'That's not good enough' — Bills' Sean McDermott offers strong comments on what almost cost them the game
The Buffalo Bills are showing some concerning trends heading into the postseason. One of which stands out as a common theme; the Bills have a major issue with penalties.Over the last three games, which corresponds with the Bills defense having two games giving up at least 40 points and allowing a Patriots team that was […]
The Buffalo Bills are showing some concerning trends heading into the postseason. One of which stands out as a common theme; the Bills have a major issue with penalties.
Over the last three games, which corresponds with the Bills defense having two games giving up at least 40 points and allowing a Patriots team that was averaging 17 points per game to score 14 points in the first quarter, the Bills have averaged 8.7 penalties per game, fourth-most in the NFL.
"Yeah, it is," Bills head coach Sean McDermott responded when asked if the penalties were troubling. "Six of them were pre-snap. So, that's not good enough. And I think they had five penalties overall. We had 13 overall, six of which were pre-snap. So we've got to come out with more discipline and can't beat ourselves."
He couldn't be more right. Late in the fourth quarter, up by 10 points, the Patriots had a drive to cut the lead to three points. On that one drive alone, the Bills had three defensive pass interference calls, an unnecessary roughness, and an encroachment. Five defensive penalties on one drive, which ultimately allowed the Patriots to have attempt after attempt, Drake Maye and the offense finally punched in for a touchdown.
Fortunately, Buffalo recovered the onside kick and was able to successfully run out the clock.
You can't beat yourself in this league and expect to make it far. This, along with other trends in recent weeks, like a general lack of urgency early in games and the defense's inability to get off the field on third downs, is starting to show some cracks in the armor of what could be a championship-level team.
Coaches get a lot of the blame, but the players need to take responsibility for their execution. Especially in the pre-snap department, the Bills, as a whole, need to clean it up.
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Follow along all year for more Buffalo Bills coverage on A to Z Sports. You can find me on Bluesky @jonhelmkamp.bsky.social, and make sure to follow our main page @AtoZSports.bsky.social for all the latest news.
