The troubling sign for the Los Angeles Rams in Week 5 is clear: the Buffalo Bills tend to be much better in the red zone. Forget the endless talk about “super teams” and star power, sometimes it all boils down to the basics. Take care of the football, force takeaways, and score touchdowns instead of settling for field goals. This Week 5 showdown between the Rams and the Bills is shaping up to be decided by exactly those things.
Buffalo’s Red Zone Dominance Is No Fluke
Seriously, Bills QB Josh Allen is a cheat code once he steps inside the 20-yard line. The guy just wins with his legs, he is notoriously hard to tackle, and he always finds a way to get the ball into the end zone. That’s why Buffalo is currently the NFL’s ninth-best team when it comes to scoring touchdowns inside the red zone, boasting a killer 68.75% rate. And this isn’t some one-year blip, either. On a percentage basis, they are performing at nearly the identical rate they hit in the 2025 season, when they finished second-best in the league behind only the Eagles. Now, go ahead and scroll way down that list until you hit the Rams. They are dragging at 21st in red zone touchdown rate, clocking in at a disappointing 53.33%. That’s a huge drop from last season, where LA was scoring touchdowns at a respectable 64.37% clip and ranked seventh overall. The odds currently favor LA by 2.5 points at home, but that red zone mismatch is screaming for attention.
Turnover Troubles Haunt Both Quarterbacks
Then there’s the other big one: taking care of the football. And let’s be honest, neither Allen nor Matthew Stafford are doing a great job right now. Allen puts the ball in harm’s way at the sixth-worst rate in the entire league, according to Pro Football Focus’s (PFF) turnover-worthy play (TWP) metric. He has eight TWPs but has only thrown three interceptions, which screams good fortune for the Bills. Stafford, meanwhile, ranks 14th from the bottom in the same metric, placing him right in the middle of the pack. He also has eight TWPs, but he’s thrown twice as many interceptions. That is not a sign of good fortune. While Stafford technically edges Allen out in terms of turnover-worthy plays, Allen actually comes out ahead in terms of how often they’re putting negatively graded plays on tape. Stafford earns a negative PFF grade on 10.3% of his plays, which ranks as the 10th-worst in the NFL. Allen is right behind him at 14th, with 9.0%.
This Monday night game is going to come down to who executes in the red zone and who avoids those costly turnovers. Based on their track record so far this season, Josh Allen and the Bills definitely have the upper hand. Both quarterbacks are playing a bit fast and loose with the ball, so whichever one can dial it in and play within himself has the better shot at walking away with the victory. It’s going to be a nail-biter, for sure.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Turf Show Times.
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