At some point, the conversation around the Buffalo Bills has to move past Josh Allen’s mistakes and land where it belongs: on the roster built around him.
Allen absolutely deserves blame for what happened against the New England Patriots. His late interception was a bad decision, plain and simple.
He had chances to settle down, take what the defense was offering, or just get rid of the ball. In Year 9, “I have to be better” can’t be the whole story anymore.
But the larger issue is that Buffalo keeps putting Allen in a spot where he has to carry everything.
That falls on Brandon Beane.
For years, there was room to give Beane the benefit of the doubt. Maybe Sean McDermott wasn’t getting enough out of the players Beane brought in.
Maybe the young defenders needed more time. Maybe the next draft class would finally close the gap.
That patience has worn out.
The Bills have poured premium draft capital into defense, with seven of their last eight picks in rounds 1-3 going that way. Even so, the unit keeps showing up as one of the weakest in the league.
Houston scored 31 points. Detroit scored 31.
The Chargers managed 16, but New England just hung 29 on Buffalo. The Bills keep giving up third-and-longs, fourth-and-shorts, and backbreaking conversions.
Greg Rousseau and Deone Walker have been excellent, but they can’t cover for everyone else.
The back seven has turned into a real problem. Maxwell Hairston has struggled.
Cole Bishop has barely made a dent. Buffalo is still sorting out its cornerback situation, and Kaleb Elarms-Orr can’t even get on the field consistently.
Terrel Bernard hasn’t looked like the player he was before his injuries, and there are too many other spots where the production just isn’t there.
That’s what makes some of Beane’s choices so maddening.
Buffalo had a chance to go after the cornerback spot with Joey Porter Jr. available at what looked like a relatively low cost, and it passed. Instead, the Bills headed into the season banking on the players already in the building.
That bet has not paid off.
It also explains the bigger flaw in the way this roster has been constructed. Beane has had Allen for years, yet the Bills still keep ending up in games where their quarterback needs to be nearly flawless to beat quality opponents.
That’s not a workable plan.
Allen is always going to take chances. He’s always going to make a few mistakes.
That comes with the package. But he should not have to play like Superman every single week just for Buffalo to have a shot.
And if Allen were out of the picture, this wouldn’t suddenly be a finished team with one missing piece. It would be a roster with major questions at quarterback, wide receiver, offensive line, and defense.
That’s the uncomfortable truth.
Beane has also done plenty of good in Buffalo. But at some point, the results have to matter more than the explanations for why the roster still isn’t working.
The Bills have a future Hall of Fame quarterback, a player they’re unlikely to see again. They should be building something worthy of him.
In Other News...
Bills Offense Has A Growing Problem Defenses Keep Exploiting
The Bills opened the season looking like one of the leagues most efficient offenses, but the last stretch has exposed how quickly things can tilt when defenses start finding answers. Josh Allens recent turnovers have been part of the issue, yet the dip has gone beyond one player. Buffalo has also watched Dalton Kincaid, who gave the passing game an early boost, get effectively taken out of the plan over the last two games.
Joe Brady has made it clear the fix has to come from everyone, not just the quarterback, which is where the challenge gets bigger for Buffalo. If opposing defenses are squeezing Allens options and limiting Kincaids impact at the same time, the Bills need more consistent support across the offense to get back to the level they showed in September and early October. [Read more 🡒]
Josh Allen Faces A Growing MVP Concern Bills Fans Will Feel
Josh Allen still sits near the top of the NFL MVP race, but the margin is getting tighter as the season moves along. A mix of quieter recent performances, a knee injury and a dip in his rushing volume have all played into a shift at the sportsbooks, where his odds have shortened just enough to make the chase feel more real than it did a few weeks ago.
For Bills fans, the bigger concern is not just the award board but what it says about Allens overall rhythm and health. Interceptions have crept into the conversation, and with Brock Purdy and Trevor Lawrence gaining ground, traders and analysts are watching every snap for signs that Allen can stabilize before the race becomes a full-blown sprint. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Face A Rams Shift That Could Decide Monday Night
Matthew Staffords tape is still worth the Bills full attention heading into Monday night, because the Rams passing game has shown how much it can change when the pocket starts to close. Buffalo will also have to sort through a Los Angeles offense that has leaned on Kyren Williams as more than a runner, using him as a receiving option to keep drives moving and make the structure of the defense work a little harder.
On the other side, the Rams defense has been built around a steady dose of Cover 1 man coverage, with safety Trent McDuffie playing at a high level and Byron Young emerging as the top edge threat off the outside. For Buffalo, the matchup is less about one isolated wrinkle than the way all those pieces fit together, because the Rams have enough shifting parts to make Monday night feel like a test of patience as much as execution. [Read more 🡒]