Raiders at Bills
THE STORY: The Buffalo Bills' offensive explosion was one of the biggest surprises of Week 1. The Bills rolled over the Chiefs, 41-7, marking just the third time they’ve won their season opener since 2004. Buffalo can improve to 2-0 on the young season with a win over the Oakland Raiders at Ralph Wilson Stadium Sunday. The Raiders are also vying for their second win of the season after posting a 23-20 victory over the AFC West rival Denver Broncos on Monday. Oakland forced three turnovers and blocked a punt, while the defense locked down Denver to just 38 yards rushing. The Raiders have won six of the past 10 meetings with the Bills, going back to 1991, and lead the all-time series 19-16.
TV: CBS, 1 p.m. ET. LINE: Bills -3.5 O/U 43
ABOUT THE RAIDERS (1-0): Oakland secured two fumble recoveries and intercepted Broncos QB Kyle Orton once, but only squeaked out a close win. Oakland’s offense was limited to running back Darren McFadden, who ran for 150 yards, making him the early NFL rushing leader. McFadden was held back in practice this week, as was WR Jacoby Ford (hamstring) and new TE Kevin Boss (knee). The latter two are listed as questionable for Week 2.
ABOUT THE BILLS (1-0): Buffalo QB Ryan Fitzpatrick silenced doubters, passing for over 200 yards and four touchdowns versus Kansas City. Lost among the scoring stats was a stellar outing by Buffalo’s defense, which gave up just 213 total yards of offense. More importantly, the Bills contained Chiefs star running back Jamaal Charles to 56 yards, which is a positive going up against the shifty McFadden Sunday.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Oakland doesn’t like to travel and is just 2-7 when playing in the Eastern time zone over the past three seasons. That includes a 24-23 loss at Buffalo in 2008, which is the teams’ most recent meeting.
2. Bills LB Shawne Merriman knows Oakland all too well. As a member of the San Diego Chargers, he recorded 8 1/2 career sacks versus the Raiders, which is his highest total versus any opponent. Merriman injured his shoulder versus the Chiefs, but is expected to play Sunday.
3. The Raiders were whistled for 15 penalties for 131 yards versus the Broncos in Week 1 – most in the NFL. Last season, Oakland ranked tops in penalty yardage, gift wrapping 79.8 yards per game.