The Buffalo Bills Week 4 matchup with the Baltimore Ravens see the Bills head to Maryland after a stunning (and hot) loss to the Miami Dolphins in Week 3. The temperature will be better this week, but the home team is still dealing with a massive rash of injuries. Ahead of the Bills-Ravens game, we’ll be making out Bills Week 4 predictions.
The Bills Week 3 game in Miami was a war of attrition that the Bills lost, literally and figuratively. In addition to taking a 21-19 L, the team also lost rookie cornerback Christian Benford for several weeks with a hand injury and offensive lineman Tommy Doyle for the season with a knee injury.
On the other sideline will be Lamar Jackson and the Ravens, who also lost to the Dolphins in Week 2 but righted the ship last week vs. the New England Patriots. Stopping (or at least slowing down) Jackson will be key for the Bills’ Week 4 prospects.
Bills-Ravens is one of the marquee games on the NFL slate this week, and with that in mind, here are our bold Bills Week 4 predictions.
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4. Josh Allen will run more than usual
The Buffalo Bills are banged-up in the secondary, on the defensive line, and at wide receiver. The most troubling injury spot, though, might be the offensive line.
Starting guard Ryan Bates picked up a concussion in Week 3 and is currently in concussion protocol. His status for the Bills-Ravens matchup is uncertain. His replacement, Tommy Doyle, tore his ACL and is now done for the year.
If Bates can’t play or another lineman picks up an injury in the Bills Week 4 matchup, it could spell big-time problems for Josh Allen.
The good news for Buffalo is that the Ravens defense — after losing longtime defensive coordinator Wink Martindale to the New York Giants this offseason — hasn’t been good this year. The unit currently ranks 25th in points allowed (77) and 32nd in yards allowed (1,374).
The combination of a possibly weakened Bills O-line and not-yet-gelled Ravens D means that Allen could see a lot of pressure this week but may be able to escape it with his legs.
Josh Allen had one carry (this 10-yard scramble) in the first half. pic.twitter.com/asWUNE8N2S
— Steve Berman (@BASportsGuy) September 20, 2022
Allen has 113 rushing yards this season, but the bold Bills Week 4 predictions here is that he’ll nearly double his season total vs. the Ravens. Buffalo won’t call many runs because Allen has a slight hand injury and is “sore” after last week, according to his head coach, Sean McDermott. The coaches won’t be able to stop him from running under duress, though, and Allen will do that a lot on Sunday.
3. The Bills defense will make plays if they have their playmakers back
Even with the injury list on the Bills D mounting by the day, the unit is still 5th in points allowed (38) and 1st in yards allowed (642) this season.
To paraphrase John Calipari, we know that Tre’Davious White, Micah Hyde, and Christian Benford aren’t walking through that door on Sunday. However, there is a chance defensive tackles Jordan Phillips and Ed Oliver, cornerback Dane Jackson, and safety Jordan Poyer return for the Week 4 Bills-Ravens tilt.
Wednesday injury report pic.twitter.com/OVxH6phFFa
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) September 28, 2022
The Bills defense will still be incredibly limited on Sunday compared to what they are at full strength. However, if they can get a few of those names above back, the group has a chance to at least resemble the league’s top-ranked defense.
Poyer is the big key here. With Hyde out for the year, the Bills desperately need their All-Pro safety back against Lamar Jackson and company. If he does play, look for Poyer to make a big play down the stretch as he is apt to do.
2. Bills-Ravens will be an offensive shootout between two MVP candidates
With three games down and 14 to play, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson are two of the leading candidates to take home the NFL MVP Award at the end of the season.
Between the Ravens' struggling defense and the Bills' hurt defense, this game will be all about the QB matchup.
Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson are the only two players with 80 Pass TD and 20 Rush TD since 2018 🤯 pic.twitter.com/6mfkZVbL4C
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) September 28, 2022
The Nos. 7 and 32 picks of the 2018 NFL draft have (technically) gone head-to-head three times in their careers. However, the first one doesn’t really count. In Week 1 of their rookie seasons, the Ravens blew out the Bills 47-3, and both players saw action at the end of the game after Joe Flacco and Nathan Peterman took a seat for the day.
The next season, Jackson got the best of Allen 24-17 in a Week 14 game in Buffalo. The teams then met up in the Divisional Round of the 2022 playoffs, and Allen led his Bills to a 17-3 win over the Ravens. Jackson left that game late with a concussion.
This is a rubber match between the two forever-linked QBs and should be an incredible battle between the rivals.
1. Bills 38, Ravens 35
The final bold Bills Week 4 prediction is that the Josh Allen vs. Lamar Jackson showdown will be an offensive explosion that comes right down to the final whistle, and the Bills ultimately prevail.
Buffalo was the favorite to win the Super Bowl to start the season, and last week’s hot, injury-filled anomaly vs. the Dolphins shouldn’t change that.
The Bills will start to get healthier in Week 4, and Allen will return to his normal self after a week out of form. Bills-Ravens will be a tight one, but in the end, offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey will be smiling and shaking hands with his fellow coaches, not trashing his booth again like he did last week.
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