‘The one concern for the Bills is the AFC South where Houston (9-5) and Tennessee are bidding for the division title. Buffalo, now virtually assured of the fifth seed (conference’s top wild card) would prefer the Titans win as it already has gone to Nashville and prevailed in the season’s fifth game.’
Archives for December 17, 2019
This year’s Bills defense deserves to be mentioned among best in franchise history
‘The Bills’ franchise record for fewest yards allowed in a 16-game season is 4,045 by the 1999 team. That same squad allowed 229 points, also the record for a 16-game season. This year’s defense will fall short of those numbers, having allowed 4,087 yards and 222 points through 14 games. Given how much the game has changed in nearly two decades, though, it’s fair to at least mention the 2019 defense as being among the best in franchise history.’
Bills’ offense had a great day in 1 key department: Preventing sacks
‘The Bills went away from their near-exclusive use of the three-wideout set for the first time in a month and used a ton of double teams to neutralize Pittsburgh edge rushers T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree.’
Trent Murphy led A-plus effort for Bills’ D-line vs. Steelers
‘It was the strongest game of the year for Murphy on a night when the Bills’ defense dominated the line of scrimmage.’
Editorial: Bills move from ‘process’ to playoffs
‘Whatever their playoff fortunes come January, the process will continue. And one of these years, Buffalo fans will get to process what it means to have their team back in the Super Bowl.’
Mr. Brace-Yourself is always there for Bills games. On Sunday, he disappeared.
‘What they have done in the past few weeks is blast free of deep ruts carved over the past two decades, moving beyond this region’s hard-learned pattern of limited expectations. Instead, they are providing this new reality for the holidays, even as you prepare to watch next week’s game from Foxborough.’
Josh Allen again shows off necessary skills, even if he’s not perfect
‘Allen’s touchdown run, a designed quarterback lead, had center Mitch Morse pulling around a down-block and into the hole as running back Devin Singletary led Allen for the next defender to show up in the hole. The Bills’ version of the Wildcat without the need to put a running back into the quarterback position has become the feature short-yardage concept for offensive coordinator Brian Daboll.’
Despite ‘bugaboos,’ Cris Collinsworth is sharp praising ‘renegade, revengeful’ Bills
‘He was fair in his assessment of Bills quarterback Josh Allen’s pluses and “bugaboos”; wondered about the Bills “natural instinct to be conservative” offensively late in the game after going down the field passing on the winning touchdown drive; and undoubtedly fueled the Pro Bowl talk for Bills cornerback Tre’Davious White and linebacker Tremaine Edmunds.’
Bills-Steelers game is week’s top-rated TV program; Tirico, Warner set for Saturday game against Pats
‘Of course, SNF is often the No. 1 program of the week. It has been the No. 1 prime time program for eight straight years.’
At Bills vs. New England in 1994, Patriots fan heckles Marv Levy
‘Throughout my years as a sports talk show producer in the ’90s and 2000s, I would use pieces of the clip on the air – especially the throaty ranting, “Marv’s a loser” – more to make the host laugh, than to entertain listeners.’
It took nine months, but tight end Tyler Kroft delivered a big moment for the Bills
‘“It was awesome, I’m not going to lie,” Kroft said. “It’s been a marathon this year, getting hurt, ending my season last year and then getting hurt in OTAs and working my way back. We preach having a mentally strong team here. I think we do. It was awesome.”’
Brandon Beane on his 10-4 Buffalo Bills: ‘I love these guys’
‘Beane’s face lit up with a smile, and then he broke into a laugh when one wise guy — OK, yours truly – quipped that Phillips, an impending free agent, was sure a guy who knows how to ask for a new contract.’
Buffalo Bills’ SNF win over Steelers finishes as No. 1 Primetime Show for the Week
‘The game delivered a total audience of 18.5 million viewers on average.’
Patriots’ Bill Belichick explains challenge of facing Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills offense
‘“Offensively they do a lot of things well,” Belichick said on a conference call on Monday evening. “They’re balanced and they use a lot of different players and they’ve done a good job of using the players’ skills in a productive way and they’ve found a good mix in their game planning. They change things up a little bit from game to game at times. Sometimes they don’t but other times they do. So that makes them hard to prepare for and they’ve executed well. They’ve played well all season long.”’
Now in uncharted territory, light awaits at the end of the Bills’ playoff tunnel
‘For, he had never had the pleasure that comes with winning a big game, he had never felt true happiness when it came to his favorite football team.’
Buffalo Bills Monday: Sean McDermott, NFL coach of the year?
‘McDermott’s achievements are impressive when you compare them to the Bills coaches that came before him in the 2000s and 2010s. Since Marv Levy’s last season in 1997, the Bills had seven head coaches (not counting interim coaches) before McDermott. Wade Phillips, who coached the team from 1998 through the 2000 season, led the Bills to two playoff appearances in ’98 and 1999.’
The 10-win Bills are building something to last in Buffalo
‘There’s a lot of growing still to do. Allen is showing all kinds of promise behind centre, but he’s the player who needs to grow the most if this team is to become a real contender. The six-foot-five passer still opts to use his legs a little too quickly sometimes and is prone to turnovers, but his execution on the completion to little-used tight end Tyler Kroft for the winning score against the Steelers on Sunday was just the latest indication of how much the 23-year-old has matured behind a rebuilt offensive line.’
Bills’ Expectations Rise After Playoff-Clinching Victory
‘”Before Sean got here, it was a culture of losing,” Alexander said. “You have to intentionally and methodically change the concept of `Oh, here it goes again,’ or `We expect to lose.’ But it takes time.”‘
Buffalo Bills’ Tyler Kroft scored game-winning TD on same route he broke foot on
‘The play marked the fifth catch and first touchdown of the season for Kroft, who missed two games and all of training camp with a broken foot. Ironically, the play was the same type of route he ran when he broke the foot during the Bills’ first session of organized training activities in May.’
Bills Mafia welcomes team home at 2 a.m. in freezing temperatures after Buffalo clinches playoff berth
‘As the players made their descent off the plane, the fans screamed and cheered for their 10-4 team. Thankfully, it seems no one jumped on a table or lit anything on fire during this celebration.’
Edmunds brothers have historic reunion as all three play in Steelers-Bills game
‘The brothers got a group photo, and posed after the game following a jersey swap.’
The Bills stuck with Singletary through fumbles
‘However, it must go a long way with his players that head coach Sean McDermott puts his money where his mouth is when it comes to the trust he has in them. Old or young.’
Micah Hyde: McDermott is a big reason we are all healthy
‘”Guys have their routines, hot tubs, massages, cold tubs. Coach later in the week & late in the year does a good job helping us stay healthy. Sean brought in a culture where he’s like ‘hey get your rehab, get in the training room’. How healthy we are starts with McDermott. As a professional you should be in the training room, getting your body right for the next game. It shouldn’t be looked at as ‘oh you’re soft’.”‘
Back to the playoffs!
‘The biggest thank you of all goes to the Bills for not making us sweat out the next game against the New England Patriots in Foxboro, or even worse the final game of the season against the New York Jets. Clinching a playoff spot with two games to go was not something I anticipated back in the summer.’
The Sabres are enjoying the Bills playoff run
‘“I’m so pleased with my communication with Sean through the year. We’ve been exchanging messages more than anything and we’re always giving each other some kind of a push and both of us are out here trying to make the Buffalo sports community proud and they’ve really done that in what they’ve achieved and we’re trying to continue to do that.”‘
Buffalo Bills playoff fever has infected WNY
‘”I always joke with a lot of people that when the Bills win, the sun shines in Buffalo on Monday,” said White, who added that the fan reaction is inspiring to the whole team.’
Harrison Phillips and his ‘Playmaker Pups’ donate dozens of toys
‘“The way I envisioned this working was we were going to get a Christmas list from the hospital and I was going to go out and buy all these Christmas gifts and buy shopping carts full of presents,” said Phillips.’
Pancho Billa’s son wakes up to the news that the Buffalo Bills made the playoffs
‘Even though the game happened on a school night, Gino’s sleepiness didn’t stop him from showing a smile.’
Bills players react to making the playoffs
‘The Bills players are feeling it too. Here’s what some of them said after their victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers:’
Near and far, Bills fans celebrate playoff berth
‘“We’re super excited, I went to school here in Buffalo,” Mara McGinnis said. We actually live in New York City, but I’m back here just for one night and we’re so excited that were are here for this night.”’
How Sean McDermott cultivated a culture that created a playoff caliber team
‘“I’m just grateful,” McDermott said. “Just grateful to be a part of it and the group of guys and gals who are in that locker room. They work extremely hard. Coming to Buffalo two and a half years ago, a lot of people said, ‘Why are you going there? You’re not going to be able to get it turned around.’ We got it turned around. With a lot of work yet to do. We haven’t arrived. We’ve got a lot of work to do, but I’m just humbled by it.”’
Bills defense dominates opponents in this category plus eight other noteworthy numbers from Week 15
‘Buffalo’s opponent passer rating of 76.7 ranks second in the NFL. Only New England has a better opponent passer rating with an anemic figure of 57.4. Baltimore is third at 78.5.’
Eric Wood | 5 observations on the Bills as they prepare for a playoff run
‘There isn’t enough you can say about the job that Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane have done. They are building this team and constructing it the right way. The two built through the draft rather than choosing short-term success and overpaying free agents or going out and making silly trades. The Bills have been diligent about their plan and they have stuck to it. They are being rewarded now by clinching a playoff berth in Week 15. Buffalo is sitting pretty as they look ahead to the upcoming draft and have $90 million in cap money to spend this offseason.’
Bills Today | Bills fans prove they are playoff caliber as well
‘“Great atmosphere last night, competitive game against a really good football team, really good defense, we knew there would be,” said Daboll. “Credit the players. They did a good job of playing for 60 minutes, which we knew it would be. Good plane ride home, and then you get off the plane, and to no surprise to me, coming up from here, you expect that from this place.”’