HERO
Muhammad Wilkerson and Calvin Pace sparked a front seven that stuffed the NFL’s fourth-ranked ground game and dominated an offensive line that had allowed only one sack previously. The Jets had eight sacks and 14 tackles for losses, with Wilkerson (six tackles, two sacks, two TFL, five QB hits) and Pace (eight tackles, sack, two QB hits) leading the charge.
UNSUNG HERO
Running back Bilal Powell had 27 carries for 149 yards, keeping the chains moving, the third downs manageable and rookie quarterback Geno Smith out of trouble.
ZERO
It was a tough day for Bills cornerback Justin Rogers, who got pushed off by Stephen Hill and beaten badly for a 51-yard second-quarter touchdown, then never turned his head to make a play on the ball and got torched by Santonio Holmes for the 69-yard fourth-quarter game-winner. A 22-yard pass interference in the third was just insult to injury.
KEY STAT
9
That’s how many yards the Jets held CJ Spiller to, after he had gashed them for 169 yards and a TD on just 14 carries in last year’s opener. On Sunday they plugged every gap and punished Spiller on his 10 carries until he left in the third quarter with a knee injury.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Everyone thought we were [bleep], let’s be honest about it. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t look at stuff like that. But hey, keep on talking it, because we’re proving people wrong and trying to make some noise in this league.’’
— Jets linebacker Calvin Pace