ORCHARD PARK, New York — Quarterback Josh Allen, dejectedly seated at a table at the Bills’ training facility Monday, struggled to understand just how much his team had accomplished and overcome just to fall no closer to the Super Bowl.
Even more disturbing for Allen and the Bills – a day later they were throttled 27-10 by the Cincinnati Bengals in the divisional round of the playoffs – the prospect is that they’ve taken a step back.
“I know everyone’s going to be insane with the timing of that last game, but we’ve done a lot of good things this year,” Allen said.
But after Buffalo set a franchise record with 13 wins, won a third straight AFC East title and finished a half game behind top seed Kansas City, Allen still ended the season feeling “sick,” like he put it My stomach.”
“It (stinks) feeling like you’re close and you can’t make it,” he added. “It’s been the last three years with a very similar feeling. We have to keep pushing forward and find a way to get over that hump.”
It could now be plural humps for Buffalo.
The Bills made it to the AFC championship game after the 2020 season, losing at Kansas City. Last year they fell again en route to the Chiefs, this time in the divisional round. Now Buffalo is passed by Joe Burrow and the Bengals in the AFC pecking order.
Unlike a year ago, when Allen went toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes and Buffalo gambled away a three-point lead in the closing seconds of a thrilling 42-36 overtime, the Bills let the Bengals lead 14-0 in the first quarter and reacted sheepishly.
The Bengalis exposed Buffalo’s many weaknesses. Among them: an injured defense without Von Miller, a young and ailing runner-up, and an offense that relies too heavily on Allen and Stefon Diggs.
“I have a lot of faith in who you are in the last game of the season, what you saw on the field. And that has to be addressed. And so obviously we weren’t good enough yesterday,” said coach Sean McDermott while acknowledging that the gap between the Bills and the AFC elite has narrowed in a conference teeming with quarterback talent.
“That’s also why and why we need to keep growing and we need to answer the question of whether we can compete at this level,” McDermott said. “Can we handle these quarterbacks? And who has to help us with that?”
The Bills are having to retool while they have little room for the salary cap and a roster of 21 players eligible to become unrestricted free agents. That group includes middle linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, starting safety Jordan Poyer and running back Devin Singletary.
Singletary was so stunned by Buffalo’s loss that he said he had no thoughts about his future.
“To be honest I didn’t think the season was going to be over so I figured I still had time to think about it,” said the fourth-year player.
EMOTIONALLY TRIGGERED
Offensive lineman Rodger Saffold acknowledged that after a season in which their schedule was twice disrupted by winter storms and their Jan. 2 game in Cincinnati was canceled, the Bills were emotionally drained when safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest and was on the field had to be revived.
“Since the situation in Damar, we’ve been struggling to breathe and it’s really weighing on a lot of people,” said Saffold, noting that the team finally caught up on Sunday. “It was almost like quicksand, the harder you fought, the deeper you sank.”
Hamlin was healthy enough to watch the game and visit the dressing room on Sunday.
DO NOT DIG
Running back Duke Johnson took it upon himself to chase down a frustrated Diggs, who stormed out of the locker room immediately after the loss and before McDermott had a chance to address the team. Johnson persuaded Diggs to return.
“I think Diggs needs more credit than I do because Diggs didn’t have to listen to me,” Johnson said.
“He’s just as frustrated as all of us,” McDermott said. “He was there today. He and I have spoken and I will leave it at that.”
Diggs did not make himself available to the media. However, he tweeted: “Do you want me to agree with our level of play if it’s not up to standard?” nope.”
SURGICAL UPDATES
Allen said he will not need surgery after spraining a ligament in his throwing arm in a 20-17 loss at the New York Jets on Nov. 6. The injury initially changed his throwing motion. Allen said he felt fully recovered a few weeks ago.
Defensive tackle Jordan Poyer said he will need surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff that caused him to miss two games in December. Without risk of aggravating the injury, Phillips played in Buffalo’s last three games.
ALMOST BACK
Safety Micah Hyde said he would have been eligible to play this weekend had the Bills progressed. Hyde returned to training two weeks ago after being sidelined since week 3 while undergoing surgery to repair a herniated disc.
Hyde’s desire to return was fueled by the opportunity to line up with Poyer for at least one more game in secondary school. Hyde and Poyer bonded in 2017 when they signed in free agency with Buffalo on the same day.
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