For the Buffalo Bills, it's hard to call Sunday's 29-25 loss to the New England Patriots anything other than a disaster.
The Bills were coming off back-to-back underwhelming performances, first a loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in London then an unconvincing win against the New York Giants. By facing off against the previously 1-5 Patriots, the team that tormented them for so long but has since fallen, the Bills were hoping to get some sort of rhythm.
But that's not what happened, though. The issues that had plagued the Bills, who entered the game as 7.5-point favorites, over the past two weeks, were on full display in Foxboro, particularly for the offense that once again struggled to take advantage of its opportunities. Buffalo's strong but battered defense also struggled, allowing New England to gain a season-high in points and yards.
Despite all that, there's a silver lining in even the worst of losses. In this case, it comes in the performance of rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid, who had his first true breakout game in the NFL. After a relatively pedestrian first few games, the first-round pick out of Utah had eight receptions on as many targets for 75 yards, all career-bests.
"It looked like he had more targets today over the middle of the defense and man and zone, and I was excited to see that," coach Sean McDermott said of Kincaid, per The Buffalo News. "We’ve got to continue to do that.”
Kincaid didn't make a big deal out of his performance, but that's not too surprising given the loss. However, his teammates could see clear as day how important this breakout was.
“Definitely a bright part of the game,” fellow tight end Dawson Knox said. “He’s a weapon to be used. So hopefully, that will keep his confidence up. The more weapons we have on offense, the more we can spread the ball around, the more versatile we can be. The harder it is to defend every part. Definitely happy for him. Hopefully that will continue building.”
A dynamic receiving threat in college, Kincaid was brought in with hopes he could bring that same energy to Buffalo's offense. If he can continue playing like he did on Sunday, then he will live up to his billing in no time.
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