The Buffalo Bills got back to winning ways and in a massive way against the Carolina Panthers in Week 8.
The Bills (5-2) went to Carolina (4-4) and smashed the Panthers on their own turf at Bank of America Stadium. Buffalo had one player in particular that led the way in a 40-9 win.
Here are Bills Wire’s give takeaways from the Bills’ win over the Panthers:
James goes off
Clearly, the was James Cook’s day. The Bills running back had 216 rushing yards and two touchdowns. That’s an average of 11.4 yards per carry. Every time Cook touched the ball, his team essentially had a look at getting a first down.
But Josh does not
Quarterback Josh Allen did not have his best outing, though. We understand putting up 40 points there is little reason to complain. But Allen was only 12-for-19 passing for 163 yards. There were certainly a few mistakes with accuracy that hopefully will not linger around.
Hairston’s debut
First-round rookie Maxwell Hairston made his NFL debut at long last.
It was not a jump in the deep end. Hairston only rotated in as the Bills appear to be bringing him along slowly as he returns from his knee injury. That is probably a smart idea.
Hairston simply had one tackle.
Defensive change?
It appears like head coach Sean McDermott has taken the play-calling responsibility from defensive coordinator Bobby Babich. McDermott was holding the sheet on the sideline throughout the game, which can be seen above.
The Bills did only allow nine points…
Did new defensive additions make a difference?
But what might have helped even more? The addition of Michael Hoecht and Larry Ogunjobi. Hoecht specifically had 1.5 sacks in a game where the Bills had seven as a team. Ogunjobi looked solid in the middle of a defensive line that slowed down a strong Panthers’ rushing attack.