A pretty loss is worse than an ugly win, except the Bills can’t seem to win at all. Especially when Josh Allen throws costly turnovers.
It wasn’t meant to be this way. The Buffalo Bills were supposed to be exciting. Now, a fired offensive coordinator and Buffalo dropping three out of their last four games means that the spotlight shines on what was supposed to be instead of what is. Never mind the sluggish offensive showing against the Bengals, never mind the ousting of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey, and never mind the abysmal Josh Allen performance against the lowly Denver Broncos.
No matter what the Bills try to pin the issue on or what solutions NFL experts around the world and Twitter decide to post up, the fact tends to remain the same– the Bills are in trouble. Four straight playoff runs to never even make it past the Divisional Round puts a target on a team’s back. And for the Bills, it’s Lake Erie sized.
“I’m still confident. But it’s no secret the clock’s ticking, got to have some urgency now,” Allen said to reporters on Monday morning. It was mere hours after that offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey got the boot. Maybe Dorsey is the issue, maybe the offensive scheme wasn’t where it needed to be, maybe Dorsey under-utilized a clearly frustrated Stefon Diggs and Bills brass thought enough was enough.
Think what you want, and the Bills organization will too, but Josh Allen might be the common denominator in nearly every facet of Buffalo’s issues. It’s time to face the music, old-school football is old-school for a reason. The Bills have been playing an antiquated form of ball for way too long. Gunslingers don’t work in today’s era, there’s a reason players like Lamar Jackson and Tua Tagovailoa are regarded as turnover machines. In a game where turnover differential matters more than anything, Josh Allen has been notoriously bad at holding on to the rock.
Making desperate throws, chucking it up at times, it seems as though Allen’s read progression relies on nothing more than prayers and trust in receivers. The Bills’ offense has fallen short of putting up 25 or more points in six straight games. This is the same offensive battery that looked like the NFL’s next “Greatest Show on Turf” and scored like it was no one’s business in a playoff game against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.
Fast forward to today and you get a Bills team that was stifled by a 32nd ranked Broncos defense. It’s easy to look at a special teams faux pas on the final play of the game, but blunders happen. Consistent interceptions including head-scratching baffling ones don’t. Allen accounts for 14 total turnovers to lead the NFL this year, 11 of which are interceptions and the rest are fumbles. The modern day gunslinger seems to give up too many gimmes to the defense. In an offensive minded NFL, it’s simply too much. Offenses have been able to capitalize heavily off of Buffalo’s miscues, which totaled four with two Dalvin Cook fumbles, leading to the Bills playing catch up.
Complimentary football just hasn’t seemed to exist in Buffalo, and right now is one of the worst times to have this issue. The playoff window is quickly disappearing for the Bills, with four straight playoff runs drawing an uncanny parallel to the four straight Super Bowls that the Bills lost, going to the playoffs consistently is a tough task to achieve, by any team other than ones manned by a coach named Bill Belichick.
When the Bills are tied or leading by one score in the fourth quarter this season, McDermott’s vaunted defense drops to 28th in EPA/play, according to TruMedia.
“I gotta be better. We gotta be better as an offense,” Allen said in his weekly press conference Wednesday after Dorsey was fired.
“Turnover wise, it’s abysmal when we lose, and there there’s no secret to that. So … it’s not like it’s broken. We’re not, we’re not a broken offense. we’re not a broken team. but the splits compared to when we win and when we lose are massive.”
It’s been a distinct tale of highs and lows for Allen and the Bills, when Buffalo wins, they have averaged 32.2 points per game, with Allen throwing for a 4:1 TD/INT ratio (12 TDs to 3 interceptions), and a 114.0 quarterback rating. However, when the Bills come out with a loss, the offense has looked unrecognizable and in clear discourse.
DIGGS HAS BEEN FRUSTRATED FOR A WHILE: Bills Wide Receiver Speaks Out On Embarrassing Loss To Bengals: ‘Want Me To Be Okay With Losing?’
Through five losses, the Allen has completed 66.7% of his passes with seven touchdowns and eight interceptions, four fumbles, and a 81.3 rating.
“We’re 5-5 and our back’s against the wall,” Allen said. “The clock’s ticking on what we can do this season, and it starts this Sunday to try to turn this thing around. It’s no secret how many wins you probably need to get into the playoffs and we don’t got much more wiggle room.”
The Bills needed to do something and fast. However, introspectively, firing Ken Dorsey was an interesting choice. It seems as though the blame refuses to be on Josh Allen within the Buffalo organization, Dorsey’s offense was 8th in the NFL in points per game, fourth in total points, and seventh in the league in passing yards per game. Looking holistically at the offense, it feels like head coach Sean McDermott was looking for an instant scapegoat instead of addressing the issue at heart.
Turnovers in the Broncos game which served as the final catalyst for Dorsey’s firing were nothing wrong with the scheme, instead outlying mistakes made by individual players. Allen’s two interceptions came with a dropped ball by Gabe Davis and an errant throw into coverage. Neither of which can be traced back to Dorsey.
“I think it’s important that those guys feel, hey, something’s changed, right? And there’s something new that we can be excited about in terms of an opportunity to improve, really,” McDermott said. “I think that’s a piece of it, but also, like I said, it just got to be the right time right now to make the move and see if we can get some energy about our offense right now.”
Dorsey’s exile wasn’t a terrible move. The rationale that McDermott gives is a valid one. There needs to be change, and the offensive coordinator isn’t immune from any blame when an offense has looked as lethargic as the Buffalo Bills’, but the real issue lies with Josh Allen’s and the rest of the team’s care of the football.
“I’m confident that he’ll find it,” McDermott said of Allen’s ability to take care of the football. “And I think, again, just some of the new energy around our offense, my hope is and my aim is that it will create a little bit of confidence, clarity and ability to anticipate as opposed to in some cases react.”
Within just a couple of weeks, the Buffalo Bills have transformed themselves from a perennial, no-doubt playoff bid, to a crumbling contender. Turnovers have been their Achilles heel for nearly the entirety of Josh Allen’s tenure. While some might pull the gunslinger card, we’d be apt to pull the turnover machine moniker. It’s time to start calling it how we see it.
