Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) - The football Gods were trying to tell us what would happen. I just didn't pick up on the clue.
The Buffalo Bills won the opening coin toss against the Denver Broncos on Monday night, and then they did something they don't normally do: They took the ball rather than defer.
While you were probably still in celebration mode, on the very first play from scrimmage, James Cook had the ball ripped out of his hands after a catch. The Bills had their first turnover on, what would end up being, a four-turnover game.
That was the football Gods trying to tell us to shield our eyes on this night.
Remember when the Bills lost to the New England Patriots and it felt like the lowest, darkest point since head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane got here? This is the new low.
Not only did the Bills lose a game they really needed to win, but it was how they lost the game that was so depressing.
The offense still looks broken, generally speaking, and an offense that is struggling made it worse with the four turnovers, at least four dropped passes, and some very bad decisions by quarterback Josh Allen.
Despite all of that and the Bills defense being down five starters due to injuries, they still had a 22-21 win wrapped up when Broncos kicker Wil Lutz missed a 41-yard field goal with 7 seconds left.
In a sick and twisted way, it was an appropriate ending for this night and this Bills season that Buffalo was flagged for having 12 men on the field.
Lutz got a second try, nailed the kick from 36 yards out, and put a dagger in the hearts of Bills fans.
I have no idea what has happened to the Bills offense.
It isn't just one single factor, but a combination of issues, including the offensive coordinator, Ken Dorsey, and Allen, who has not looked like his normal self since that fabulous Week 4 beatdown of the Miami Dolphins.
All I know is that somehow the Bills have managed to make their offense unwatchable. I keep having flashbacks to the Bills' drought era teams when it looked so hard for Buffalo to get first downs, let alone go down the field and score.
Allen completed just 15 passes for a mere 177 yards.
Stefon Diggs was held to 34 yards receiving.
Dalton Kincaid led the team with only 51 yards worth of catches.
Gabe Davis, the No. 2 receiver, had two catches, but had a drop that turned into a Broncos interception as well.
But Davis had company on this night, as Diggs, Kincaid and Latavius Murray also had drops.
An offense that was converting third downs at a 50% clip had a 37% success rate in that category on Monday night. The Bills had 11 offensive possessions and were held without any points on eight of those drives. Eight!
Allen and company gifted Denver six points.
The Cook fumble allowed the Broncos to start their drive already in field goal range at the Bills' 28-yard line. The interception off Davis' drop gave the visitors the ball at the Bills' 31-yard line. It also took away, at least, a field goal for the Bills and maybe more.
If Davis makes the catch, it would have been first down inside the Denver 20-yard line.
Allen was the second-best quarterback on the field in this game.
His interception just before halftime was a pass that should never have been thrown. He has thrown, at least, one pick in six-consecutive games, a career-long streak.
Allen now leads the league with 11 interceptions thrown this season.
On the Bills' third drive of the night, Allen was off target on a throw to Diggs that could have converted a third down. He also sailed a ball way over Khalil Shakir's head on a 4th-and-1 around midfield in the third quarter.
Later in that same quarter, he appeared to just let the ball drop out of his hand during an attempted hand off to Cook, resulting in the Bills' fourth and final turnover.
The Bills have failed to top 25 points in six-straight games, the longest streak of the Allen era.
The big picture is a rather ugly one.
With a third inexplicable loss to a bad football team (Jets, Patriots, Broncos), the Bills slipped to 5-5, which leaves them 10th in the AFC. Their 2-5 record against AFC opponents is now the worst mark in the conference.
Conference record is a key tiebreaker come playoff time.
But who can possibly think this team will make a run to a postseason berth based on how they have looked the last six games, and the quality of teams left on the schedule?
The Bills still have to play the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers and Miami all on the road. They also host the Dallas Cowboys.
The two "easiest" games on paper are home games against the New York Jets and Patriots, but the Bills have lost to both of those teams already.
Welcome to the lowest point of the "McBeane" era, Bills fans.
Losi and Gangi
