Joe Brady looks like the real deal despite Bills' loss to Eagles
As bad as the Buffalo Bills' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles was and as gloomy as everything seems right now, there is one big reason to be optimistic about the team moving forward: Joe Brady. The interim offensive coordinator has looked very good during his first two weeks on the job. It hasn't been Josh […]
As bad as the Buffalo Bills' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles was and as gloomy as everything seems right now, there is one big reason to be optimistic about the team moving forward: Joe Brady.
The interim offensive coordinator has looked very good during his first two weeks on the job. It hasn't been Josh Allen saving his butt every other play or anything like that, either. Brady is making timely calls using well-designed plays on a consistent basis. As a result, the Bills offense has scored 30+ points in regulation over the last two weeks.
Now Brady gets a chance to catch his breath during the bye week
If Brady was able to have the success he did on the fly, it's logical to think he's going to have even more after receiving the opportunity to slow things down and really get a handle on ironing out the Bills offense and the Kansas City Chiefs defense.
It's ironic to think continued -and possibly improved- success would actually put Sean McDermott under the microscope even more than he already is. An elite version of Allen, along with consistent points from the Bills offense, would put the load onto Bills head coach and the defense, his defense. Regardless, if Allen and co. are clicking, that typically means good things, at the end of the day.
The Chiefs have an elite defense, so it will be a huge test for the young offensive coordinator. The New York Jets and Eagles defenses are no slouches either, however, and we saw what happened to them.
The most impressive aspect of Brady's short time as OC has been his play-calling. The first example that comes to mind was the Bills' touchdown drive that put them up by three points with 1:52 left in the game. Brady called five straight inside runs to start the drive, then deployed an empty set on 3rd and 2 and threw it to backup running back, Latavius Murray.
One wouldn't expect an offense to not only show a straight-up pass play, but target a backup running back on a key down, but that was the genius behind Brady's sequencing. The defense wasn't ready to get spread out, so it gave Brady the mismatch he wanted with the delayed safety on Murray. There was just enough space for the easy throw and catch that kept the drive alive and set up Gabe Davis' seven-yard touchdown a few plays later.
McDermott has notice a difference in Josh Allen and the Bills offense
"His {Allen's] level of play has risen over the last two weeks," McDermott said after the game. "I think that's really the biggest thing – when you're quarterback is playing well, you got a chance. And the inconsistency leading up to the last two weeks,.. was one of the reasons why I made the decision that I did to move forward, here. But the last two weeks, Josh Allen's level of play has been has been good enough for us to win."
And that's the key to the rest of the Bills' season – Allen. McDermott needs to let he and Brady do their thing and pull out all the stops moving forward. In a smart manner, of course.
If Brady and the Bills offense can keep doing this on a consistent basis, it should be just enough to keep them alive during the regular season. It still not may be enough to get them into the playoffs considering their back-breaking issues during crunch time, but it will reinforce the team's identity and give them something to lean on in December, which is big in its own right.
It's just a shame McDermott didn't make this decision earlier in the year. Who knows what things would look like if that happened.
