Bills need more from pass rush. Your guide to Week 15 vs. Panthers

Sean McDermott and Leslie Frazier were in agreement this week.

The Buffalo Bills’ head coach and defensive coordinator singled out the team’s four-man pass rush as an area that has not produced to the level needed thus far.

When the Bills run: Quarterback Josh Allen is also the Bills’ best running back. Allen became just the fourth player to throw for at least 300 yards and rush for at least 100 yards last week when he threw for 308 and rushed for 109, accounting for three total touchdowns against Tampa Bay (Carolina’s Cam Newton, Seattle’s Russell Wilson and Baltimore's Lamar Jackson are the others). The question of how much Allen will be able to do on the ground despite a sprained foot looms over this game. Carolina ranks 20th in the NFL against the run, allowing 115.3 yards per game. Devin Singletary has 112 carries for 547 yards this season, which makes him the Bills’ first running back since Travis Henry from 2001-03 to gain at least 500 yards in each of his first three seasons. EDGE: Even.

When the Bills pass: The NFC has seen enough of Allen. Since the beginning of the 2020 season, the Bills’ quarterback is averaging 330.1 yards passing per game against NFC opponents, which leads the NFL. Allen also leads the NFL over that same time frame with 3.3 passing touchdowns per game against NFC opponents and is second with a passer rating of 115.4. Allen might not find it quite as easy to throw this week, though, given that the Panthers enter the game leading the NFL in passing yards allowed per game, at just 177.7. Bills receiver Stefon Diggs needs just two catches to reach 80 for the season. When he gets there, Diggs will join Eric Moulds as the only receivers in franchise history with back-to-back seasons of 80-plus catches. EDGE: Bills.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who sprained his left foot in last Sunday's game, is expected to start this week against the Carolina Panthers. He was a full participant in Friday’s practice and was not listed with an injury status for the game.

Left tackle Dion Dawkins has tested positive for Covid-19, putting his status up in the air for Sunday. Dawkins, who was hospitalized with Covid last summer, could potentially play based off updated protocols from the NFL. Because he is vaccinated, if he tests negative and is asymptomatic, he could be in the lineup.

Welcome to this week’s Bills Mailbag. Since Festivus is right around the corner, it’s only right that we start with the airing of grievances. Not surprisingly, a lot of you have many of those when it comes to NFL officiating. That’s understandable after last week’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and it’s a good place to start …

Chuck Zernentsch asks: I guess in today's NFL, you can grab, mug, interfere with a receiver, but all is forgiven if you turn to look at the ball. Clearly, Stefon Diggs was interfered with in the end zone, but no call, as that might have decided the game. When we have some contact, it's interference. Not saying we didn't interfere, just that the enforcement was clearly not consistent. Is the NFL deliberately, perhaps unconsciously, influencing games?

Here is how News sports writers see Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers at Highmark Stadium. The Bills are a 10.5-point favorite.

Jay Skurski: Josh Allen’s injury status, of course, looms over this prediction. We’ll go into making it operating under the assumption Allen will play. The signs have been positive in that regard early in the practice week. If he does, the Buffalo Bills should feel good about their chances, even though the Panthers have a low-key solid defense, including a secondary that ranks No. 1 in passing yards allowed per game. As Dion Dawkins said this week, “The time is now.” The Bills can’t afford another loss, especially against an inferior opponent. It's hard to see that happening. The No. 1 goal for the Buffalo defense is to take away the football – something Panthers quarterback Cam Newton has shown a willingness to do recently. If that happens and the Bills' offense can jump out to an early lead, that will take some of the pressure off in what is – like the remainder of the games – a must win. Bills, 31-13.

Here is how the AFC playoff picture looks after Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers:

1. Kansas City 10-4

Good communication again will be critical for the Buffalo Bills’ offensive line Sunday against the exceptionally fast Carolina Panthers’ defense.

Carolina has two of the fastest edge rushers in the NFL in Haason Reddick and Brian Burns. Reddick runs the 40-yard dash in 4.52 seconds, Burns in 4.53. That’s wide receiver speed.

TAMPA, Fla. – Buffalo Bills fans wanting to see more of Gabriel Davis got their wish Sunday.

The second-year receiver played 65 offensive snaps during a 33-27 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium – 83% of the offensive total. In both total snaps and percentage, that represents Davis’ most extensive playing time of the season.

Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule has a clear memory of the first time he saw Tyler Matakevich play. Rhule was on the coaching staff at Temple University at the time, and on the recruiting trail. 

“I went up to Milford Academy in Upstate New York and they put me in a back room,” Rhule told Buffalo media Thursday. “I was sitting by myself with a bunch of DVDs. I was watching this kid from Connecticut play linebacker. I said, ‘He’s a pretty good player.’

Quarterback Josh Allen again was limited in practice Thursday with a foot injury.

He was limited in Wednesday’s walkthrough, as well. Still, his teammates thought he continued to improve as the team prepared for Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers at Highmark Stadium. 

Some Buffalo Bills fans who were upset about referees not calling pass interference Sunday in the loss to Tampa Bay have spun their frustration forward. VIA: Visually Impaired Advancement, a Buffalo nonprofit that works with the visually impaired community, is the beneficiary.

The donations began when Hunter Schinabeck, a Massachusetts-based Bills fan, researched some options of where he could donate in Buffalo, leading him to VIA. When the nonprofit shared his reason for donating on Twitter, it took off.

Most of you are going to dislike this based on everything I read on social media. Let’s get that out of the way off the top.

Tremaine Edmunds still is an asset to the Buffalo Bills’ defense.

Andy Dalton was just trying to win a football game.

But the NFL quarterback's last-minute, fourth-down touchdown pass in the 2017 regular season finale not only lifted the Cincinnati Bengals over the Baltimore Ravens, it sent the Buffalo Bills to the playoffs for the first time in 17 years. And Bills fans showed their appreciation with their wallets.