ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Here are my five takes from the Buffalo Bills’ 37-34 overtime loss against the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field:
1. The themes are painfully familiar to the Bills. Go to overtime and find a way to lose. Get in a one-possession game and find a way to lose.
Since 2018, the team has gone 0-6 in OT. That’s also Josh Allen’s career record in overtime.
As if that isn’t galling enough for the Bills and their fans, the club is 2-6 this season in one-possession games. That was the third game-winning drive the Bills’ defense has allowed this year in the last two minutes or overtime.
You can point to a variety of reasons why the Bills consistently fall short in these circumstances, beginning with an inability by the players and coaching staff to handle the increased pressure that they bring. On Sunday, Allen led the offense on a drive for a field goal that put the Bills in front, 34-31, with 5:52 left in the extra period.
However, once again, the Bills’ defense couldn’t close out the game, allowing Jalen Hurts to drive to the quarterback’s 12-yard touchdown for the winning points.
Granted, a Bills victory would have been an upset against a team with the NFL’s best record (10-1) and one that came up just short of winning the Super Bowl last February. The game was also on the road, where the Bills have struggled for much of the season.
Nevertheless, Buffalo seemingly had done enough right to come out on top and take an important step toward remaining viable in the postseason picture entering next Sunday’s bye. The Bills overcame 10 first-half penalties to hold 10-point leads at halftime (17-7) and late in the third quarter (24-14) against an Eagles team that seemed flat and ready to go down to defeat.
In fact, considering a dropped sure touchdown pass to James Cook, two missed field goals by Tyler Bass and miscommunication between Allen and his receivers that led to missed big plays, including another sure TD opportunity, this was a game that in every other way the Bills should have been able to win with ease. Now, they find themselves with a 6-6 record and out of the AFC playoff picture.
The time off will be spent with plenty lamenting by the Bills and their loyalists about how much has gone wrong in as bitterly disappointing a season as any the team has had in recent memory.
2. I can’t figure out why Sean McDermott didn’t try to go for the win when the Bills got the ball with 20 seconds left in regulation after Jake Elliott hit a 59-yard field goal to tie the game at 31-31.
He seemed far too conservative with his coaching, seemingly afraid that the offense would have a turnover and the Eagles would be in position to put the game away with another field goal.
Couldn’t McDermott see how well Allen and the offense were moving the ball? The Bills had the Eagles’ defense on its heels and. They also burned a timeout to try to ice Elliott, a questionable decision considering the distance of the field goal. Nevertheless, with Buffalo still in possession of one timeout, there was every reason to believe Allen could have connected on at least two big throws to get in field-goal range for Bass.
“I thought about going for it,” McDermott said. “With their pass-rushers, 20 seconds, I just wanted to make sure … really, I was trying to end the game a couple plays before. Using the (second) timeout on third down, the plus-41, trying to make it a tough field goal, which it was. Make the kicker think about it a little bit.
“Hindsight’s always 20-20. Believe me, it’s gone through my mind more than once. So, when you get the result you got, you’re always looking back and saying, ‘Hey, yeah, maybe kept one of those (timeouts) …”
It felt like the defensive coordinator part of McDermott took over in that instance, as it as in others.
3. The defense started fast but couldn’t finish.
Early on, the Bills’ D was dominant. It was frustrating Hurts with strong pressure that largely came from a four-man rush. Sean McDermott’s scheme mainly kept the secondary crowded to minimize Hurts’ throwing lanes.
The Bills came up with an interception and fumble recovery that each led to touchdowns. That, alone, should have been enough for them to be on the right side of the final score.
The Bills also put the clamps on the Eagles’ strong running game in the early going but couldn’t keep it up in the late stages of the game or OT. The Eagles finished with 185 rushing yards on 32 carries, an average of 5.8 yards per rush, with Hurts running for two touchdowns.
Hurts threw for a modest 200 yards but did connect for three TDs. With the Eagles missing one of their best offensive linemen, right tackle Lane Johnson (a late scratch with a groin injury) and working on a short week that began with an early morning arrival Tuesday from a Monday night game at Kansas City, there was no excuse for the Bills to collapse the way they did.
4. You can’t pin this loss on the Bills’ offense, which has emerged from a six-week malaise to combine for 66 points in the last two games.
The Bills produced 505 yards to the Eagles’ 378. Allen was mostly terrific. He threw for 339 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 81 yards and a pair of TDs. His only major blunder was a fourth-quarter interception that led to an Eagle touchdown.
“I thought our guys had a lot of great effort,” Allen said. “I’ve just got to make one more play. … Again, I think the effort was there, execution was there. We’ve just got to make a couple more plays and there’s a couple we wish we had back.”
The Bills ran effectively. They rushed 40 times for 173 yards, an average of 4.3 yards per carry, and two scores. James Cook, Latavius Murray and Ty Johnson combined for 92 yards on the ground.
Gabe Davis came up big with six receptions for 105 yards and a score. Stefon Diggs also caught six passes for 74 yards and a TD.
And for the second week in his role as interim offensive coordinator, Joe Brady acquitted himself well. His game plan and play selection promoted balance and allowed Allen to make the most of his supporting cast while not feeling like he had to be a hero and being reckless.
5. No, the Bills’ season isn’t over. Yes, there’s still a chance for the team to find its way back into the playoff picture.
But it feels more and more like a longshot. After the bye, the Bills go to Kansas City. The season will effectively be on the line in that game, though it feels as if that has been already said multiple times in the last few weeks.
An extra week of healing for some of the injured members of the Bills’ secondary could be helpful. The bigger issue is how the team will handle the situation mentally.
The outside noise of dissatisfaction for all that has created a season that feels like it's circling the drain could very well take its toll.