Olean Times Herald

‘Not only did Buffalo have the week after the Tennessee game off, Bills coach Sean McDermott is 4-0 the game after a bye during his Buffalo career, and his team will now face its softest stretch of the season.’

‘Now Baltimore, Cincinnati, Las Vegas and Tennessee are tied atop the conference at 5-2 with their bye weeks still to come. Buffalo and the Los Angeles Chargers are a half-game back at 4-2 with their byes already over.’

‘Two debates evolved from that defeat, one, the decision to go for the winning touchdown rather than opt for OT, and two electing to go for a pair of field goals in the red zone early in the game.’

‘It’s likely he considered, if the Bills took the field goal but the Titans won the toss in overtime, they might go right down the field and score the winning touchdown without Buffalo ever getting the ball.’

‘However, analytics say that McDermott’s decision, given the circumstances, was the right one. But the reality is, in sports, the wisdom of a decision is decided almost solely on its success.’

‘“They out-performed us, they out-coached us, they out-played us,” he admitted. “We weren’t very disciplined in that game, we didn’t take care of the football. They’re a good football team, their offense (has) a great combination of skill in the backfield (and) skill outside. They’ve got weapons, for sure, which makes them very hard to defend.”’

‘And though the Titans had one of the NFL’s top rushers in 247-pound Derrick Henry and Tennessee was without its top two receivers – Corey Davis and Adam Humphries, both out with Covid – and No. 3 wideout A.J. Brown was playing hurt, coach Mike Vrabel opted to attack Buffalo through the air. He reasoned that the Bills’ starting cornerbacks were out injured – All-Pro Tre’Davious White and Levi Wallace – as was their best coverage linebacker, Matt Milano.’

‘“I think, more than anything, it’s a step in the right direction,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said of the emphatic win. “They’re a good football team. To see the contributions that were made from everyone, in particular a couple of the young players that are new to our team this year, that we acquired via the draft, is a good sign. It doesn’t mean we’re where we need to be … but it is a good sign at this early stage of the season.”’

‘But only the most myopic Buffalo fan would have even suggested that the Bills would go into Arrowhead Stadium and eviscerate the defending conference champion before a national TV audience.’

‘Mahomes never seemed comfortable in passing situations, wasn’t able to stretch the field and turned the ball over three times. He was intercepted twice, one a “pick six” by safety Micah Hyde, who went 26 yards for the score, the other by rookie defensive end Greg Rousseau, who used his long arms to tip a pass to himself deep in Buffalo territory. Mahomes also had a good shotgun snap slip through his hands with cornerback Tre’Davious White recovering. The fourth takeaway was recovery of a fumble on a kickoff return.’

‘Buffalo has now scored at least 35 points in four consecutive games tying the franchise record set in 2004. The Bills have outscored the opposition by 108 points over the first five games, the fifth time since 2000 that an NFL team has dominated its opponents by at least 100 points over that span.’

‘Still, it’s the Chiefs’ offense that scares every NFL team and the main reason is that they have arguably the best quarterback (Patrick Mahomes) and tight end (Travis Kelce) and most productive wide receiver (Tyreek Hill) in the league.’

‘Allen, who almost inarguably had the greatest season of any Buffalo quarterback in franchise history, endured two of his worst games, of the 19 the Bills played, against Kansas City.’

‘And though both the Chiefs and Titans are off to stuttering 2-2 starts, they’re elite teams that figure to give Buffalo all it wants … especially on the road, where they each handled Buffalo a season ago.’

‘We’ll probably never know for sure, but what’s certain is that Culley inherited a mess. Deshaun Watson, one of the NFL’s elite quarterbacks, is on the roster, but won’t play a game unless the charges of sexual abuse by 22 women, are worked out.’