The Bills defense had a tough time stopping Geno Smith and the Jets last weekend, but things have gone a lot better in the first half against the Ravens.
Buffalo leads 20-7 after totally shutting down the Baltimore offense through the first 30 minutes. Joe Flacco is 11-of-22 for 114 yards against a secondary that’s missing Stephon Gilmore, Jairus Byrd, Ron Brooks and Leodis McKelvin with many of those yards coming before the half on a drive that ended with the Ravens well short of the end zone. Those absences haven’t kept Flacco from being intercepted twice, although one of them came when tight end Ed Dickson had a ball bounce off his hands and into those of Bills safety Jim Leonhard.
On top of that, Ray Rice’s return hasn’t done anything to help the running game. He has three carries for eight yards, while Bernard Pierce has seven yards on his four tries.
The only bit of bad news for the Bills is that cornerback/safety Aaron Williams, who had the other interception, left before halftime with a shoulder injury suffered while breaking up a deep ball intended for Torrey Smith. The Ravens are down a cornerback as well with Lardarius Webb questionable to return after a thigh injury. E.J. Manuel picked on his replacement Corey Graham for a 42-yard touchdown and has made a few other big plays to compile 126 passing yards on just nine attempts.
C.J. Spiller and Fred Jackson have combined for 91 more yards on the ground and that duo should get plenty more work as they try to hold onto their lead.