There are many storylines to follow when a team wins, like the Buffalo Bills did in front of a national audience Monday Night Football. The Bills defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars in a game that was easily decided by halftime.

Buffalo won 47-10 and took a 34-3 halftime lead. It was a dominant performance that clearly shows a team running at full speed against a team that appears to have ended the season after just three weeks. The Bills are now 3-0 and have two big road games in the conference on board.

There were many impressive performances from Buffalo’s rookie class this past Monday. Of course, almost everyone played well, but it was encouraging to see real contributions made from the top to the bottom in the 2024 class.

In addition to the play on the field, there was also an interesting development involving Buffalo’s top overall pick, wide receiver Keon Coleman. Catch up on the latest posts from this season’s newbies.

WR Keon Coleman

As mentioned, Coleman ran into trouble with the coaching staff. There wasn’t much coverage of Coleman in the game or before the game, so it was strange to see him on the sidelines at the start of Monday’s game. That’s especially true because Coleman had logged the most wide receiver snaps on the team in the first two weeks.

After the game, we learned that Coleman couldn’t play in the first quarter for disciplinary reasons. According to Bills head coach Sean McDermott, Coleman was temporarily benched because he was “not on time.” McDermott went on to say that he was pleased with Coleman’s response to the quarter lock and that everything seemed to be fine now. Nonetheless, you don’t want a team’s prominent rookie to need discipline three weeks into the season.

To Coleman’s credit, he made a big impact when he entered the game, with a 24-yard touchdown on a cross route that saw him run away from a Jaguars’ corner in man coverage. There’s an unfair narrative about Coleman that says he can’t separate regardless of rep. Watching Coleman score his first touchdown is proof that he is fully capable of separating and taking care of himself after the catch. He used his early leverage to stay one step ahead of the corner with a simple double-cross concept. Coleman only had one catch for that touchdown all game, but only played 20 total snaps on the night.

S. Cole Bishop

Bishop didn’t enter the game until the game was essentially decided, but he played 14 snaps. Importantly, Bishop served as the team’s third true safety opposite veteran Mike Edwards. When Bishop plays, excellence shines through and you can see the athleticism shine through on the screen.

Right now, veterans Taylor Rapp and Damar Hamlin are playing good football. But if one of them hits a rough patch or suffers an injury, Bishop might step up to the plate and never look back. It’s worth keeping an eye on whether he gets into a rotation of some sort with either player before garbage time. So far, only Rapp and Hamlin have had games on the line.

DT DeWayne Carter

Carter was one of the worst players on the team throughout the three weeks of competition. That’s not to say he won’t get better with time, but there wasn’t anything impressive or significant to mention about him. He sees a high percentage of reps in a split with starters DaQuan Jones and Ed Oliver, which is typically a more common rotation in the McDermott defense.

Carter just doesn’t seem ready to contribute at a high level yet. If the defense were to lose Oliver or Jones, I would be concerned about a replacement getting a high snap count. Carter hasn’t shown any signs of getting more snaps yet, despite being less dominant in the spot compared to past seasons. He hasn’t recorded a stat in 23 defensive snaps, and he’s fourth in the pecking order on a squad with just four defensive tackles in space.

RB Ray Davis

It’s been the James Cook show in Buffalo’s backfield this year, as he received most of the key touches early in the season. There’s a good reason for that, as Cook was outstanding. When Ray Davis enters the field, the football is given to him. Against the Jaguars, Davis played a total of 12 snaps and had eight touches (7 carries; 1 receiving). Towards the end of the game against Jacksonville, Davis also got into the end zone for his first NFL touchdown.

Davis’ best performance came in Pass Pro, where he picked up a lightning-quick linebacker with stopping power and slammed it backwards into the linebacker behind him – resulting in a double knockdown. More reps like that will get Davis on the field regardless of how well Cook performs.

IOL Sedrick Van Pran-Granger

Van Pran-Granger was there for eight valuable snaps on Monday. He continues to act as an important reserve player in the center. If McGovern is out, it is very likely that Van Pran-Granger will be next in line at center.

LB Edefuan Ulofoshio

It was questionable which of the rookie linebackers would be active between Ulofoshio and local hero Joe Andreessen following the injury to starter Terrel Bernard. Ulofoshio missed playing time in the preseason due to injury, which may have slightly affected his chances of playing in this game, but it was Andreessen who got the nod. It’s a little disappointing that Ulofoshio is inactive despite two injuries at the position, but he has plenty of time to develop while serving minimally as a depth option this season.

RAND Javon Solomon

Solomon played just 14 snaps on defense, all of them late in the fourth quarter. That made Solomon the clear fifth option in the defensive end on Monday. This space is healthy right now, so it’s nice to see Solomon getting every opportunity possible.

If he continues like he did on Monday, we’ll be seeing more of him in due course. Solomon Strip sacked Mac Jones with a nice play that lined him up as a standup wide-9. He began his rush on the outside shoulder before exploding inside with a leap and piercing the inside shoulder of Jaguars left tackle Cam Robinson. The speed of approach was evident and he got to Jones in a hurry. It was very impressive to see such a performance from Solomon in his first game against an NFL starter. There should be more snaps from Solomon on obvious passing downs – he offers game-changing ability as an edge rusher.

OL Tylan Grable

Sean McDermott said in his press conference Tuesday that Grable will be out for an extended period of time with a hamstring/groin injury he sustained in Monday night’s game. Grable played three snaps before appearing to suffer the injury. Grable was likely used as the team’s swing tackle as a rookie, so his loss is a concern due to the depth at the position. It’s unfortunate for a young player who is well above his sixth-round draft status. We’ll have to wait and see if this injury puts Grable on Injured Reserve (IR) in the coming days.

CB/returner Daequan Hardy

Hardy remains on the team’s practice squad and will not be added to the roster for three weeks. Starting returner Brandon Codrington did some nice things in that role earlier in the year.

OL Travis Clayton

The seventh-round pick from the International Pathway Program is out for the season and all of IR with a shoulder injury.

LB Joe Andreessen

Andreessen, as mentioned above, saw his first regular season action in a primetime home game. It’s a poetic moment for the local Lancaster legend. Andreessen came into the game late and had a few tackles. Baylon Spector and Dorian Williams received all the snaps at linebacker while the game was still relatively even. Andreessen’s NFL upside remains to be seen. Regardless, it’s a great feel-good story to see a local player get a real opportunity as a UDFA tryout player after the 2024 NFL Draft.

CB/Returner Brandon Codrington

Codrington had two punt returns totaling 41 yards (22 and 19). He brings a lot of close-range power and makes really smart ball-handling decisions in this role. It’s not particularly glamorous, but the Bills decided to trade him to the league at the end of the preseason for good reason. So far it’s paying off hugely. Codrington got some defensive calls late in the game as the team lightened the bench. His best future in the NFL is as a returner, and he already looks very good at that position.