Sean McDermott was so overjoyed to finally beat the Patriots last season, the Bills’ head coach told reporters he was "getting emotional" following his team’s victory last November. Then in December, the Bills came to Gillette Stadium and rocked the Patriots, appearing to signify a new era in the AFC East.
Well, that new era didn’t last very long. Bill Belichick rattled McDermott last week and Tom Brady broke him Sunday. The Bills have lost five of their last eight games and are now barely clinging to a playoff spot. They are punting away their chances, literally and figuratively.
While the Bills stormed back against the Buccaneers and took the game to overtime — thanks to Josh Allen’s fourth quarter brilliance — Brady chewed up Buffalo’s defense all night long. He threw for 363 yards and two touchdown passes, including the 58-yard winner to Breshad Perriman.
Brady is now 33-3 against the Bills in his career. McDermott was so flabbergasted, CBS’ Tracy Wolfson reported he was “struggling with words” and becoming “real emotional” when trying to explain the Bills’ putrid first half. Those descriptions track with McDermott’s performance at the podium last Monday night, in which he said he didn’t want to give Belichick too much credit for his game plan and threw one of his starting kick returners under the bus.
It’s apparent the Bills weren’t prepared to play in the brutal elements last week, never once practicing outside. That’s straight up negligent. The Patriots will never be in a hapless position like that as long as Belichick is their coach.
Yet, the Bills were still one late fourth quarter touchdown away from winning that game. Don’t let this snag fool you: Allen is one of the most talented quarterbacks in the NFL and can cover up many flaws. He led scoring drives of 75, 46, and 70 yards in the fourth quarter Sunday to take the game into overtime.
But Allen’s second half heroics might have won the game for Buffalo, if only McDermott would update his coaching philosophy from the mid-1990s. The Bills were much too conservative Sunday, settling for a 21-yard field goal while down 10-0 and punting from their own 43-yard line. At the end of regulation, the Bills kicked a game-tying field goal, rather than going for it on 4th-and-2 from Tampa Bay’s 7-yard line.
They gave Brady the ball back, and the rest is history. McDermott just can’t escape his past. Another Patriots AFC East crown is imminent.