Niagara Gazette

‘The Bills have 22 unrestricted free agents, some of whom can return on cheap deals and will still have to fill out the roster in free agency and sign their draft picks. So it’s time to start looking at who might not be around next season.’

‘The Bills have eight players whose salaries will each account for more than 5% of next year’s salary cap — including Allen’s 19.4% — but Beane has already said restructuring is coming for players during the offseason, even with Spotrac.com projecting the cap to rise roughly $18 million for 2024.’

‘“Sean really trusts him and that’s why he hired him,” Bob said. “They’ve been in sync for all these years, and when you sit in there, he’s heard a lot of the things over seven years that Bobby suggested. So he understands what type of personality Bobby has as far as a football coach and philosophy and that type of stuff and obviously, he feels really, really comfortable with it.”’

‘The 40-year-old’s relationship with McDermott dates back to 2011, when Babich was an administrative assistant for the Carolina Panthers’ coaching staff and served as a defensive assistant the following year. Babich spent three seasons with the Cleveland Browns and one with Florida International University before coming to Buffalo.’

‘The Bills could try to bring back Gabe Davis — who went without a catch four times in the last two months of the regular season — but he may be out of their price range, with Spotrac.com projecting him to command a market value of $13.6 million per year in free agency. Trent Sherfield’s deal is up, while Deonte Harty may be a cap casualty after neither fit in consistently this season.’

‘What Brady does best is find a rhythm and doesn’t steer away from the game plan if it’s not working early. Where Dorsey tried to find the perfect play every play, Brady is more willing to take 2-yard gain, establish it and then fool defenses by running another play off of it as the game progresses.’

‘Under Brady, Josh Allen’s passing numbers diminished by 30 yards per game, but his rushing totals doubled, posting four games with at least 65 yards after not having any games with 50 over the first 11 contests.’

‘Keeping Brady brings stability and familiarity to Allen and the offense, but the Bills went down that path when they promoted Dorsey to offensive coordinator when Brian Daboll left to become head coach of the New York Giants after the 2021 season. It didn’t work out with Dorsey, which may leave the Bills uneasy about doing it again, although Brady offers a sample size Dorsey couldn’t.’

‘Epenesa is also set to be a free agent with his rookie contract set to expire and so the Bills must find ways to retain one, both or replace 17 sacks worth of production. Both expressed a desire to return, but being projected to start the new year more than $40 million over the cap, it seems unlikely both fit into their future plans.’

‘“To be honest, when we first found out we had to leave Green Bay, I was sad. Bills Mafia? What was that? and what could be better than playing in Green Bay? Nothing, right? Wrong. So wrong,” her letter begins.’

‘And yet the Bills are a team that has lost 18 games by an average of six points per game over the last three years, with 16 losses by one score. There is no questioning the Bills are close to getting over the edge, but they also can’t deny the shortcomings that have kept them from getting there.’

‘“I thought Joe did a really nice job coming in and building great communication, collaboration, a vibe with Josh,” McDermott said. “And then I think you saw the results of that through the course of I believe it was six games and so I thought he did a very nice job in that regard.”’

‘“Every year when you lose, you wake up the next day and you’re filled with so much frustration because you weren’t able to get it done,” Bills safety Micah Hyde said. “I feel like I could have done more, but this morning I woke up and I’m just like, ‘Wow, like that was a run.’ That was an amazing run we went on and I’m forever grateful for this team, their hard work, the resilience that they showed.”’

‘“People are going to say what they’re going to say,” the Bills tight end said. “People were saying we were 6-6 and had not shot of making the playoffs and here we are in the second round. It’s about proving the naysayers wrong. The ultimate goal is the Super Bowl … but to make it this far, I say it’s a win.”’

‘The Buffalo Bills played a run-first, clock-controlled, mistake-free game. The Bills held the ball for more than 37 minutes, ran 78 plays — a 50-50 split between pass and run — had seven more yards, six more first downs and one fewer turnover. And they still lost.’