Takeaways: Buffalo Bills defense much better, injuries mar win over Pittsburgh Steelers

Sean McDermott was clearly disappointed with the way his Buffalo Bills played in the preseason opener against the Chicago Bears, and it was a point of emphasis all week in practice, first at One Bills Drive and then during the joint session Thursday with the Steelers.

Plain and simple, the Bills’ effort was unacceptable against Chicago, and the standard of play that McDermott demands was not met, and it didn’t matter that it was a preseason game.

The Bills got the message and they were a different team Saturday night in Pittsburgh as they defeated the Steelers 9-3 in a field goal slog fest at Acrisure Stadium.

“Understanding it’s preseason, but it’s always good to win,” McDermott said.

It was tough to make a judgment on the first-string offense because quarterback Josh Allen was scratched from the lineup after a heavy rain fell about 90 minutes before kickoff, softening the field. But the first-string defense, which played the first quarter and part of the second, was dominant as the Steelers weren’t able to do anything.

“The guys played extremely hard, they were having fun, were physical, and I thought the defense really showed up,” McDermott said. “You come out with the proper amount of energy, you’re flying around, you understand the game plan, you understand what your job is and you can play fast when you do that. That’s really where it started.”

When the Bills’ starting defense was on the field, Pittsburgh had four possessions and they all ended in punts, three of the series of the three-and-out variety. It was a vast improvement from the Chicago game when the first unit got torched on two possessions by Bears rookie QB Caleb Williams.

“Obviously, I think we all kind of knew that that wasn’t our standard from top to bottom,” wide receiver Khalil Shakir said earlier in the week. “We were all sitting there after the (Bears) game and it was just like, ‘That’s not how we do things.’”

McDermott called out his team for its lack of physicality, and they answered the call in a big way. “That’s the mindset right there, that’s the standard,” he said.

Here are some other observations I had from the game:

Bad weather earned Josh Allen a seat on the bench

Allen was scheduled to play with the starters into the early portion of the second quarter, but once the rain hit after the Steelers’ grounds crew had already removed the tarp from the field, McDermott decided to keep his star out.

“I thought Josh had a great week of practice, great practice here, and the conditions with the turf the way it was, I didn’t want to risk it,” said McDermott, who also factored into his decision the fact that because of the weather, the pre-game warmup was truncated.

Allen was asked about the decision on TV during the game and he said, “It was tough. I was looking forward to getting a few drives, but understand why he did it. I’ll joke with him for the next week that it was a soft move.”

It was probably the right call, but of course it doomed the offense. Mitchell Trubisky got off to a lousy start and suffered sacks that killed the first two possessions, but he finally found a groove in the second quarter on the only scoring drive the Bills managed in the half.

Right after Pittsburgh’s Chris Boswell missed a 52-yard field goal, the Bills were pushed into a first-and-20 hole thanks to a holding penalty on tight end Tre McKitty. But Trubisky fit a nice pass into Quintin Morris for 17 yards, and after Ray Davis ran for a first down, Trubisky delivered a 27-yard pass to Zach Davidson which moved the ball to the 14.

Two incompletions, including a quick slant at the goal line to rookie Keon Coleman which looked catchable, forced the Bills to settle for a 27-yard Tyler Bass field goal.

Trubisky finished 9 of 13 for 86 yards, but his slow decision making remains a problem, and he also threw a terrible interception when he overthrew Morris and the ball sailed right into Pittsburgh safety Miles Killebrew’s arms. Oh, and he also hurt his knee which is apparently why he didn’t finish the first half. “Wanted to get a good look at Mitch, but then he had the knee so we’ll see where that leaves us,” McDermott said.

Another spate of injuries could be trouble

This has been a troubling week for the Bills, thanks primarily to the torn bicep suffered by linebacker Matt Milano that will keep him sidelined likely into December.

And then during the game, the Bills lost several players besides Trubisky. Wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling suffered a neck injury late in the second quarter, defensive tackle Austin Johnson went down with a calf injury, Morris suffered a shoulder injury. None were able to return to the game, and rookie edge rusher Javon Solomon hurt his calf.

“We’ve got a number of them, don’t have any updates,” McDermott said. “Everyone has been evaluated and we’ll know more in a couple of days. Injuries are a part of the game so hopefully they get back soon. We’ve had a number of them, but we’ll figure it out.”

Valdes-Scantling is already in a struggle to make the team because he has not looked impressive in practice or in the first two games and if he misses time, it could cost him a roster spot.

Johnson is locked in as one of the top four tackles in the rotation, so if he is sidelined, rookie third-round pick DeWayne Carter will have to fill the void. And Morris is battling Davidson for the No. 3 tight end spot, and Davidson has already made a great push and is threatening Morris’ roster spot. Solomon, a fifth-round pick, has been on track to make the final roster.

The injury to Trubisky is certainly interesting because if he’s out for a period of time, the Bills will be scrambling to find a backup because Ben DiNucci can’t be the No. 2.

I saw on X a few people pleading for the Bills to give veteran free agent Ryan Tannehill a call, and that was before Trubisky got hurt because they were irritated with how Trubisky was playing. The 36-year-old Tannehill is on the open market and is by far the best remaining available quarterback without a team.

If not Tannehill, the unimpressive list includes Brian Hoyer, Blaine Gabbert, A.J. McCarron and Trevor Siemian.

This is what Greg Rousseau needs to be

Rousseau was unblockable as Steelers right tackle Broderick Jones found out. Rousseau abused him for a pair of sacks on Russell Wilson which ended Pittsburgh’s first and third possessions, and he shared a sack with Ed Oliver on the Steelers’ second possession.

“Just trying to play smart, fast and physical,” Rousseau said. “It means going out there and doing my 1/11th, make those plays that splash and spark up the entire defense.”

This is a big season for Rousseau. The 2021 first-round pick, who had his fifth-year option exercised in May, needs to become a player the opposing team game plans for because that hasn’t been the case in his first three seasons. He has played well, to be sure, but he hasn’t been dominant and with Von Miller an uncertainty, Rousseau and A.J. Epenesa need to generate heat on the edge.

Local boy Joe Andreessen had quite a night

McDermott decided to sit out starting middle linebacker Terrel Bernard in the wake of the Milano injury, and that will probably be the case next week in the preseason finale against Carolina.

So, with Milano, Bernard, Nicholas Morrow and Baylon Spector all sidelined, Andreesen started and played the entire game and he took full advantage. Andreessen, who grew up a Bills fan while attending Lancaster High School and the University at Buffalo, was signed as an undrafted rookie free agent in the spring.

He was the ultimate longshot to make the team, and his path to the 53-man roster is probably still blocked, but he has certainly shown enough to warrant a spot on the practice squad.

Andreessen was all over the place as he was in on 12 tackles including a shared sack with JaMarcus Ingram on Justin Fields on a fourth-and-2 play at the Buffalo 9 late in the third quarter that ended a Steelers’ scoring threat.

“When a young guy gets an opportunity and he makes the most of it, its fun to watch, especially a local guy,” McDermott said. “I think I met his aunt in the elevator at the hotel and she was excited. You love stories like that, so real happy for Joe.”

Tyler Bass is on a roll

The fifth-year kicker with the new contract extension has been a little inconsistent in practice, but he has now made all five of his preseason game attempts, three coming in this game, though they were all chips shots from 27, 26 and 31 yards.

Bass is responsible for all 15 points Buffalo has scored as the offense has failed to put up a touchdown. Bass building back his confidence after his poor postseason performance last January is of paramount importance because it certainly seems like the Bills are going to be involved in a lot of close games this year.

Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for four decades including 35 years as the full-time beat writer for the D&C, and he has written numerous books about the history of the team. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana. https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast