The defense came to play against the Bills and almost got it done all by themselves with five takeaways.
The offense, on the other hand, was barely there and may not have completely got off the bus.
What a shame to waste such a performance by Chris O’Leary’s unit, and specifically rookie safety Genesis Smith who picked off Josh Allen twice for his first two career interceptions.
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Sorry, rookie. The other side of the ball owes you some gifts.
One positive note from the offense is Joe Alt’s performance which got back to looking like one of the league’s best tackles. After a Week Two that saw him get flagged over and over again, this was refreshing to see.
Let’s take a look at this week’s grades.
Offense
Best
OT Joe Alt – 83.6
RB Keaton Mitchell – 78.9
WR Tre’ Harris – 75.1
OT Travis Burke – 72.1
WR Ladd McConkey – 67.7
Alt rebounded with his best game of the season. He earned an elite 90.0 run block grade and a very good 79.5 in pass blocking.
Mitchell was leaned upon more this week compared to the first two games and he turned in a solid performance behind a 79.5 rushing grade.
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Harris showed some serious hands on a great pluck out of the air against the Bills when the team needed a clutch play in the second half. He was solid and is overtaking Quentin Johnston as the team’s WR2.
Burke got work as an extra offensive lineman against the Bills. He was above average in both run blocking (67.1) and pass pro (70.1) while leading the team in both receptions (six) and yards (76).
McConkey played most of the snaps on offense but was rather unproductive based on his normal standards. He finished second on the team with four catches and 66 yards.
Worst
OG Cole Strange – 30.1
TE Oronde Gadsden II – 38.6
TE Hayden Rucci – 47.4
QB Justin Herbert – 51.1
RB Omarion Hampton – 52.0
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Strange had his worst game of the season Sunday and that’s saying something when he has yet to have a game grade above 47.1. His 33.2 in pass blocking was somehow just second-worst behind Trevor Penning (24.6).
Gadsden was underwhelming as a run blocker with a 54.6 in that area. His receiving grade of 45.7 was also worst among all players.
Rucci’s grade was sunk by a 29.6 in pass protection but his run block grade of 68.0 was third on the team. He actually was very solid and had a great sequence with Joe Alt where he sealed the edge for Mitchell to score the team’s lone touchdown on Sunday.
Herbert’s interception was one of the worst balls he’s thrown in some time. It was an egregious decision in a massively pivotal moment.
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Hampton was bottled up all day and that showed in his 52.0 rushing grade.
Defense
Best
S Genesis Smith – 95.1
CB Donte Jackson – 81.4
S Tony Jefferson – 81.1
CB Tarheeb Still – 75.9
LB Del’Shawn Phillips – 75.4
What a day for Smith who was coming off a rough outing against the Raiders. He picked off Allen twice, including a circus pick where the ball fell on his stomach after ricocheting off several players.
Jackson was yet again the team’s best corner but unfortunately left the game with a concussion in the first half.
Still forced one of the game’s fumbles which was recovered by Jefferson. He was weak in tackling and run defense but came through in coverage for most of the day.
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Phillips was top five in both tackling (80.4) and run defense (71.1), finishing as the team’s best linebacker against the Bills.
Worst
CB Rodney Shelley – 25.1
EDGE Bud Dupree – 45.5
LB Troy Dye – 52.6
EDGE Akheem Mesidor – 54.7
LB Daiyan Henley – 54.7
Just like it was a great day for Smith, it was equally a bad day for Shelley who was picked on the moment he entered the game for Donte Jackson. Right now, Shelley is acting as the team’s third cornerback due to Deane Leonard seemingly only playing special teams now. That’s not good!
Mesidor had the best sack of the day where he cleanly beat left tackle Dion Dawkins with an excellent hand swipe en route to bringing down Josh Allen for his first career full sack. However, his 47.5 in run defense is what sunk his grade into the bottom five.
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Henley allowed three receptions on four targets his way to be completed for 46 yards, including 35 after the catch. He’s squarely on pace to have one of his worst seasons as a pro. His coverage grade is an abysmal 38.7 through three games.
