the final minutes of the game against the Bills' backups. New York’s first trip to the red zone came with 4:40 left on the clock.

This win should inspire confidence for Bills fans. We know the offense, led by the reigning MVP, is capable of winning them a lot of games. We saw that in Week 1 when they scored 41 points. But the defense needed to show they’ve improved, and they did just that.

WATCH: Buffalo Bills defense & run game dominate New York Jets as they improve to 2-0

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