Buffalo Sports News

Buffalo Sports News

Bills Coach Faces Legacy-Defining Playoff Game vs. Ravens

by

Sean McDermott can’t expect quarterback Josh Allen to carry the Buffalo Bills to victory over the Baltimore Ravens in the Divisional Round on Sunday. The team’s head coach also can’t expect first-year defensive coordinator Bobby Babich to scheme up ways to slow down Lamar Jackson. This game lies solely on McDermott’s shoulders.

The 50-year-old Nebraska native was billed as a defensive guru when he arrived in Buffalo eight years ago. While he’s enjoyed plenty of success, especially in the regular season, his defenses have often faltered in the NFL’s biggest moments. That must change if the Bills are going to keep their 2025 Super Bowl dreams alive.

If McDermott and the Bills come up short in a Game of the Year candidate once again, it’ll be fair to start questioning whether he’ll ever lead Buffalo to a long-awaited championship.

Bills’ Sean McDermott Under Pressure Against Ravens

McDermott’s Culture-Building Success

It’s not fair to discuss McDermott’s shortcomings without acknowledging his successes. In 2017, he inherited a franchise amid a 17-year playoff drought. He guided Buffalo to the postseason in his first campaign and seven of his eight seasons overall.

The William & Mary product created a winning environment. A system where players can seamlessly transition into the starting lineup without the team missing a beat. That’s why the Bills were able to lose their top targets, Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis, and improve offensively.

Yes, having perhaps the best quarterback in the world helps. Allen is the ultimate equalizer. A dual-threat weapon that can dominate games. But the NFL has witnessed plenty of talented signal-callers flame out because they landed with a culture-less organization.

McDermott laid the groundwork. A foundation of hard work and fighting for the player next to you in the locker room. It’s on display in all of his postgame speeches.

That’s why the Bills, led by team owner Terry Pegula, will always be hesitant to let the former Philadelphia Eagles and Carolina Panthers assistant go. He’s built a basis for success that wouldn’t be guaranteed if the organization hired a new coach.

That said, at some point, the standard must be raised. Making the playoffs every year can’t be viewed as doing enough. The rest of the Allen Era in Buffalo must be Super Bowl or bust.

Bills’ Postseason Defensive Failures

The Bills’ championship window opened in 2020. Allen had successfully navigated some early-career inconsistency and the front office had built a strong enough roster around him to seriously contend. It was time to hunt the franchise’s first Super Bowl title.

Alas, here are the scores from Buffalo’s season-ending playoff losses since that point:

  • 2020: 38-24 to the Kansas City Chiefs (AFC Championship)
  • 2021: 42-36 to the Chiefs (Divisional Round)
  • 2022: 27-10 to the Cincinnati Bengals (Divisional Round)
  • 2023: 27-24 to the Chiefs (Divisional Round)

A couple things stand out.

First, the Chiefs are the Bills’ kryptonite and they’ll likely be waiting once again in the AFC Championship Game if Buffalo finds its way past Baltimore. Making it through the NFL’s tougher conference is always a gauntlet, but K.C. does it every year, so there are no excuses.

Second, the Divisional Round is the benchmark. There are no more cupcakes. It’s the eight best teams in football fighting for the ability to survive another week. So far, the Bills have failed that test under McDermott far more than they’ve passed it.

The most important takeaway in the short term, however, is the points allowed. McDermott’s defense has given up an average of 33.5 points in those losses. That’s asking far, far too much of Allen and the offense. The unit must be better against the Ravens.

Ravens’ Week 4 Rout of Buffalo

What made Baltimore’s 35-10 win earlier this season so concerning for Buffalo is how easily it imposed its will. Everyone knew the Ravens would run the ball relentlessly until the Bills showed they could stop it, and they never did.

Derrick Henry ran for 199 yards and a touchdown. Jackson added 54 rushing yards and a touchdown in addition to his two passing scores. Justice Hill added 18 yards on the ground. As a whole, the Ravens rushed for 271 yards on 34 carries (8.0 YPC). They only threw the ball 19 times.

McDermott didn’t have an answer in late September. He’s had nearly four months to think about that loss—Buffalo’s worst of the season—but can he come up with a solution?

Sunday won’t feature a game where McDermott’s defense can sit back in his preferred two-high-safety shell and wait for a turnover. The Ravens only turned the ball over 11 times during the regular season. They’ll roll through those light boxes with ease.

Instead, the Bills must play the most aggressive defense of the McDermott tenure. Bring the safeties down, stack the box, and force Baltimore to beat them over the top. Otherwise, the rematch will feel more like a replay as the Ravens cruise to the AFC title game.

How McDermott Can Solidify Coaching Legacy

McDermott has improved as a coach during his eight years in Buffalo. He’s become a much better fourth-down decision-maker—Austin Mock of The Athletic rated him as the best playoff coach in that regard this season—and he’s learned when to take the reins off Allen to let him take over a game.

Yet, his unwillingness to alter his defensive approach is the main reason for the Bills’ recent postseason failures. You can’t treat a Divisional Round game against the Ravens, Chiefs, or Bengals the same as a Week 7 clash with the Tennessee Titans. The opponents are too good.

That’s why McDermott is firmly in the spotlight ahead of Sunday’s contest. The game will essentially be over before it starts if Buffalo comes out in its typical soft-zone coverage. Henry, Jackson, and Co. will run wild en route to another blowout.

McDermott proved capable of change in other areas, though. So maybe, just maybe, he’ll understand it’s time to break the glass on a unique defensive game plan. Push the envelope with a lot of run blitzes early to neutralize Henry and put the onus on Jackson’s arm to win the game for Baltimore.

Although there’s no guarantee it will work—the Ravens led the NFL in yards per game for a reason—it’s better than sitting back and watching Baltimore eat the clock will running down the field with little resistance.

Even if it doesn’t work and the Bills are eliminated, however, it will at least show McDermott is capable of change. It’ll illustrate he’s starting to understand his defensive deficiencies, just like he came to realize the fourth-down weaknesses earlier in his coaching career.

That’s important because losing is one thing. Losing the same way every single year in the playoffs is another thing, though. Buffalo’s head coach must change his defensive mindset to find success in January and February.

It all starts with McDermott being open to a different brand of defensive football. His legacy, and maybe the Bills’ first Super Bowl, depends on it.

Main Photo: Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The post Bills Coach Faces Legacy-Defining Playoff Game vs. Ravens appeared first on Last Word on Pro Football.