Top 3 Things We Learned

Top things we learned Bills vs. Raiders | Week 6

Oct 18, 2026 at 11:37 PM

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Las Vegas Raiders vs Buffalo Bills, Regular Season, October 18, 2026 at Allegiant Stadium.

After closing out a two-game West Coast road trip with a 34-17 win over the Raiders, the Bills head into their bye week at 5-1 and riding a two-game winning streak.

Here are three things we learned from Buffalo's Week 6 victory, from Josh Allen's efficient performance to the defensive game plan against Brock Bowers and the team's ability to navigate a challenging stretch away from home.

1 — Josh Allen takes what the Raiders give him

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen had one of his most efficient days of the season, throwing for 255 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's win. His 69.7% completion percentage (23 of 33) was tied for his highest mark of the season and his 112.6 passer rating was his best since the Week 2 outing against the Lions.

"They played a different style of defense, a little bit of cage rush to try to keep me in the pocket," Allen said. "And that's where you got to throw the ball consistently and throw well, and I thought we did that tonight. I felt like I was in a good rhythm. The ball was coming out really good."

Allen admitted after last week's overtime game in Los Angeles that he has been fighting through some issues with his throwing mechanics, and the QB used this week of practice at UC Irvine to try to correct things. At least for one week, it appears those snags are behind him.

Brady's game plan featured plenty of quick throws for Allen. The quarterback completed 13 of 14 passes with a snap-to-throw time of 2.5 seconds or less for 128 yards, including a 9-yard touchdown pass to Khalil Shakir on a screen in the first half.

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"Just taking what they were giving us early, I think that the last few weeks they had been beaten by some of the deep throws, and they were trying to make it a point of emphasis to keep everything in front." Allen said of the Raiders defense. "Linebackers were dropping with some depth, so again, you quick little fake, stop and fake, and then get your eyes up, and the ball might be coming to you rather quickly."

By taking what the defense gave him, Allen consistently kept the offense on schedule and in favorable down and distances.

The strategy paid off as the Bills scored on 7 of their 9 drives against Las Vegas, not including their final kneeldown drive. Buffalo has now scored 30+ points in four of their first six games. Buffalo's 197 total points this season are the third-most through six games of a season in team history.

"It's football. We play how we need to play. We just have to score one more point than they do, that's just how it rolls sometimes. And we're not going to sit here and say we can't be better as an offense," Allen said.

2 — Putting a lid on Brock Bowers leads to a takeaway

Buffalo's defense made sure to know where Raiders superstar tight end Brock Bowers was at all times during Sunday's game. In fact, CBS analyst JJ Watt noted during the broadcast that the Bills held up signs on the sideline before each play indicating whether Bowers was on the field.

That game plan largely worked as intended, particularly in the first half. For the first time in his career, Bowers was held without a target for the first two quarters.

One of the reasons why the Bills limited Bowers' effectiveness was playing more man coverage and utilizing cornerback Christian Benford as the primary defender on the tight end. Benford had two pass breakups in man coverage when covering Bowers, both coming in the second half.

CHRISTIAN BENFORD 1ON1 REP AGAINST BROCK BOWERS

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— ClutchWire (@ClutchWireHQ) October 18, 2026

During the week, the Bills studied how Denver used CB Pat Surtain II against Bowers and believed Benford could handle a similar assignment.

"It speaks to the confidence that we have in Christian [Benford]," Brady said. "He was up for the challenge and I thought he rose to it.

Bowers did finish with four catches for 70 yards, though his catches of 29 and 18 yards came when not defended by Benford.

Buffalo's dedication to shutting down the Raiders weapon may have led to linebacker Dorian Williams' first career interception. The inside LB was in zone coverage when he stepped in front of Kirk Cousins' pass to TE Michael Mayer instead of following Bowers who ran across Williams' area. Cousins likely assumed Williams would run with Bowers across the field, but the Bills defender stayed put and was in position to intercept the pass.

"It was a great moment," Williams said. "Now, I've just got to keep growing on that and get better."

3 — Showing toughness during two-game road trip

Even at 5-1, the Bills will have plenty to clean up during the bye next week. Still, the team will celebrate that it entered the two-game West Coast swing coming off a home loss to the Patriots and returned with back-to-back victories.

"We left Buffalo coming off of a loss in a long week and we said we're going out west and we got to grow as a football team, both on the field and off the field and we want to come back with two wins," Brady said.

"For them to be able to handle last week leading into a Monday night game, a long Monday night game, staying out here, the way that they handled themselves all week, the trust that I had for them and the responsibility and the way that they handled it all. And then just to come out here and find the way to win, it speaks to the character and who we have."

Buffalo averaged 35 points per game during the trip, while the defense and special teams delivered game-changing plays, including Greg Rousseau's blocked field goal and Dorian Williams' interception.

Allen credited the amount of Bills fans who attended games in L.A. and Vegas for the positive impact they had on the team's energy in both games.

"The last two weeks, the amount of fans that we've had in both stadiums, it's pretty remarkable," he said. "It really does feed us. We play better when we can feel that energy and feel that juice, and that's what they bring to us."

The next time Buffalo plays football, the calendar will have flipped to November, the time of year when the true contenders around the league start to separate themselves. Brady sensed his team believes the best is in front of them.

"I love that the guys know that we haven't played our best football," Brady shared. "And so they're not pleased with that, but we're winning football games and I'm so proud of them for that."