Buffalo Bills vs. Chicago Bears personnel connections The Bu

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will square off against the Chicago Bears on Thursday hoping to avoid injury above all else. The fourth and final preseason game often prominently features players who are auditioning for a spot on another roster or practice squad. While this year’s preseason finale doesn’t quite have the intimate feel of Buffalo’s traditional preseason closing matchup with the Detroit Lions Buffalo Bills T-Shirt , there are some connections between the two teams.The head coaches each rose through the NFL coaching ranks together, with new Bears head coach Matt Nagy and second-year Bills head coach Sean McDermott starting their NFL careers with Andy Reid’s Philadelphia Eagles. Both men coached under Reid from 2008-2010. Nagy began as a coaching intern (2008-2009) before earning a promotion to coaching assistant for the 2010 season. McDermott was the Eagles’ linebackers coach in 2008 before he as named defensive coordinator, a position he held in 2009 and 2010 before he was fired.Guard Vlad Ducasse and center/guard Ryan Groy each played for the Bears before coming to Buffalo. Ducasse was a Bear in 2015, playing in 15 games and making 11 starts. Groy signed with the Bears as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2014. He made 3 starts for the team and appeared in 4 games overall. Another of Buffalo’s offensive linemen, Jordan Mills, began his career in Chicago, as well. Mills played for the Bears for his first two seasons (2013-2014) after the team drafted him in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Mills was Chicago’s starting right tackle out of the gate, starting 29 of a possible 32 games over his first two seasons. Two assistant coaches have connections to each team, as well. Bills’ linebackers coach Bob Babich was with the Bears from 2004-2012, serving as linebackers coach from 2004-2006, then as defensive coordinator from 2007-2009, and then again as linebackers coach from 2010-2012. Bears’ tight ends coach Kevin Gilbride is the son of longtime NFL coach (and former Bills’ offensive coordinator) Kevin Gilbride, who was a member of Gregg Williams’ staff from 2001-2003.Buffalo Rumblings Podcast: Recapping Buffalo’s upset win, Josh Allen’s clutch performance Wow Buffalo Bills Hats , who saw that coming? The Buffalo Bills (1-2) traveled to Minneapolis for a showdown with the Minnesota Vikings (1-1-1-1), and shocked the football world with a HUGE 27-6 win over the reigning NFC North champions. How in the heck did the Bills, a team left for dead after two lackluster performances to open the 2018 season, pull off the biggest upset of the year?In the latest edition of the Buffalo Rumblings podcast, host John Boccacino is joined by co-host Anthony Marino to break down the win, which featured a poised Josh Allen performing well in a hostile environment, and a defense that performed like Bills’ fans hoped it would when the season began. Well, since every single Buffalo Bills fan expected their team to head into Minnesota and pull off the shocking upset, there’s not much to discuss in our recap podcast...okay, only the most optimistic of Bills fans gave this team a chance to earn its first win against the Vikings, a team with legitimate hopes of winning the Super Bowl. Our podcasting duo discussed Josh Allen’s poise and maturity in guiding the Bills to a win, as Allen beat the Vikings with his strong arm and his legs. Allen completed 15 of 22 passes for 196 yards with one passing touchdown, and added 39 rushing yards on 10 carries with a pair of TD runs for Buffalo, which entered as a 16.5-point underdog. How did the Bills stun the Vikings? With consistent quarterbacking play Buffalo Bills Hoodie , a persistent ground game led by Chris Ivory and Marcus Murphy that accumulated 89 yards on 28 carries, and an opportunistic defense that returned to its 2017 form of forcing turnovers and flipping the field. Allen scampered 10 yards and dove into the end zone for a touchdown on Buffalo’s opening drive, giving the Bills the lead for the first time this year. It was a lead they would never relinquish. A pair of big plays certainly helped the Bills cause: the first, a nifty 26-yard touchdown pass to Jason Croom on a play where Allen faked a handoff to Ivory up the middle and faked a screen pass to the right flat to Murphy before hitting a wide-open Croom on a wheel route for a TD and a 17-0 lead. Aside from Allen’s incredible hurdle over Pro Bowl linebacker Anthony Barr, the other big play, which showcased both Allen’s mobility and the creativity of Brian Daboll’s offense, set up Buffalo’s third touchdown. On a play-action pass, Allen faked to Ivory, who then slipped out of the backfield into the middle of the field. Allen, who was flushed out of the pocket, kept the play alive long enough to spot Ivory, whose catch and run set Buffalo up at the Minnesota six-yard line. While the offense struck early and often for 17 first-quarter points en route to a 27-0 halftime lead, the defense limited Minnesota to only 46 first-half yards, forcing two fumbles that led to 10 points. The defense attacked and flew over the field all day long Cheap Customized Buffalo Bills Jerseys , confusing quarterback Kirk Cousins while bottling up the high-flying Vikings offense. The pass rush took a huge step forward, sparked by Jerry Hughes, who registered 15 pressures according to NFL Next Gen Stats. That figure represents the most pressures in a game over the last three seasons. Linebacker Matt Milano also stood out on defense, enjoying one of the finest games of his young career. Milano finished with a sack, a fumble recovery, and an interception, becoming the first member of the Bills to accomplish that feat since Troy Vincent in 2004.All-told, it was an inspiring bounce-back effort from a Bills team that just one week ago was a national embarrassment following the sudden retirement of starting cornerback Vontae Davis at halftime of a 31-20 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. Cornerbacks Tre’Davious White and Ryan Lewis also stood out for their outstanding play, limiting Minnesota’s dynamic wide receiver tandem of Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen — who ran wild against the Packers for a combined 21 catches for 259 and three touchdowns — to 22 yards on six catches in the first half. Needless to say, our podcasters had lots of positives to discuss following Buffalo’s first win of the year. Check out our Buffalo Rumblings podcast for our thoughts on what changed from the first two weeks, and what needs to happen for the Bills to continue their upward trend. SoundCloud | iTunes | Google Play | Stitcher | TuneIn | Podbay | Podfanatic |Subscribe, rate, and review our Buffalo Rumblings podcast now and leave your comments below. You can also download an MP3 version of the podcast by signing up for a free account at SoundCloud. We’re looking for feedback and want to hear from you!