Top 5 storylines to follow for Bills vs. Panthers | Week 8 

The Bills are coming off a bye week and are right back on the road for a Week 8 contest against the Carolina Panthers. Sunday marks Buffalo's third 1:00 p.m. game this season.

Here are the top five storylines to follow for Sunday.

1. Buffalo's perfect streak after the bye

In the Sean McDermott era, the Bills have a perfect streak going after bye weeks. Buffalo is 8-0 following a week off since 2017.

In those games, the Bills have averaged 27.5 points per game and 352.1 total yards per game. Defensively, they've allowed 17.6 points per game, a 79.6 passer rating and forced 16 takeaways.

Since his rookie season, quarterback Josh Allen is 7-0 after a bye week. Allen has 16 total touchdowns in those games.

When it comes to what the team wanted to accomplish in the week off, McDermott wanted to look at the team's process.

"I also want to kind of look under the hood a little bit more and making sure that we've got everything underneath in terms of the foundation that it's helping us, from the way we practice, to the way we meet, to what we emphasize, to what we're asking our players to do," McDermott said.

Buffalo's HC pointed out there have been good moments from the past two weeks but also lessons in how the team can improve.

The Bills unfortunately have lost the last two, but the past tells us, they know how to recover. Buffalo has had two straight losses every season since 2017 but hasn't followed it up with a third loss since Allen's rookie season in 2018.

McDermott said he wanted to stay consistent during the bye week even though the team was coming off a pair of losses.

"We'll be consistent," McDermott said. "That's how I am. I think that's the best way to approach things. And when you've been through it now a number of years, you kind of know where to look first.

"But yet every year is a little bit different too. It takes on its own personality. So, we'll find those areas that are specific to this season, and make sure we try and spend due time where we need to spend as well."

2. Panthers QB Bryce Young injury update

Panthers quarterback Bryce Young suffered an ankle injury on Sunday during Week 7's game against the Jets. Young was injured near the end of the third quarter.

According to NFL Network analyst Tom Pelissero, an MRI revealed Young is dealing with a high ankle sprain. Pelissero said he is expected to miss Sunday's Week 8 game against Buffalo. Backup quarterback Andy Dalton will likely be Carolina's starter if Young can't go.

Carolina's head coach Dave Canales said Young wants to "push" this week to see if there's a chance he can play.

"We're going to go day-to-day on that right now," Canales said of Young's injury. "And just really look at him each day, just test the ankle in different ways to see if we can get him back out there on Wednesday in some way, shape or form."

Through seven games, Young has completed 61.6% of his passes for 1,288 yards. He's averaged 184 passing yards per game and has 12 total touchdowns to five interceptions.

If Young is out, the Panthers will lean on a quarterback with a ton of experience. Dalton is a 15-year veteran who's appeared in three games for Carolina this season. The QB has completed 69.2% of his passes (9/13) for 118 yards and thrown for one touchdown.

Dalton has played in 12 games for Carolina and started in six over his three seasons with the team. The QB has a 1-5 record with the Panthers. He has completed 64.5% of his passes (149/231) for 1,468 yards and thrown for 10 touchdowns compared to six interceptions throughout the three seasons.

Looking back on his 15 years in the league, Dalton has appeared in 178 games, making 168 starts. He owns an 84-82-2 record as a starter. The Bills have faced Dalton as a starter just twice in the Sean McDermott era and has a 1-1 record vs. Buffalo.

3. DE Michael Hoecht and DT Larry Ogunjobi return

The Bills will get some reinforcements back on defense this week, specifically the defensive line. Defensive end Michael Hoecht and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi returns to the team after serving their six-game suspensions.

"It'll be good to get these two guys back in the mix with the injuries that we have in particular," Sean McDermott said.

Ogunjobi is a needed asset to the interior defensive line. That's because rookie defensive tackle T.J. Sanders (knee) was placed on Injured Reserve ahead of Week 6, veteran defensive tackle DaQuan Jones injured his calf before the Falcons game and defensive tackle DeWayne Carter suffered an Achilles injury before the season started.

Ogunjobi has played in 124 games, making 108 starts in his eight NFL seasons. The DT has racked up 27.5 sacks, 79 quarterback hits and 56 tackles for loss.

Hoecht's skillset and ability to lineup at different places along the line of scrimmage will also be a welcomed addition to the defense. The DE has played in 68 games and started in 31 throughout his four years in the league. Hoecht has totaled 13.5 sacks, 26 quarterback hits and 15 tackles for loss.

Defensive coordinator Bobby Babich knows there will be an adjustment period for the two as they get back to practicing for the first time since training camp. Babich is excited to see what they can bring to the defense.

"Two veteran players that bring a lot to the table," Babich said. "And it's a welcome addition anytime you can add talent, not only talent, but the intangible pieces that they could potentially bring."

4. Getting the offense rolling again

After scoring at least 30 points in four straight games to start the season, Buffalo's offense unfortunately hasn't met that number in the last two weeks. They scored 20 points against the Patriots and 14 against Atlanta. The Bills know they can get back to being a productive offense, and the bye week was about figuring out how that happens.

Offensive coordinator Joe Brady spent the week off diving into Buffalo's offense.

"There's got to be a level of urgency," Brady said of offensive improvement. "We're not okay with how we've played. But unfortunately, we've been in this position before, and I believe in the coaches and the players that we have…We're going to figure it out because we're going to dive into it. We're going to come up with solutions and kind of hit the ground running again."

While Buffalo's offense has missed the mark in the last two games, they still rank top 10 in several categories. The Bills are averaging the fourth most points per game (27.8), most rushing yards per game (151), third most total yards per game (378.3) and have the fifth-best scoring rate (46.9%).

Head coach Sean McDermott believes his OC will find the right answers as he looks back on the last six weeks.

"I remain confident, very confident in Joe and his ability to put us into the right situations and put our players in good positions on offense," McDermott said.

In terms of correcting mistakes, Brady believes it starts with getting out of their own way.

"I don't look at it as what we're doing offensively, like anything is broken, or we don't have answers," Brady shared. "It's more of us right now…It's too hard to win in the NFL when you beat yourselves and try to overcome that."

Brady wants Buffalo's offense to get back to the fundamentals—playing smart, clean football. He also wants them to grow and evolve but not lose sight of being two dimensional.

"We also have to make sure that we're also staying two dimensional and getting the pass game going," Brady explained. "And we have to get the pass game going better now. But when Jimbo (Cook) is on the field and we're giving him the ball, good things are happening, and it should help our pass game. So, we obviously have a lot to improve on"

5. How the Bills-Panthers compare

Sunday's matchup against the Panthers will feature two of the NFL's most productive running backs in James Cook and Rico Dowdle. There will be several matchups within the matchup worth watching too because Buffalo's a top 10 offense and Carolina's a top 10 defense.

Here's a look at how the two stack up.

Offensive averages

Points per game – Bills: 27.8 (4^th), Panthers: 20.7 (23^rd)

Total yards per game – Bills: 378.3 (3^rd), Panthers: 326.7 (19^th)

Rushing yards per game – Bills: 151 (1^st), Panthers: 140.1 (3^rd)

Red zone efficiency – Bills: 64% (13^th), Panthers: 59.1% (15^th)

Bills' James Cook: 537 rushing yards (4^th), averages 5.0 yards per rush (10^th), 5 rushing touchdowns (t-5^th)

Panthers' Rico Dowdle: 551 rushing yards (3^rd), averages 5.6 yards per rush (1^st), 2 rushing touchdowns

Defensive average

Points per game allowed – Bills: 22.8 (17^th), Panthers: 21.7 (tied for 13^th)

Total yards per game allowed – Bills: 323.5 (15^th), Panthers: 295.7 (7^th)

Rushing yards per game allowed – Bills: 156.3 (31^st), Panthers: 92.6 (8^th)

Red zone efficiency allowed – Bills: 55.6% (9^th), Panthers: 57.1% (11^th)