I guess the window was still open after all. Probably wide open in fact.
Remember all that preseason talk of how the Buffalo Bills’ window for winning had closed, how it was over for them, how the roster turnover would change the team’s fortunes and that they couldn’t get past those losses on the field in the playoffs and on the roster?
It was chic then to say that quarterback Josh Allen couldn’t carry the team with all the losses, that he was a turnover machine who wasn’t worth the mistakes despite the fact he often put the team on his back and carried it to lofty heights, even if it wasn’t the Super Bowl — yet.
Well, here we are 11 games into their season, and the Bills and Allen have shut up a lot of the naysayers, especially after their impressive 30-21 victory over the previously undefeated Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. Allen essentially put the game away with an amazing 26-yard scramble for a touchdown in the final minutes, and now he’s the betting favorite over Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson and Detroit’s Jared Goff to win his first league MVP (according to FanDuel sportsbook).
Back in August when I spent two days with the Bills, this is what Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane said about the window closing: “As long as we have No. 17, and I do my job and we craft and develop our own guys and keep as many as we can, we will be fine. As long as Josh is throwing it, I don’t see the window closing.”
Allen is still throwing it, and the cool breeze of football success is still blowing through that open window.
The Bills, who are up to No. 2 in my power rankings this week as they head to their bye, have to be considered a real threat to win it all this season (they currently have the third-best odds at FanDuel). It’s not just Allen, either. Beane has done an amazing job replenishing the roster, adding receiver Amari Cooper in a trade a month ago to liven up the offense.
We haven’t even seen the best of the offense yet since Cooper, rookie receiver Keon Coleman and tight end Dalton Kincaid have played just one game together since the trade. Coleman and Kincaid both missed Sunday’s game, while Cooper missed the two prior to that.
Head coach Sean McDermott has also done a nice job. Word when I visited was that McDermott had eased up some. In the past, he had a tendency to ruffle his assistants. But he now allows offensive coordinator Joe Brady — who has done a great job harnessing some of Allen’s wild-horse play — and defensive coordinator Bobby Babich to do their jobs. That’s growth for a coach who knows he had to change in an attempt to try and get this team over the top.
As for Allen, watching him run for the winning score Sunday brought back a conversation from my visit in the summer. It was about how the change in the new offense would make him less reliant on his legs. Allen lost weight and told Beane he would run less.
“Yeah, until that psycho takes over on the field,” Beane told Allen.
That psycho took over Sunday in an epic matchup with Patrick Mahomes, especially with the game-clinching score. Allen is now 4-4 against Mahomes, but 0-3 in the playoff against him. Winning Sunday is big, but until this team gets past the Chiefs in the playoffs or gets to the Super Bowl, there will always be doubters.
The Bills don’t want to be like those great NBA teams that couldn’t get past Michael Jordan, never to win a title despite great players. Mahomes is Jordan, which is why Allen’s greatness might be under appreciated. But to be the best, you have to beat the best. That means in the playoffs.
For now, the idiots who said the window was shutting need to re-evaluate. The Bills are for real. Allen is the biggest reason, even if some foolish evaluator said he was the league’s most-overrated player before the season. But the roster is also much better than you think, and McDermott and his staff deserve credit for what they’ve done to change the feeling in that building.
Then again, like Allen said after Sunday’s victory, it’s just 11 games. We know things won’t truly get decided until the postseason, and that will be the time to see if Allen can finally take down the NFL’s Jordan and win one of his own.
Biggest Movers
|
Rk |
Teams |
Chg |
Rcrd |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
|
They abused the Jaguars on Sunday to get the offense back on track. They are rolling as the top seed in the NFC. | 1 | 9-1-0 |
2 |
|
The face some tough games down the stretch, but they have a chance at the top seed. The defense often gets overlooked and shouldn’t. | 1 | 9-2-0 |
3 |
|
So much for the undefeated season. At least they got Xavier Worthy going against the Bills. That will be big down the line. | 2 | 9-1-0 |
4 |
|
The defense came up big in the victory over the Ravens. But they need more from Russell Wilson than what they got for much of that game. | 1 | 8-2-0 |
5 |
|
They have righted things to take firm control of the NFC East. Do people still want Nick Sirianni fired? | 1 | 8-2-0 |
6 |
|
Sam Darnold got back on track and played a solid game against the Titans. They needed to see that after two below-average games. | 1 | 8-2-0 |
7 |
|
What the heck happened to that offense against the Steelers? Lamar Jackson actually looked human. | 3 | 7-4-0 |
8 |
|
They needed a little luck to get the blocked kick to beat the Bears. The offense still isn’t quite clicking yet. It will get there, but they face a tough test with the 49ers this week. | — | 7-3-0 |
9 |
|
Jim Harbaugh has this team playing good football. The defense got a little exposed against the Bengals, but they are better than that. | — | 7-3-0 |
10 |
|
They come off the bye as a first-place team and one with a real shot at winning the division. The schedule is favorable. | 2 | 6-4-0 |
11 |
|
Jayden Daniels doesn’t look right. He looks like the rib injury is affecting his play. The extra days off will be good for him. | 1 | 7-4-0 |
12 |
|
It’s time to think this team is truly going to make the playoffs. Bo Nix gets better by the week, which is a nice complement to the dominant defense. | 3 | 6-5-0 |
13 |
|
They seemed to right things in the victory over the Cowboys on Monday night. Getting Nico Collins back is big for the offense. | 1 | 7-4-0 |
14 |
|
That might have been a season-saving victory against the 49ers. The defense showed big improvement coming off the bye. | 3 | 5-5-0 |
15 |
|
This team is a shell of the one we thought we’d see before the season. The injuries have impacted them, but it’s more than that. | 4 | 5-5-0 |
16 |
|
The offense looked awful in the loss to the Broncos, which was a surprise. They lead the division, but for how long? | 3 | 6-5-0 |
17 |
|
Anthony Richardson looked like a different guy against the Jets. Maybe the time off was good for him, but now this team faces the Lions. | 5 | 5-6-0 |
18 |
|
They bounced back from the loss to the Dolphins with a tough road victory at New England. They are in the thick of the division race. | — | 5-5-0 |
19 |
|
Thanks to a loss by the Falcons, they come off their bye with a chance to make a playoff push with a soft schedule. Getting healthy will be the key. | — | 4-6-0 |
20 |
|
It’s too bad they can’t stop anybody on defense and their kicker has gone bad. This would be a dangerous team if they made the playoffs. | 4 | 4-7-0 |
21 |
|
They are far from done in the race to get a playoff spot. Two straight victories over the Rams and Raiders have them alive. | 1 | 4-6-0 |
22 |
|
The change at offensive coordinator helped get it going, but a loss is a loss. Caleb Williams was better, which is a good thing. | 1 | 4-6-0 |
23 |
|
Drake Maye is improving and gives this team hope, but this season if done. They do fight, though, which is a good thing. | 3 | 3-8-0 |
24 |
|
Darren Rizzi to the rescue. He’s 2-0 as the interim coach as they still have some life. | 4 | 4-7-0 |
25 |
|
They are done. What do they do well? Even when they take a lead late, the defense can’t hold it. Will Aaron Rodgers even play next year? | 1 | 3-8-0 |
26 |
|
Seven more games and it’s all over. This season has to be considered a total failure. Big changes are coming. | 1 | 3-7-0 |
27 |
|
That was a terrible showing at New Orleans in the loss to the Saints. From playoffs to this is not a good look. | 4 | 2-8-0 |
28 |
|
They come off their bye with a brutal game against the Chiefs, who are coming off their first loss. Bryce Young has made progress, but let’s see if it continues. | 1 | 3-7-0 |
29 |
|
They committed way too many mistakes in the loss to the Vikings. At least the offense showed some life — if not points. | — | 2-8-0 |
30 |
|
Benching Daniel Jones for money reasons makes sense. Now it’s time for Tommy Devito-mania 2.0. But can he play? | — | 2-8-0 |
31 |
|
It’s too bad they don’t have more players like Brock Bowers and Maxx Crosby on this roster. There will be changes coming. | 1 | 2-8-0 |
32 |
|
They are historically bad right now for this franchise — and that’s saying something. When do the changes come? | 1 | 2-9-0 |
