Mike Rodak, ESPN Staff Writer 10y

Updating defensive stat changes for Bills

Last week, we examined a few advanced statistics where the Buffalo Bills have seen a marked difference since last season -- good or bad.

With another game to broaden the sample size, let's give those numbers a refresh, continuing with the defense:

Stat: Disrupted drop-back percentage

2013: 21.6 percent (1st)

2014, through Week 1: 15.7 percent (14th)

2014, through Week 2: 18.9 percent (8th)

Analysis: This stat is calculated as a percentage of sacks, passes defended, interceptions, and batted balls over dropbacks. The Bills were able to disrupt Ryan Tannehill (21.8 percent) more than Jay Cutler (15.7 percent). More impressively, they did it with less blitzing. They sent five or more rushers on just 18.2 percent of plays, the sixth-lowest rate in the league in Week 2. In Week 2, the Bills' blitz rate was 25.5 percent, while it was 34.8 percent in Week 1.

Stat: Opponent first downs per pass attempt

2013: 30.3 percent (3rd)

2014, through Week 1: 38.3 percent (23rd)

2014, through Week 2: 35.7 percent (17th)

Analysis: This stat also improved since Week 1. The Bills allowed first downs on 32.7 percent of Tannehill pass attempts. The Dolphins had more success in the second half (36.8 percent) than the first half (18.2 percent), so part of that could be the Bills' defense loosening up as it had more of a lead. The pass defense isn't exactly where the Bills need it to be, but the early signs are encouraging. They'll face a test against Philip Rivers, Keenan Allen, Antonio Gates, and the rest of the San Diego Chargers' offense this Sunday.

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