Buffalo Bills vs. New York Jets Orchard Park, N.Y. — No matter how many times they play each other, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold are always going to have to answer the same question: What’s it like playing one of your best friends?

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Prediction, Preview, and Odds

Sunday, September 13, 2020 at 1:00pm EDT
New Era Field, Orchard Park
Written by Blake V.

Allen and Darnold were drafted four picks apart in 2018 and have forged a bond in the years since working together in California every offseason with quarterback guru Jordan Palmer. Live stream ExpressVPN sign up now

This week Allen downplayed the matchup, reminding everyone that he doesn’t play against Darnold. He’ll face off against the Jets defense, and in a lot of ways defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who’s notorious for dialing up the pressure to try and confuse the opposing quarterback.

“It’s very challenging to prepare for a Gregg Williams defense because of just all the things that he has,” Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll said. “Not just the different calls but the different packages that he has with his players.”

Darnold said that he likes to hang out with Allen in the offseason but when the season begins the two try and keep the rivalry real. When the game kicks off the Jets quarterback won’t have time to worry about what Allen’s doing anyway.

He’s facing a Bills defensive front that got better since last season. Jordan Phillips and Shaq Lawson took their 16 combined sacks from last season with them when they left via free agency. But general manager Brandon Beane retooled the line with veterans Mario Addison, Vernon Butler and Quinton Jefferson. Addison has had at least nine sacks in the last four seasons and was a terror at times during camp.

Jets running back Le’Veon Bell explained this week that one of the toughest parts about playing against the Bills defense is that it’s hard to trick them. The 28-year-old back is entering his second season with the Jets and he’s running behind a completely new offensive line. New York has five new starters led by rookie left tackle Mechi Beckton, who has his hands full with expected matchups against Bills veterans Addison and captain Jerry Hughes.

Both teams have been hit with a few injuries ahead of the opener. The Bills will be without cornerback Josh Norman, who couldn’t practice all week because of a hamstring injury. Levi Wallace also has dealt with a hamstring injury, but he was a full participant in practice on Thursday and Friday and is expected to play.

The Jets will be without rookie receiver Denzel Mims, who injured both of his hamstrings. Soft tissue injuries continue to be a problem throughout the NFL with the shortened ramp up period. Linebacker Avery Williamson will also miss the game with a hamstring injury.

When the Bills have the ball Allen is going to work against a secondary that is in the running for worst in the NFL. Cornerback Pierre Desir is a formidable no. 1 after signing this offseason from Indianapolis, but the rest of the crew shouldn’t cause many problems for the Bills new-look receiving corps led by new no. 1 Stefon Diggs.

The Jets traded All Pro safety Jamal Adams to the Seattle Seahawks just a few weeks ago and star inside linebacker C.J. Mosely opted out of the season because of Covid-19.

When the Jets have the ball Darnold will rely on tight end Chris Herndon, who missed all but one game last season. As a rookie he caught 39 passes for 502 yards and four touchdowns. Jets coach Adam Gase is hoping the two rekindle their chemistry in Year 3.

BILLS vs JETS

Kickoff: 1 p.m. (ET) on Sunday at Bills Stadium

TV: CBS (Ch. 4 in Buffalo, Ch. 8 in Rochester, Ch. 5 in Syracuse)

RADIO: WGR 550 AM (Buffalo), WROC 950 AM (Rochester), WKTV 105.5 FM (Syracuse)

Line: Bills by 6.5 (Over/under at 39.5)

WHAT THE TEAMS ARE SAYING

Josh Allen on facing Jets defense without Jamal Adams and C.J. Mosely

“It’s different because they do have a little bit different personnel. We understand that and we’re just trying to prepare for everything that we can see. When you get a defensive coordinator like coach Williams and how many different things that he can do, and the different things that he can bring. It keeps you on your toes.

We’ve got to stick to our base rules and understand if something looks funky and we gotta understand what our answers are. That’s a big job of (mine) as quarterback, to get us out of bad situations and try to put us into good ones.”

Jets coach Adam Gase on facing Josh Allen

“Obviously the longer he’s gonna play the better he’s gonna get. You saw his ability in the pocket, throwing the ball all over the place, as far as deep, intermediate and short, it improved throughout the season. He got very comfortable and they had a good run. He got hot and did a good job at managing situations and at the same time being in situations where he had to go win games.

I don’t think anybody had more fourth quarter game-winning comebacks than what he did last year. I’m sure they’re excited to head into the season knowing he made a lot of strides last year. We gotta do a good job and try to keep him in the pocket. Prevent him from having explosive plays, which is tough when you have the weapons they have on the outside (and) the speed they have. They’re always gonna be able to run the ball because they’ve been able to do that well in the past as well. It’s a tough challenge for our defense.”

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