Four keys for Buffalo Bills to beat San Francisco 49ers

Due to the possible weather and just general ball security, the Bills will want to have as clean a game as possible. With an ever-changing forecast, the game may not see a ton of snow, but it still could be windy and cold. Bills head coach Sean McDermott knows to be ready for anything. “We’ve been through it before, so we have some experience with it,” McDermott said Wednesday. “We can’t control the weather.” With an added emphasis on a clean game, look for Josh Allen to end his interception streak. The 49ers, meanwhile, have as many takeaways as they have turnovers this season, with 16 apiece. Their 16 giveaways (nine picks and seven lost fumbles) are among the worst in the league.

San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan is a master at scripting the early parts of games. Watch for the 49ers to get in a rhythm early, no matter who is running the offense. It’s still Shanahan pulling the strings. “Simply put, he is a great coach,” McDermott said of Shanahan. “We’ve both been in the league a long time. We’ve gone up against each other a number of times in the NFC South, it was for a few years there and twice a year. I don’t think there’s many coaches in this league better than Kyle Shanahan, I really don’t.” Even if San Francisco strings together some long drives early, the Bills’ defense should know it has the edge in this matchup.

This will be the first time that the Bills have faced Brock Purdy, if the injured quarterback is able to play. That means a little more prep work for McDermott, who had high praise for Purdy’s game and traits. “At least for me, it takes a little bit more time to get myself familiar with the offense or the player, in this case, with Brock,” McDermott said. “You have a chance to TV watch or TV scout the team or the player just as you’re watching casually as fans do, like we do when we’re not competing. So, it takes a little bit longer to get, I guess, comfortable, if you will, with what you’re watching.”

The Bills are perfect coming off the bye under McDermott: 7-0. They have a chance to extend the streak Sunday night. McDermott says there’s not necessarily a trick to coming off the bye; it’s more sticking to the usual. After all, he’s certainly a man who loves a routine. “That’s a good question. I don’t really have the, ‘Hey, this is exactly what we do formula.’ It’s just more of, I think us really just getting back to what we do, getting back to the basics,” McDermott said. “Today (Wednesday) we’re going to practice and have a normal practice in pads and working on the fundamentals that we need to have for a good football team in San Francisco coming here.”