Bills-Panthers takeaways: Buffalo, James Cook roll over Carolina with RB’s monster day

By Joe Buscaglia, Tim Graham, Joseph Person and Jenna West

The Buffalo Bills overcame a two-game losing streak with an emphatic 40-9 win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

Running back James Cook propelled the Bills’ offense by recording 216 rushing yards on 19 carries and two touchdowns. He had a 64-yard touchdown run in the second quarter to put Buffalo up 12-3 and begin to pull away from Carolina.

With his big performance, Cook became the second player in the NFL to record 200-plus rushing yards this season.

The Bills’ offense continued to roll over the Panthers with quarterback Josh Allen’s 54-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Khalil Shakir early in the third quarter.

The Panthers and quarterback Andy Dalton, who started Sunday for an injured Bryce Young, were held to three points until the fourth quarter, when Chuba Hubbard scored on a 3-yard rush with some of Buffalo’s starters sitting on the bench.

The Bills improved to 5-2 with Sunday’s win, while the Panthers fell to 4-4 after a three-game winning streak.

Bills’ defense carves up Panthers

The Bills entered the contest with a clear understanding of two key factors: that the Panthers would be starting Dalton, and that if they could contain the Carolina rushing attack, they’d likely find themselves in favorable situations to force turnovers. The Bills did that for the most part when the game was still close, pushing the Panthers into several long distances on third downs. The results throughout the day were excellent.

The Bills picked off Dalton once and forced him to fumble twice more, while sacking him six times before the game entered garbage time in the fourth quarter. This is the first complete defensive performance from the Bills this season. They’ve had some segments of games where they play up to their full potential, but usually have had a quarter or two when they’d get gashed by the opponent in critical situations.

The team had always hoped to reach its best version of defensive football by the end of the season, and although this was against a backup quarterback, it will certainly boost the players’ confidence moving forward. — Joe Buscaglia, Bills beat writer

James Cook makes a statement

A popular discussion among Bills fans last week was whether it would be OK to merely beat the Panthers or if the Bills must record their first victory in a month, after a two-game losing streak and then the bye, with emphasis entering Week 9 against the fearsome Kansas City Chiefs. The discussion was rendered moot, thanks to a dominant performance by Cook and a defense that feasted on Dalton. The combination was cathartic.

Cook’s usage had been under the microscope. Buffalo coach Sean McDermott acknowledged offensive coordinator Joe Brady needed to improve with personnel deployment. Cook became the seventh player in Bills history to rush for 200 yards.

Their injury-plagued defense amassed two interceptions, two fumble recoveries and seven sacks. Buffalo was missing linebacker/captain Terrel Bernard and safety Taylor Rapp, and then lost defensive tackle Ed Oliver to a biceps injury late in the second quarter. But defensive linemen Michael Hoecht and Larry Ogunjobi (six-game PED suspensions) and rookie cornerback Maxwell Hairston (knee injury) were solid in their Bills debuts. Hoecht recorded 1 1/2 sacks and forced a fumble. — Tim Graham, Buffalo senior writer

Panthers’ offense needs Bryce Young back

Dalton gave everyone a glimpse, including the Bills fans who poured into Bank of America Stadium, of how valuable Young is to this team. Dalton looked every bit of his nearly 38 years, committing three turnovers that Buffalo cashed into 17 points. The Panthers hoped to get their running game going against the Bills’ 31st-ranked rushing defense.

But falling behind early — coupled with injuries to three starting offensive linemen — created the perfect storm for Dalton, who was sacked seven times, including two that resulted in lost fumbles. The Panthers hope Young can return next week at Green Bay. But if he does, it could be behind a makeshift O-line. Not good. — Joe Person, Panthers beat writer

What happened to their defense?

The Panthers’ defense is also culpable for the blowout loss. Carolina came in ranked seventh in total defense and had been particularly tough against the run, allowing a total of 131 rushing yards during its three-game win streak. But they had no answer for Cook, whose 216 rushing yards were the most by an opponent in Carolina history.

Insult to injury: Cook broke the record of 215 (held by the New York Giants’ Derrick Ward) before the end of the third quarter. McDermott took mercy on his old team, keeping Cook and Allen on the bench for all of the fourth quarter. — Person

How worried should Bills be over Oliver’s injury?

With all the positives for the Bills in the game, the Oliver injury may loom large. It was an immediate rule out for Oliver due to the biceps injury, which is never a good sign for immediate future availability. The defensive tackle group has been ravaged by injury this season.

First, they lost DeWayne Carter for the season with a torn Achilles, then Oliver missed four games with an ankle injury. After that, they had to put promising rookie T.J. Sanders on injured reserve with a knee injury, and in Week 6, veteran starter DaQuan Jones popped his calf in pregame warmups and didn’t play against the Falcons.

The only two healthy defensive tackles remaining on the 53-man roster are rookie Deone Walker and Ogunjobi. If the Oliver injury is serious, the Bills may need to make a move at defensive tackle. — Buscaglia

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