Evan Silva’s Matchups: Buccaneers at Bills

Thursday Night Football

Tampa Bay @ Buffalo

Team Totals: Bills 25, Bucs 17

Their offense back sputtering, the Bucs managed point totals of 6 (vs. DET) and 13 (vs. ATL) in their last two games. Baker Mayfield has dipped to 17th among quarterbacks in per-game fantasy points and will play through a knee injury that limited his practice participation this week. The good news is Tampa is catching Buffalo’s defense at a severe personnel disadvantage; the Bills are missing NT DaQuan Jones (torn pec, I.R.) while fellow DTs Ed Oliver (toe) and Jordan Phillips (back) are questionable. In Tremaine Edmunds (free agent, Bears) and Matt Milano (broken leg, I.R.), Buffalo has lost both starting inside linebackers since the end of last year. Top CB Tre’Davious White (Achilles) is out for the season. EDGE Von Miller (knee) has played 12% of the team’s to-date defensive snaps. There is an opportunity here for Tampa Bay to outkick offensive projections, but I’m still viewing Mayfield as a two-QB/Superflex option only, especially in a week with zero teams on bye. … Averaging a paltry 3.2 yards per carry behind an offensive line that ranks 32nd in ESPN’s run-blocking win rate, Rachaad White lost 25% of Tampa Bay’s backfield snaps to Ke’Shawn Vaughn in Week 7 and on a short week risks losing even more to Chase Edmonds, who is due back from I.R. Yet Buffalo’s decimated defense has been clipped for the NFL’s 10th-most fantasy points by enemy running backs, including 4.9 yards per carry. White is a passable RB2/flex.

Mayfield’s Weeks 1-7 target distribution: Mike Evans and Chris Godwin 49; White and Cade Otton 23; Deven Thompkins 18 and Trey Palmer 17; Vaughn 4. … Evans has accounted for 70 more yards and four more touchdowns than Godwin on the same number of targets, while Godwin is dealing with a neck injury on a short week.