The Bills defense delivered its most complete performance of the season Sunday, holding the Ravens to season lows in multiple offensive categories en route to a 36-10 victory.
The Bills entered Week 8 allowing 28.5 points per game, third-most in the NFL. Against Baltimore, they surrendered just 10 points, their best performance of the season.
For the group, putting forth a strong showing for a full 60 minutes was huge for their confidence moving forward.
"We talked about it all week, just being aggressive after coming off the bye, and we looked at things we could work on," OLB Greg Rousseau said. "And I feel like we did a good job of going out there and starting fast. And most importantly, finishing, because we've had good games as a defense.
"The score might not reflect it, but [in previous weeks] they get some garbage points at the end, and it's like, boom, they scored 30 points. So, being able to go out there and close it out, just keep going, just possession after possession, was big time for us, and we've just got to keep it going moving forward."
Baltimore only mustered 145 yards of total offense and just 68 passing yards, another pair of areas where the Bills had struggled to start the year. Entering Week 8, the group was second-worst in the league in both metrics, allowing 386.8 total yards per game and 285.8 passing yards per game.
As much as the stats stood out from Sunday's victory, head coach Joe Brady noticed way more than just the numbers.
"I think our defense should look at today and understand that that's what the expectation is," Brady said. "And I'm not talking about the production. I'm not talking about the takeaways and sacks. I'm talking about the style that they played, the way that they flew around.
"Look, I'm just watching it out there, but I think the silent tape's going to speak loudly [on Monday] in terms of the way that they played for one another, the way they ran around, the communication. Everything we challenged them with coming off the bye, I thought they responded to it, and they just kept going."
One of the biggest differences from Buffalo's first six games came up front. In the win, the team tallied four sacks and 12 quarterback hits, with Rousseau leading the way.
Rousseau recorded a team-high six pressures and a sack against the Ravens in the win. 11 different Bills generated at least one pressure, including eight with multiple pressures.
"Shout out to the whole defense," Rousseau said. "It works together. It's not just the rush. It's not just blitzing. It's the rush and coverage working together, and we did a good job of that today."
Sunday brought a major emphasis on blitzing compared to the first six weeks of the season, with defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard blitzing on 64.5% of opposing dropbacks against Baltimore in Week 8, the team's highest blitz rate since 2021, according to Next Gen Stats.
The Bills' blitz rate hadn't exceeded 39% in any game this season prior to the win. When blitzing on Sunday, Buffalo generated a season-high seven quick pressures (under 2.5 seconds) and three sacks.
"I think [Leonhard] called a great game, called it at the right times and sent guys at the right times," ILB Terrel Bernard said. "And then guys won their one-on-ones when we needed them to. So I think that was a big part of it was matching up when we're calling it and guys winning; that's kind of what you look for."
"Sometimes blitzing isn't about getting home," Brady said. "Sometimes it's about creating the matchups, or [whatever]. There are so many different nuances to it, but I thought [Leonhard] called an incredible game. He had a great pulse on how the game needed to be played, and I thought the guys understood it as well."
The increased pressure meshed perfectly with the secondary locking things down on the backend. Despite multiple starters not suiting up in the defensive back room on Sunday, the group was lights out.
Rookie CB Davison Igbinosun caught the first interception of his career in the second quarter, leaving his mark on what was an impressive showing from the whole group.
"I think it's getting to the point of the season where we kind of know what we got and we're not trying to establish our identity," Igbinosun said. "I feel like now we've created our identity."
"[Igbinosun's] been working his tail off… It was a blessing for him to have that, his first career interception," CB Christian Benford said. "It was an awesome moment for him. We're always by his side… I'm proud of him, the guy that he's become, and the opportunity showed up for him."
The major point of emphasis in the secondary was limiting Ravens WR Zay Flowers. The 26-year-old entered the matchup second in the NFL in receiving yards per game with 101.3, leading the league in yards after catch (331) as well.
Buffalo completely neutralized the threat on Sunday, limiting Flowers to zero catches on five targets.
"Obviously [Flowers] was big on our minds all week, just knowing the threat that he is," S Damar Hamlin said. "… Anytime that he gets the ball in his hands, he can take it the distance, no matter where he's at. You want to eliminate space. Shout out to Jim Leonhard, man, just the game plan that he put together to be able to make those stats a reality today."
After struggling to find a groove throughout the first six weeks of the season, coming through in a big way on Sunday should be a big boost for the Bills defense moving forward.
Buffalo's defense tallied season-best marks in first downs allowed (10), total yards allowed (145), passing yards allowed (68), turnovers forced (three), and quarterback hits (12) in the win.
The unit will look to continue building positive momentum in Week 9 when they hit the road to take on the Minnesota Vikings. The Monday Night Football matchup is set for Monday, Nov. 9 at 8:15 p.m. EST.
"It was a great game for us," Benford said. "We played together. We played fundamental football, situational football really well… Third down, fourth down, we stayed true to our technique, trusted each other and played good."
