The Buffalo Bills are 9-3 and currently working on a three-game winning streak. In Week 14, they square off with one of their toughest competitors yet, the Baltimore Ravens.
Baltimore is 10-2 and on a winning streak of their own. That winning streak currently sits at eight games. On the year, the Bills have faced only two teams that currently have a winning record. They lost to the New England Patriots (10-2) but beat the Tennessee Titans (7-5).
So this is a statement game for Buffalo. Are they serious contenders? Or just a team that can beat up on bad opponents? If they want to beat lethal Baltimore, they'll need a few players to step up. Here are two major X-Factors for the Bills in their Week 14 matchup with the Ravens.
Leslie Frazier and Sean McDermott
Someone needs to stop Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore offense. So far, no one has had any type of real answer. There are quite a few defensive players I could have put here. And truthfully I was extremely close to putting down rookie defensive tackle Ed Oliver.
In all honesty, though, it's the entire defense that needs to step up if they want to even contain Jackson and company. That means they are going to have to come up with some crazy schemes and keep the right personnel on the field. So it's on the defensive players, but also not entire. Mainly, it's on the head coach and the defensive coordinator.
Sean McDermott is the head coach, and Leslie Frazier is the defensive coordinator. Those two need to throw the kitchen sink and Jackson. Make sure he does not get comfortable. Even when Jackson is not comfortable, he can make crazy things happen. At least then you've done everything you could though.
Devin Singletary
Josh Allen has looked a lot better in recent weeks. The improvements have been blatantly obvious. Still, though, the Bills seem to work best as a running team.
That's great news as rookie Devin Singletary has been an absolute star in 2019. He has 553 yards and two touchdowns on 98 carries (5.6 yards per carry). He also has 20 receptions for 161 yards and two more touchdowns in the air.
Those numbers are in just nine games this year by the way. The Baltimore defense has been great recently. And Buffalo will need a serious spark plug if they want to get things moving. That's where Singletary comes in to play. Allen could be a spark plug too. However, he has had some turnover issues in the past. And Baltimore has been great at getting turnovers and capitalizing on them in recent weeks.
The best thing to do would be to not give the Ravens a lot of opportunities for those game-changing plays. That means giving the ball to Singletary and letting him do what he does best, run all over a defense. If they do that, he could help them find a way to win in Week 14.
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