ORCHARD PARK, NY — It didn’t take long on Monday to realize it was going to be one of those nights for the Buffalo Bills, who are now 3-0.

The Jaguars won the coin toss — seemingly their only win of the night — and then watched as the Bills marched 70 yards down the field in just over five minutes for a touchdown. Then, on the Bills’ next possession, another touchdown. Another possession after that, another touchdown. And so on and so forth.

By the end of the first half, the Bills had scored a touchdown on all five of their first-half possessions, en route to a 34-3 lead after 30 minutes, which led to the eventual 47-10 final score. The Bills are now one of just five undefeated teams left in the NFL.

What stood out from the win? Here are some observations from the Bills’ extended blowout of the Jaguars.

Joe Brady with a statement game plan

The Bills put on an offensive clinic against the Jaguars, and it won’t happen without franchise quarterback Josh Allen. After his performance, he should be firmly at the top of the short list for the league’s most valuable player. But behind the quarterback’s performance was a masterful job by Bills offensive coordinator Brady. After taking over midway through the 2023 season, Brady helped get the Bills offense back on track.

A big reason for that was how they developed as a rushing attack. It was one of the major shortcomings of former offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, and part of why the offense became stale despite explosive playmakers. That foundation of Brady’s offense carried over into 2024, with them showing a run-heavy presence in the first two games. Part of that was situational, as the Bills only attempted six passes in the second half of a Dolphins blowout. But they ran a lot nonetheless.

GALLING DEEPER

Josh Allen, Bills dominate Jags in 47-10 throttling: Takeaways

This matchup was specifically a test for Brady in his first full year, and he passed with flying colors. Two key things stood out about the Jaguars defense. First, their run defense between the tackles was exceptionally effective in the first two weeks. The Dolphins and Browns struggled to run against them the entire game. Second, regardless of the opponent, the Jaguars utilized man coverage at one of the heaviest rates in the NFL.

Brady, instead of sticking to the ground game that had put the Bills up 2-0, cleverly pivoted. And not only did the Bills pivot, they turned back the clock to the explosive passing performances of the past. In the first half — the only useful portion of the game for analytical purposes — the previously run-oriented Bills abandoned the run. Instead of trying to run through a wall, they repeatedly went over and around it. Brady gave Allen the opportunity to exploit man coverage throughout the first half. The Bills had 29 dropbacks compared to just 10 designed runs — good for a passing rate of 74 percent.

The foundation of any great coordinator is the ability to adapt their particular side of the ball to the opponent at hand and play to the team’s strengths. Brady did that masterfully, taking the pressure off the offensive line and running backs to do the same things they’ve always done, just because it worked before. They addressed a specific weakness the Jaguars have — more on that later.

This is the closest the offense has ever come to the dynamic that former offensive coordinator Brian Daboll helped instill during his tenure. Considering how successful Daboll was, that’s not a frivolous comparison. Granted, having Allen as the team’s quarterback certainly makes it less difficult for Brady to switch things up from week to week. But the offensive coordinator deserves a lot of credit. His creativity and willingness to change the scope of his offense depending on the opponent has made it much harder for the Bills to prepare for, and combined with Allen, that’s something to be feared for the foreseeable future.

Khalil Shakir took advantage of a weakness in the Jaguars defense and finished the game with 72 receiving yards and a touchdown. (Gregory Fisher/Imagn Images)

Khalil Shakir was the man who attacked a key weakness for the Jaguars

The Jaguars have proven to be a team with good defense in their first two games, although they have had one major shortcoming. Their nickel corner has been a source of weakness this season, even when they had top draft pick Darnell Savage at their disposal in Week 1. But Savage, like he did in Week 2, was unable to return from injury for the game against the Bills. That left rookie Jarrian Jones, who struggled in Week 2 against the Browns, to go up against the Bills’ most dynamic receiver in Shakir.

The receiver dominated the matchup from the start as expected, and to make matters worse, Jones went down with an injury in the first quarter. That left the Jaguars with the task of using practice squad call-up Chris Braswell one-on-one against Shakir, and it went about as bad as it could have. Allen and the Bills attacked the position while the Jaguars continued to play heavy man coverage. Shakir finished with 72 receiving yards and a touchdown on six receptions. It’s been a while, probably since the Patriots a few years ago, that a team gave the rest of the NFL a general reminder not to give Allen extended looks against man coverage. The Jaguars learned that lesson the hard way.

An extraordinary start for Bobby Babich, Sean McDermott and the defense

It was a decent night for the Bills offense, but defensive coordinator Babich and head coach McDermott deserve a lot of credit for what they’ve done with this defense in three weeks. The Bills are without Matt Milano, Terrel Bernard and Taron Johnson in the lineup. Their top pass rusher in 2023, Leonard Floyd, is gone in free agency. Both of last year’s starting safeties are not on the team. Yet here the Bills are, having allowed just 31 points in their last 10 quarters. It took just two quarters for the Bills offense to score 34 on Monday night. The Bills have spent the last three weeks implementing a defensive game plan that has helped mask the potential weaknesses of individual pieces of the defense.

But along the way, it’s helped amplify individual performances to play at their highest level. Cornerback Christian Benford is one of the team’s best players. Greg Rousseau, Ed Oliver, AJ Epenesa and Von Miller have all had their moments along the defensive line. And even dime back Ja’Marcus Ingram chipped in with a few more pass breakups on Monday. There’s something wrong with the Jaguars’ offense, and they have a lot of questions to answer, but that doesn’t take away from the way this iteration of the Bills’ defense has defied expectations.

FIRST TOUCHDOWN AS BUFFALO BILL!

📺: @ESPNNFL@keoncoleman6 | #BillsMafia photo.twitter.com/6p4VM3vflh

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) September 24, 2024

Many will remember Coleman’s play for the first touchdown of his young career, and it was a huge moment for him. But perhaps the most interesting piece of the puzzle was his usage. Through the first two games, the Bills rookie receiver easily led the wide receiver room in snaps with 80.4 percent. The next closest was Mack Hollins at 63.6 percent. So when the Bills went the entire first quarter without Coleman taking a snap, it was extremely notable. McDermott explained after the game that they sat Coleman in the first quarter due to a tardiness issue, but declined to go into details. McDermott called it a learning experience.

But even with that in mind, his usage going into the game remained puzzling. In the second quarter and the Bills’ first drive of the second half that made it 37-10, Coleman took just 10 of a possible 30 snaps — a 33.3 percent rate, and well below his usual usage. Instead, it was Marquez Valdes-Scantling who got all of Coleman’s usual time, taking 73.3 percent of the snaps over those same 30 snaps. Perhaps they liked Valdes-Scantling better against man coverage than Coleman, who has struggled to find separation in the first two weeks. Regardless of the touchdown and discipline, this remains a situation to watch in Week 4.

Over the summer, the Bills watched as their rookie defensive end Solomon continued to pile up impressive pass-rushing days in practice. The fifth-round pick was a pleasant surprise for a Day 3 pick, showing the potential of someone who could contribute even in his first season. An oblique injury cost Solomon the first two games, and as a result, they slowly eased him back into the game in Week 3. But Solomon continued that upward trend once they brought him back into the game. In just the third defensive snap of his NFL career, Solomon used an inside rush to create immediate pressure and completed the strip sack of Jaguars backup Mac Jones to force a turnover. Plays like that were commonplace during training camp. And plays like that sack, even in garbage time, can sometimes be all that’s needed to earn more playing time in the weeks ahead.

Bills Most Valuable Player: QB Josh Allen — Four touchdowns, 269 total yards and just six incompletions — in the first half. This season may be Allen’s best chance to win the NFL MVP award.

Accounts LVP: Nobody —Aside from a blocked extra point attempt after their first touchdown, the game went about as well as it could have.

Next: The 3-0 Bills will take on the 1-2 Ravens on Sunday night, marking the Bills’ third consecutive primetime game.

(Top photo of Joe Brady: Bryan Bennett/Getty Images)