The Trauma Continues for Bills Fans

 

Cincinnati Bengals: 27

Buffalo Bills: 10

There is nothing that matches the atmosphere a NFL playoff game in the snow.  It would be a dream to see a Super Bowl in the snow, but I know it will never happen.  Joe Cool was iced out.  Carving up the Bill's defence and proving not that he might be better than just Josh Allen, but he might be the best quarterback in the league.  But that's not what caught my eye.  What I could not believe was the ineptitude displayed by Sean McDermott and his coaching staff.

Although I thought the Bengals could defeat the Bills, I did not think they were going to be able to win on the road, especially in the snow.  However, I never thought we were going to witness a manhandling and dismantling of this Bill's team.  They aren't perfect as we saw last week against the Dolphins and earlier in the year versus the Jets.  But this is a good team.  Arguably the best team in the AFC leading up to the Divisional matchup on Sunday.

17-7: The Start of the Second Half

The Bills receive the second half kick off.  Down 10 points.  Two scores does not seem like a lot but that's two possessions.  And in football, playoff football at that, possessions are limited and sacred.  The Bills have to be perfect if they hope to erase the deficit.  A great opening drive.  After 10-plays and over 5-minutes of gametime, the Bills are knocking on the Bengals endzone.

1st & Goal from the 9-yard line.  A busted run play losses Buffalo 2-yards.  2nd & Goal from the 11-yard line.  A checkdown pass for 4-yards.  3rd & Goal from the 7-yard line.  Followed by my least favorite play call in all of football.  A jump ball/fade to the back corner of the endzone.  The ball is overthrown and its 4th & Goal from the 7-yard line.  Down 10-points in a playoff game, and only 1 attempt is made to cross the goal line is egregious.  McDermott sends out the field goal unit and makes the score 17-10 Bengals.

I said it at the time, I argued with my brothers right after the play, and I am have not wavered since.  The Bills should have gone for it on 4th down.  I understand that 7-yards is a long distance.  I understand that 7-points is a one possession game.  However, in my mind, and I think in the minds of Bills fans, players, and coaches, even at 7-points, the game was never a one-score game.  But that makes no sense, 1 TD= 7-points.  Yes, however, the Bengals were always going to score at least one more time in the game.  Cincinnati was in control of from the get go.  Scoring on 3 of their 5 first half possessions.

If the Bengals score even a field goal, the decision to kick the field goal by the Bills did nothing.  If Buffalo goes for it on 4th down and they don't convert, it's a 10-point game.  If the Bengals kick a field goal after the failed conversion, it's a 13-point game.  Still a two possession game.  My argument is that the Bill's were always going to have to outscore the Bengals by a wide margin in the second half.  The only way to ensure this is by going for touchdowns, not kicking field goals.  Possessions are limited and touchdowns are valuable.

To make matters worse for the Bills, on the next possession, Cincinnati proceeds to go on a 12-play, 75-yard touchdown chewing up 6:25 of the game clock.  Having lost 14-minutes, nearly an entire quarter, the Bills are now losing 24-10.  Less time to play, and a larger deficit than before.  

Fast forward to the 4th Quarter and the score is 27-10.  It is 4th down & 6-yards to go from the Cincinnati 16-yard line.  A three-possession game with 7:32 left on the game clock.  THREE POSSESSIONS.  The Bills will need a field goal no matter what!  Sean McDermott proceeds to go for it on 4th down.  This makes zero sense.  The Bills have now made two antithetical decisions at two critical junctures of the second half.  

As much as I disagreed with the first decision to kick a field goal,  that call was somewhat justifiable.  For argument's sake, if the Bills get a touchdown, with 7:32 left, the score is 27-14.  A field goal now makes it a 10-point and two-possession game at 27-17.  What is inexcusable, is the decision to go for it at 27-10.  A field goal makes it 27-13.  A 14-point, TWO-POSSESSION GAME.  With 7-minutes left, while difficult, the Bills have a shot at getting two more possessions.  But a three-possession game with ~7-minutes left, the game is over.  The Bills always needed 2-touchdowns and 1-field goal.  Instead, Buffalo walked away with nothing thanks to McDermott's management.

This is one of the worst playoff losses in the last 10-years, outside of the Seahawks beatdown of the Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.  A team with this much talent, an MVP-caliper quarterback, and home field advantage should come away with a win or a heartbreaking loss.  It is indefensible to get blown-out, manhandled, out-coached, and out-played from the opening kick.  The team wasn't ready, and that's on the coach.  On the two game-defining play calls, McDermott failed the team.  As poorly as the team and Josh Allen played, Sean McDermott distinguished himself from the rest.