There's a section of Bills Mafia that has wanted Buffalo to move on from head coach Sean McDermott for years due to issues with clock management and situation decisions. Sunday's game is not going to quiet those voices.
In multiple aspects of Sunday's game against the Houston Texans, decisions were made that directly impacted, and potentially cost, the Bills the game.
Before halftime, when the Bills offense had mightily struggled to generate any positive momentum through the air, Josh Allen attempted a third-down sideline pass to tight end Dalton Kincaid . They were attempting to drive and get some semblance of points, and McDermott had all three timeouts in his back pocket.
It was a stretching, difficult catch from Kincaid that was ruled incomplete on the field. McDermott was asked if he considered challenging that play.
"I did, and the information I got — I can't, ya know, it's on that side and I didn't get a replay — and the information I got was that the ball hit the ground, so that's what we went with," McDermott said.
It's not clear from whom McDermott got that information, whether it was someone up in the booth or from the players on the field, but it was a huge missed opportunity. If the play had been overturned, it would have had Buffalo in field goal range with all three timeouts and an opportunity to perhaps push on for a touchdown.
Late in the game, the management was much words. After the defense stymied the Texans offense for much of the second half, the Bills were able to claw back into it and tie the game at 20-20. Houston punted and the Bills got the ball at their own three yard line with 32 seconds left on the clock.
They had no timeouts, and Houston had all three.
In that situation, the chances of coming away with points was slim at best. You have the ball and a tie game, and should have been playing for overtime. If you manage to snap off a chunk play and an opportunity presents itself to go for a field goal, then great. Count that as a pleasant surprise. What the Bills absolutely could not have done, though, is exactly what they did.
The first play of the drive saw Allen drift back and attempt a back-shoulder throw to rookie Keon Coleman nearly 20 yards down the field in a highly-contested situation. The chances of completing that are slim to none. It was incomplete, and adding insult to injury, Coleman was flagged for offensive pass interference for pushing off at the catch point. Five seconds came off the clock.
The second play saw Allen line up in an empty backfield with four receivers and a tight end in a wide formation. Allen dropped back and heaved it 40 yards down field in Mack Hollins' direction. Incomplete. Four more second off the clock.
After that, it was third and 10 from their own three yard line, 21 second remaining. What did offensive coordinator Joe Brady dial up? A deep in 20 yards down the field to Curtis Samuel. Allen had pressure in his face and the throw was low. Incomplete. Four more seconds off the clock.
The final Bills' drive gained zero yards, burned only 16 seconds of clock, and saw their punter booting it away with his heels on the end line of his own end zone. Houston returned the punt for a small chunk, CJ Stroud completed one pass, and Houston Ka'imi Fairbairn kicked a game-winning 57-yard field goal to send Buffalo home in embarrassing fashion.
It was wildly inexcusable.
"The end of game situation on offense, it was a tough situation. They were on three timeouts, they've got a good field goal kicker. We needed to run the clock and move the chains and that's on me. We didn't do that there, and that's my fault," McDermott said.
"Yeah, I mean, when you talk about them holding three timeouts, where we were, they've got a really strong legged field goal kicker, we knew that. There's a potential, if the situation goes three straight runs, you're running six seconds off all potential each time, and you're maybe in a similar situation, you know. So either way, we got to do better job. And that starts with me 100%
No, Sean. No. If you run six seconds off each time and still have to punt, then Houston gets the ball back after the punt without any timeouts. They ended up using a timeout after Stroud completed a pass across the middle of the field to set up the field goal. That is, unequivocally, not the same situation.
"I love Josh [Allen] with the ball in his hands, you know, I do. And, again, an efficient offense was the right approach there, and I didn't have us do that," McDermott continued. "So again, we learned from that tough situation, you know, they're holding three time outs. Like I said, they've got a good field goal kicker, and you go back and forth, you know? And, hey, I probably should have run it on the first play and just said, 'Hey, where are we now?' either way, we're going to have to move the chains one time to not give them a chance. But again, those are situations, and that's on me."
It's absolutely on McDermott. That's a lack of communication or preparation, or both.
I truly believe McDermott is a good coach, especially with what he accomplishes on the defensive side of the ball. His ability to develop players and make adjustments is up there with the best of them. But these moments where he makes decisions that cost his team the game is an absolute killer, especially in a matchup with an AFC team that impacts playoff standings. McDermott cannot keep doing this.
Related: Buffalo Bills' Josh Allen attempts to explain abysmal showing from passing attack
Follow along all season for all the latest Buffalo Bills news. You can also find me on X @JonHelmkamp .
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