After a 24-22 loss Monday night against the Denver Broncos, Josh Allen was at a loss for words as he stared at the microphone at the podium. Allen struggled against the New York Jets in September and hasn’t looked like himself all season. Following Monday night’s loss, the Bills fired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey. Allen hasn’t looked the same since Brian Daboll, his former offensive coordinator, left for the head coaching job for the New York Giants, but that’s not the whole story.
It’s been 21 months since the Bills suffered a 13 second collapse against the Kansas City Chiefs in the divisional round of the playoffs. The offense had not been as productive since Daboll left. Four turnovers against the Broncos put the offense in a tailspin. Mistakes continue to keep the Bills out of the playoffs, and they are sitting in 10th place with a 5-5 record in the AFC standings. Allen had three turnovers Monday and leads the NFL this year with 11 interceptions and 13 total turnovers.
When Allen is at his best, he has a cannon for an arm and beats defenses with his running ability. He has 15 touchdowns in the last six games and nine turnovers though. The Bills are 2-4 in that span. Allen went 15 for 26 with 177 yards and two touchdowns. When Allen turns the ball over on a consistent basis like he has this year, Buffalo has not found ways defensively to win games.
After losing in the season opener against the Jets on Monday Night Football, the Bills won three straight and were feeling good about themselves. Buffalo destroyed the Dolphins 48-20 and had three games in a row where they defeated teams by 28 or more points. It all started to change when they dropped one in London against the Jaguars. The Bills lost their star linebacker Matt Milano for the year and cornerback Tre’Davious White in the Dolphins game. Buffalo made a smart move acquiring cornerback Rasul Douglas, and the defense has been keeping the team competitive through the fourth quarter.
Joe Brady is taking over as the interim offensive coordinator. Brady was Ed Orgeron’s passing game coordinator at LSU for Joe Burrow in 2019. With seven games left in the season, the schedule does not get easier. The Bills need to go 4-3 against the Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Chargers, New England Patriots and Dolphins to squeak a playoff spot.
The offense is top five in every category, but the issues are turnovers, penalties and injuries. When these mistakes are made, the margin for error shrinks significantly. That is why the Bills are 5-5. Former defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier led Buffalo to the top spot in defensive efficiency from 2017-2022, but this year they are 16th in defensive efficiency without Frazier.
This was Allen’s 10th game with three or more turnovers since entering the league and including playoffs, the most in the NFL. Head coach Sean McDermott could be on the hot seat if this team with such a talented offense and resilient defense misses the playoffs or exits the playoffs early once again. The Super Bowl window is closing for the Bills, so they need to clean things up fast.
