Bills’ stout defense reveals simple mantra ahead of Week 4 clash with Ravens

The Buffalo Bills' defense has a significant test ahead of it in their Week 4 clash with the Baltimore Ravens. They plan to stick to their mantra.

Kyle Silagyi | 3 Hours Ago

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Next man up.

It’s a phrase that coaches at all levels of football will recite until they're blue in the face, but it’s rung particularly true for the Buffalo Bills this season, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The team was dealt a major blow in late August when former All-Pro linebacker Matt Milano suffered a bicep tear, an ailment that will keep him sidelined until December, at the earliest. The blows kept coming once the 2024 campaign commenced, with elite nickel cornerback Taron Johnson going down with a forearm injury in Week 1 before starting middle linebacker Terrel Bernard suffered a pectoral strain in Week 2.

Buffalo has been forced to push depth defenders—individuals who hadn’t played on more than a handful of regular season snaps entering the new campaign—into prominent roles, with Dorian Williams, Baylon Spector, Cam Lewis, and Ja’Marcus Ingram all logging significant snaps through three games this year in lieu of the injured starters. This isn’t even to mention the turnover prompted by offseason departures, as Taylor Rapp and Damar Hamlin are now manning the backend of the Bills’ defense after seven-year starters Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer departed Orchard Park in the spring.

Buffalo’s defense has every excuse to be struggling at this point in the season, but it’s done anything but, currently ranking 11th in total defense. The unit currently ranks in the top 10 in both sacks and interceptions and is allowing just 16 points per game (good for seventh in the league); the Bills currently boast the NFL’s second-best turnover differential (plus-five), a testament to their defensive tenacity and offensive proficiency.

The team has allowed just 23 points over the past 10 quarters, this after allowing 17 throughout the first two. There are several people and general areas that deserve their flowers with regard to Buffalo’s defensive excellence—its starters, its depth players who have ascended into more prominent roles, its coaching staff, etc.—but no one factor is perhaps more prominent in the unit’s success than its mindset. The Bills have revealed their defensive mantra—the mindset with which they play—ahead of their Week 4 clash with the Baltimore Ravens: “Smart, Physical, and Fast,” a rather simple phrase the team’s defensive players and coaching staff have folded into their wardrobes in the form of hats that boast the mantra’s acronym.

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Defensive coordinator Bobby Babich spoke about the hats and general mindset during his Tuesday media availability, explaining its meaning before telling reporters about its origin.

"Smart, fast and physical," Babich said, per BuffaloBills.com’s Maddy Glab. ". . . We had these made for the guys. Said, if you believe in it, wear it. If you don't, give it back . . . Years ago, there was a moment where [head coach Sean McDermott] was like 'We're gonna keep this simple. We're gonna play fast. We're gonna play physical. Let our guys execute.’”

It’s a mantra that, per cornerback Rasul Douglas, stresses the importance of playing free, relying on what they know, and trusting their instincts, as doing so prevents the defense from overthinking things and getting in their own way.

"We don't really want to think, for real," Douglas said, per Glab. "We just want to hit everything moving. So, when you put it simple, we all can play faster because we ain't gotta think so much."

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When Babich and players use the word ‘simple,’ it doesn’t necessarily relate to the intricacies of the scheme, as defensive end Von Miller, per Glab, described Buffalo’s defense as “very, very complex” before stating that Babich and company “do an excellent job of teaching.” The word more so relates to routine; if you take care of your business—or, 1/11th—off the field, you’ll position yourself for success on it.

"I think just keeping things simple in general, like in life, it allows you to really be your best," Miller said, per Glab. "If I think about all the great days that I've had outside of football, it was simple. You wake up, brush your teeth, have some breakfast. Then, watch cartoons, go outside, ride your bike, play video games, and it was good. We try to keep that same mindset here."

Buffalo’s defense is off to a stellar start, and it will look to puts its defensive mantra on display yet again this Sunday in their primetime clash with the Baltimore Ravens. They’re not a team to discredit despite their 1-2 start; Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry are two of the league's most dynamic players at their respective positions, and Zay Flowers, Mark Andrews, and Isaiah Likely are not pass-catchers to be overlooked. The Bills will look to mitigate their offensive prowess by playing smart, fast, and physical football in primetime.

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