of buffalo bills They have had great success since selecting quarterback Josh Allen with the seventh overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft. Previously one of the laughingstocks of the league, they have managed to become an example of consistency.
Buffalo has made the playoffs in each of the past five seasons, winning the AFC East championship four of those times. During these five years, the team posted one of the league's best regular season records with a total of 58 wins and 24 losses.
The problem for the Bills is that they have yet to continue their regular season success into the playoffs.Sunday's divisional round loss kansas city chiefs They fell to 5-5 in the postseason under Josh Allen, but are still waiting for their first Super Bowl appearance in 30 years.
“It sucks. It sucks to lose,” Allen said after the 27-24 loss to Kansas City. “Losing to them sucks, losing to anyone at home sucks.”
Allen is one of the best quarterbacks in football and has more unique talents than anyone in the league. This season alone, he became the first player in NFL history to score at least 40 combined passing and rushing touchdowns in four consecutive seasons.
But he's not the first Hall of Famer to be eliminated in the playoffs multiple times. It was a coincidence that Peyton Manning and John Elway started their careers, and the same thing happened to Dan Marino.
Marino would be the worst bet for Allen and, by extension, his team.
While Manning and Elway overcame their team's failures in the playoffs and ultimately won a championship, Marino never got over the hump. Despite being arguably the best pure passer in football in the '80s and early '90s (which he may have in common with Allen 40 years later), his teams won just eight playoff games. There were 10 losses.
(Of course, you can also add former Bill Jim Kelly to that conversation, but his Bills teams ended up winning the AFC for four consecutive years, despite going 0-4 in the Super Bowl.) class)
Marino's talent was undeniable, but much like Allen of late, he became a symbol of playoff disappointment. In fact, if you look at the first five postseason trips of their careers, you'll see some similarities. They both followed the same pattern with 5 wins and 5 losses. 0-1, 2-1, 1-1, 1-1, 1-1.
Of course, that's just a coincidence. That said, the circumstances surrounding it are similar in both cases, with neither quarterback able to make enough of a difference when the stakes are highest. Admittedly, it is impossible to pinpoint a single cause for both men's repeated heartbreaks. The Bills' playoff shortcomings have too many interconnected factors.
But at the end of the day, it's not Allen's Bills or Marino's Bills. Dolphin They were able to turn their regular season success into a postseason celebration. But to be perfectly fair, quarterback play seemed relatively low on the list of issues for both QBs, especially in Allen's case.
Sure, he's been involved in Buffalo's postseason misfortunes. That's the nature of someone who plays the most important position in this sport. But as you can see from his numbers, he is still performing at a high level.
In 10 playoff games, including Sunday's game against the Chiefs, he completed 244 of 378 pass attempts (64.6%) for 2,723 yards, 21 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Allen also gained 563 rushing yards on 83 carries and reached the end zone five times.
But the old saying, “He can't do anything by himself,” continues to resonate as a painful truth for Buffalo. Just ask his head coach.
“I think we didn't make the plays we needed to in two of the three phases,” McDermott said after the loss to Kansas City. “First defense, then special teams. I thought offensively, we did some really good things… moving the football, dominating the football. We knew we had to do something against it. [Patrick] Mahomes and the offense. But overall, we didn't do enough defensively to influence the game. ”
McDermott primarily found the blame elsewhere, but the offense, led by Allen, also made plays. This drop by wide receiver Stefon Diggs that negates a gain of over 55 yards is perhaps the best example.
Allen carried the Bills on his back in the playoffs, as he has throughout six regular seasons in the league. However, his efforts were in vain as the overall margin of error against the AFC's best teams became much smaller. Buffalo has now lost in the divisional round following losses in the wild card round and conference title game in 2019 and 2020, respectively. 3 years in a row.
Inconsistency, injuries, coaching, opponents, you name it, they all contributed to the loss. And no matter how hard Allen tries, he hasn't been able to overcome that deadly combination for five consecutive years.
So what has to happen to exorcise the Bills' playoff demons? The 27-year-old doesn't think there's anything too drastic.
“I don't think it's a huge change,” Allen explained Sunday. “We have to find a way to score one more point than them. And every season, if we don't win, it's a failed season. That's the nature of business. At the end of the season, there's one team that's really happy. There's only one. And it's the worst when it's not you and you're so close.”
As long as Allen is the quarterback, the Bills always have a chance. He can do things that no other player in the league can do. But the team's salary cap situation and the aging of both teams' rosters mean the chance for that elusive Super Bowl win, or even a more noisy Super Bowl than in recent years, is closing sooner than ever. It means.
Eventually it was closed by Dan Marino. Given her career history, Allen is in danger of following the same path.
