McDermott: Coaches, players did great job 'remaining poised'

Orchard Park, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - In Game 1 of the 2024 regular season, the Buffalo Bills emerged victorious in a close contest over the Arizona Cardinals, 34-28, at Highmark Stadium in front of a sold-out crowd in Orchard Park.

At the start of the game, the Bills did not seem like the team who would come out on top with mistakes on offense, and a defense that could not stop quarterback Kyler Murray and the Cardinals offense.

"We weren't very good at all. Some of it was they were getting into third-and-manageable situations, and that goes back to winning first and second down," said Bills head coach Sean McDermott following Sunday's win with the media. "I thought Bobby [Babich] and the defensive staff did a great job at halftime addressing it, and making some adjustments, and I think we came out better in the second half. We played a little bit more our style of defense, and were a little bit more aggressive and just playing and having some fun out there, as opposed to waiting and reacting to what they were doing."

The Bills were a very different looking team in the second half in the best ways possible on both sides of the football.

Even with young players stepping into roles that were previously filled with veterans, McDermott still takes pride in the group that took to the field in Week 1.

"It's hard to win. You almost have to take the logos off the helmets, because it doesn't matter who you play or where you play. It's how you play, how we play. I think this team was tested early from injuries early in the game, and then in the fourth quarter, that's where games are decided in this league," McDermott said. "It starts with leadership in the locker room with the players that we have. They have got to lead from the front, and that's true this week, as well on a short week with some guys banged up."

McDermott and the Bills do have a short turn-around this week, as they get ready to head to South Florida on Thursday to take on the Miami Dolphins in an AFC East showdown.

Hear more of McDermott's postgame remarks available in the player below: