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Who took top honors along the offensive and defensive lines? Here is my analysis of how it all shook out.
Defensive Line
Mark Anderson
Time on Field: 83.1% snaps played; 59 total
Stats: 3 tackles (solo), TFL, PD, QB Hit
Plus/Minus: +2 (5 positive plays, 3 negative plays)
Observations: After having only the fifth highest play count among Bills defensive linemen in Week One, Mark Anderson led the way in play time. It was hard to ignore his efforts on the field, too. Anderson was whipping around all over the field -- having been lined up on both the right and left defensive end spot, as well as standing up to threaten with a rush up the middle of the offensive line. Anderson was the most consistent defensive end in putting pressure on the quarterback. He forced the pocket to collapse a couple of times, even though he didn't come away with a sack. It won't always be pretty with him. His rather unique style of rushing the passer will end up in him getting pancaked -- and hard (look no further than Branden Albert's pile drive attempt in the second half) -- but it will also give him the chance to keep the blocker guessing about what's coming next. He was very good in run support. Along the edge if he couldn't make the tackle he kept his body in an area to force the play wide for his teammates.
Grade: B+
Season Grade: 3.09 GPA
Mario Williams
Time on Field: 70.4% snaps played; 50 total
Stats: 2 tackles (solo), PD, FR
Plus/Minus: +3 (7 positive plays, 4 negative plays)
Observations: It was a much better performance for Mario Williams in Week Two, but he still left a bit to be desired in the pass rushing department. He got Matt Cassel nervous a couple of times with an up and under move, but was thwarted for most of the afternoon in his attempts of going wide on former teammate Eric Winston. He's a power player, but I've still yet to see that explosion out of his stance in 107 total snaps. He was solid in run support, but curiously he was left with only a tight end to block him at least five different times. He fell on the ball following Alex Carrington's strip sack, so that goes to his favor as well. It was a better week, but there is still a lot of room for improvement.
Grade: B
Season Grade: 2.29 GPA
Kyle Williams
Time on Field: 66.2% snaps played; 47 total
Stats: 3 tackles (2 solo), 2 sacks, 2 TFL, 2 QB Hits
Plus/Minus: +3 (5 positive plays, 2 negative plays)
Observations: For the second straight week, Kyle Williams was borderline dominant. There is little doubt who the best defensive lineman on the field was for either team because of his performance. His quickness off the snap is something that makes defensive coordinators drool, and it's also what makes offensive coordinator's cringe. He blew up three different plays because of his ability to get off the line of scrimmage as quickly as he does, highlighted by his bowling over of Nate Eachus which turned in to a sack of the quarterback. Jon Asamoah was no match for Williams when lined up against one another.
Grade: A-
Season Grade: 3.70 GPA
Chris Kelsay
Time on Field: 55.0% snaps played; 39 total
Stats: None
Plus/Minus: Even (0 positive plays, 0 negative plays)
Observations: Despite having the fourth-highest snap count of the seven players, Chris Kelsay failed to elicit any reactions out of me, no matter if they are good or bad. He rushed wide and set the edge for run plays, but never got enough penetration to make the play in the backfield or to make a tackle in run support. It was just a mediocre game for Kelsay this week that didn't cost the Bills anything.
Grade: C
Season Grade: 2.49 GPA
Marcell Dareus
Time on Field: 49.3% snaps played; 35 total
Stats: 2 tackles (solo), 1 sack, 2 TFL, 1 QB Hit
Plus/Minus: +2 (4 positive plays, 2 negative plays)
Observations: The heavy-hearted Marcell Dareus came out and had a much-improved effort from his Week One showing. His best play of the game occurred when he stunted around Kyle Williams. Lined up on the left side, Dareus had a one-on-one matchup against the right guard, while Williams was double-teamed by the center and left guard. Dareus took one step forward and quickly turned the corner to blow right by the two players still double-teaming his teammate. Asamoah didn't react and Dareus had an easy sack. His most embarrassing moment of the game? Getting knocked over on a chip from Jamaal Charles right before the running back caught a screen pass.
Grade: B+
Season Grade: 2.73 GPA
Spencer Johnson
Time on Field: 42.3% snaps played; 30 total
Stats: 1 tackle (solo)
Plus/Minus: -1 (1 positive play, 2 negative plays)
Observations: Spencer Johnson didn't do much to stand out for the Bills on Sunday. His best play came late in the game where he popped off his blocker to limit a Matt Cassel scramble to just a couple of yards. That may have been a result of getting cleared out by a 1-on-1 matchup which gave Cassel a clear lane to run up the middle of the field on his 21-yard scamper. Johnson was also pancaked on the fumble that Carrington forced.
Grade: C+
Season Grade: 2.44 GPA
Season Grade: 2.44 GPA
Alex Carrington
Time on Field: 40.9% snaps played; 29 total
Stats: 1 tackle (solo), 1 sack, FF
Plus/Minus: +2 (2 positive plays, 0 negative plays)
Observations: This very well could have been Alex Carrington's most impressive game as a member of the Bills. He definitely had his best play as a member of the franchise, fending off a blocker to hit the Chiefs with a strip-sack to force a turnover. Later on in the contest, Carrington's penetration helped force Cassel out of the pocket and forced an incompletion with him a little hurried. A solid performance from the former third-round pick.
Grade: B+
Season Grade: 2.86 GPA
Offensive Line
Andy Levitre
Time on Field: 100% snaps played; 55 at LG
Plus/Minus: +4 (7 positive plays, 3 negative plays)
Observations: While not as dominant as he was a week ago, Andy Levitre certainly did enough to keep his solid campaign going through two weeks. Despite a holding call and another play where he whiffed on his assignment on a pull, Levitre was solid for the rest of the game. Early on in the game, he threw nose tackle Dontari Poe to the ground like he was a 220 pound safety. On C.J. Spiller's first touchdown, Levitre had a heck of a seal block to spring that one in to the open field. He's been the best offensive lineman for the Bills through two games.
Grade: B+
Season Grade: 3.51 GPA
Kraig Urbik
Time on Field: 100% snaps played; 49 at RG, 6 at C
Plus/Minus: +3 (3 positive plays, 0 negative plays)
Observations: Kraig Urbik continues to be a consistent player for the Bills offense. He improved upon his performance from last week, limiting his mistakes and really doing some nice things in the run game. He buried his assignment on a Tashard Choice run early on in the contest and also won the leverage game with defender Tyson Jackson a few different times. I didn't see anything that stuck out as him getting beat by his man throughout the game.
Grade: B+
Season Grade: 2.99 GPA
Eric Wood
Time on Field: 89.1% snaps played; 49 at C
Plus/Minus: Even (1 positive play, 1 negative play)
Observations: An even-keel type of performance for Eric Wood. He was just a consistent force that did his job throughout, but his play on Sunday won't be winning him any awards. His best play was one where he pushed the Chiefs' big nose tackle, Dontari Poe, back about 7-to-8 yards on a run play. He just completely wiped him out. Even so, Wood was a leader in a different way for the Bills. When the skirmish with Tamba Hali happened, Wood was there leading the charge against any player going after one of his teammates.
Grade: B-
Season Grade: 2.86 GPA
Cordy Glenn
Time on Field: 85.5% snaps played; 47 at LT
Plus/Minus: +6 (8 positive plays, 2 negative plays)
Observations: Cordy Glenn can look back at Sunday and see it as the day that he won Bills fans over. He was finishing his blocks in the run game, he showed a toughness and physicality throughout, and also surrendered no ground to the vaunted Tamba Hali. Watching a 345-pound player like Glenn run down the sideline pushing people out of the way on a C.J. Spiller screen play is one people won't soon forget. His key block on C.J. Spiller's first touchdown helped spring that forward and keep Hali out of the play. While he was caught off balance a couple of times, it can't take away from the definitive step forward he took for the Bills as their left tackle on Sunday.
Grade: A-
Season Grade: 3.31 GPA
Erik Pears
Time on Field: 83.6% snaps played; 46 at RT
Plus/Minus: Even (3 positive plays, 3 negative plays)
Observations: The thing that sticks out more than anything when watching Erik Pears is his tough-guy demeanor that won't take any guff from anyone. He's not a perfect player and can get beat by a speed rush and also gets caught lunging. However, if he gets good leverage on a player he is not afraid to bury someone and then mix it up after the play. Probably a stronger run blocker than a pass blocker, Pears has gelled well with Kraig Urbik on the right side.
Grade: B-
Season Grade: 2.83 GPA
Chris Hairston
Time on Field: 30.9% snaps played; 9 at RT, 8 at LT
Plus/Minus: -1 (1 positive play, 2 negative plays)
Observations: On a long C.J. Spiller run, we won't soon forget that Chris Hairston was the key block that sprung the play in to the open field. With no one lined up in front of him, Hairston went searching for a player to block and found inside linebacker Derrick Johnson. The way the play looks, it didn't seem like Johnson saw the big right tackle coming his way. Hairston knocked Johnson on his behind for his best play of the game. At this point, Hairston still plays a bit too off-balance to challenge for a starting job, but if an injury occurs he'll be a capable fill-in.
Grade: B-
Season Grade: 2.48 GPA
Chad Rinehart
Time on Field: 10.9% snaps played; 6 at RG
Plus/Minus: Even (0 positive plays, 0 negative plays)
Observations: Rinehart saw action during garbage time, and now has 8 snaps on the season in total. No mystery false start calls on him this time around.
Grade: C+
Season Grade: 2.22 GPA
- Those that did not appear in the game were not graded.
- For obvious reasons, this is a report that highlights my findings and opinions from the individual games.
- The GPA's attached at the bottom are an overall grade of how I felt that player performed, basing it all on the play-by-play film review done throughout the week.
- Plus/minus scores and GPAs will be tracked as the season goes along. An individual game's GPA will be weighted with how many snaps that player has on the field in the contest when figuring out a season long average.
Twitter: @JoeB_WGR