A few thoughts about the chiefs game, in no particular order

[Virgil]

Typically, when there's a delay between the end of the game and when I post these, it's because I needed more time to process the results or they played a late game and work was busy the next day.  In this case, I watched the message boards and saw countless amount of threads where people rushed into off season mode, tried summarizing the entire season into this game, or immediately got out the pitch forks.  For me, I was ready to write this as soon as the game was over, as I wasn't really upset or surprised with the outcome.  We lost to a team that should very well be going to their 3rd consecutive Super Bowl and has proven to have a dynamic offense that can flip a switch like anyone else.  Was I upset?  No.  Disappointed?  Of course.  But only 2 teams make it and 1 team wins it all. 

 

1 - Chess - As we've seen in each of the previous playoff games, the coaching game plans take it up a notch.  Our defense pulled out all the stops against the Ravens in an absolute masterful performance just a week prior.  In this game, the Bills clearly had a game plan, it was just unfortunately outdone by a better one.  The Bills weren't going to let the Chiefs go deep on them and they weren't going to get run all over.  In response, the Chiefs found ways to get the ball into their main two play makers hands within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage and let them take it from there.  The Chiefs kept shifting the pocket, neutralizing front four pressure and getting Mahomes outside the pocket, where he is the most comfortable.  And on defense, they pressed our guys and dared us to beat them man on man while we tried to run our offense through Motor.  Right or wrong, the Chiefs plan was better this game and the play makers took it home.

 

2 - Josh - It's frustrating when you lose a big game, especially when you know you didn't put your best effort out there.  Going into the game, some had concerns that the offense took a step back in the playoffs and the start of this game didn't help alleviate those concerns.  Josh looked off in this game, never looking comfortable, and making the high throws we last saw against the Titans and forgot how to throw out of a sack while trying to play hero ball.  On many replays, it was shown where the receivers weren't able to get open in the first half, and many would believe the Chiefs got away with their fair share of holding.  They definitely played physical and found a way to neutralize our best weapons.  Allen will tell you he didn't have a great game, but it wasn't all on him.

 

3 - Motor - When given the opportunity on the second biggest stage in the NFL, you hope your guys will step up and make the most of it.  Motor, unfortunately, did not in this game.  Motor's lack of burst and top end speed was apparent in this game and eventually got benched after an early drop in the wide open flat, which eventually led to a punt.  While he wasn't bad overall, he clearly wasn't going to be able to be the guy we could take advantage of to give us an edge.  The Chiefs were going to leave Motor alone for the most part, and he was unable to punish him.

 

4 - Dear old daddy rest his soul, left my mom a heavy load

She tried so very hard to fill his shoes

Workin' hours without rest, wanted me to have the best

Oh she tried to raise me right, but I refused.

 

5 - Offensive Line - This was easily one of the worst performances by our offensive line of the season.  Chris Jones dominated Williams on the right side and Josh faced pressure for most of the game.  The Chiefs didn't run a spy and Josh was able to make them pay on a few plays.  With the press, tight coverage and the eventual pressure. Josh was never able to get comfortable and the tempo was clearly in favor of the Chiefs

 

6 - Hill/Kelce - Tyreek was an absolute monster on the field and showed off why speed matters.  You had to tip your cap to him on the 70 yard slant route pass, where he juked out every single Bills player on the field.  Even when Tre was on him, Hill's speed was uncoverable and Mahomes had the time to wait for him to get open.  Kelce was more of a concern for me because we didn't seem to make any attempt to cover him in man.  By his seventh catch, I couldn't wrap my mind around why Milano or Poyer wasn't shadowing him or at least bumping him off the line.  To his credit, even Tre covered him a few times and couldn't slow him down.  When 70% of the offense runs through two players, you do have to question the defensive scheme a little. 

 

7 - Bass - If only he could have gotten that XP another foot higher, it would have been good.  Other than that, just great job by the rookie hitting some absolute bomb field goals.  Any concerns I had about this kid are gone and I feel really strong about him for the future.

 

8 - Refs - To be clear, I'm not putting this game on the refs, however they should have gotten ahead of the physicality in this game sooner.  Jones was caught on camera throwing a punch and there was A LOT of contact downfield against our receivers.  I understand letting them play, but there's a line.  You never want to say that another team beat you up, but the Chiefs beat us up in the first half and we couldn't recover.  By the end, emotions boiled over and we looked like the kids who can't handle a loss.  It was frustrating for a team that's shown such great composure and had a great time on the sidelines be reduced to this.

 

9 - Coaching - There's always going to be a lot of second guessing after a loss like this.  Why run the offense through Motor?  Why not go for 6 when in the redzone all those times?  Where were the blitzes?  Why not double Tyreek and Kelce and make someone else beat you?  Shoulda, coulda woulda.  I'm sure all the coaches would do something different if they could.  My bigger concern was the overall prep of the team.  Josh never looked dialed in this game and Mahomes was cool as a cucumber, even down 9-0.  They knew they were going to win this game and were better prepared.  That part is unacceptable.  Take your best shot and if you lose, okay.  This didn't feel like our best shot and that's what's frustrating

 

10- Season - Anyone who tells you they expected more out of this season is a liar.  We earned every win and did it against a really tough schedule.  Allen took an amazing leap forward and I leave the season knowing this.  The Bills learned from every single opportunity presented to them this year.  They took their licks, got right back up, and got better.  They will learn from this loss like they did against the Texans.  I have zero doubt this team will be back and win the whole damn thing.

 

Go Bills!!!!

[KD in CA]

43 minutes ago, Virgil said:

2 - Josh - Josh looked off in this game, never looking comfortable, and making the high throws we last saw against the Titans and forgot how to throw out of a sack while trying to play hero ball.  On many replays, it was shown where the receivers weren't able to get open in the first half, and many would believe the Chiefs got away with their fair share of holding.  They definitely played physical and found a way to neutralize our best weapons.  Allen will tell you he didn't have a great game, but it wasn't all on him.

 

In his fourth playoff game, I was a little surprised and disappointed by this.  Maybe he's not quite Marsha or Mahomes, who were born with killer ice water in their veins, but he's still growing and I expect he'll be even better next time.   But no, certainly not all his fault when you consider....

 

43 minutes ago, Virgil said:

5 - Offensive Line -  The Chiefs didn't run a spy and Josh was able to make them pay on a few plays.  With the press, tight coverage and the eventual pressure. Josh was never able to get comfortable and the tempo was clearly in favor of the Chiefs

All season I've been overlooking the hit-or-miss run blocking because of how good they've been at protecting Josh.  But on Sunday they were beaten like a red-headed step child of Adrian Peterson.

 

On the bolded, combination of Josh and Daboll here.   They weren't spying Josh, WRs struggled to get open, so why didn't we go with more QB draws or RPOs?   Especially in the red zone.  There was a distinct lack of offensive creatively in this game.

 

One other Josh note was that he bailed on clean pockets at least a few times, and usually right into the DEs who were in containment mode.  This happened on the play where they reviewed and determined he threw it away before stepping out of bounds.

 

43 minutes ago, Virgil said:

6 - Hill/Kelce -  When 70% of the offense runs through two players, you do have to question the defensive scheme a little. 

I understood they weren't going to beat KC if the Chiefs were firing on all cylinders, but the lack of even trying anything out of the box was disappointing.   Kelce catching the last TD wide open was a fitting conclusion to the defensive game plan.  Something needs to change on that side of the ball if this team is going to advance to a SB.

 

43 minutes ago, Virgil said:

7 - Any concerns I had about this kid are gone and I feel really strong about him for the future.

I thought the Bills should have kept Dustin Hopkins, so am very happy they didn't follow the advice of the dozens of morons ATOP who wanted to cut Bass week 1.   He was terrific this year.

 

43 minutes ago, Virgil said:

8 - Refs -  Jones was caught on camera throwing a punch and there was A LOT of contact downfield against our receivers.  I understand letting them play, but there's a line.  You never want to say that another team beat you up, but the Chiefs beat us up in the first half and we couldn't recover.  By the end, emotions boiled over and we looked like the kids who can't handle a loss.

If that came as a surprise to the Bills, that's on McDermott.  I noticed immediately during wild card weekend that the refs were letting the DBs play.  They've been consistent in every playoff game I watched on that score.

 

The game was over when the OL started fighting at the end so frankly, I was kinda happy to see them finally push back.

 

43 minutes ago, Virgil said:

10- Season - Anyone who tells you they expected more out of this season is a liar.

Yup...great season.   Thanks for the write ups Virgil.   Already looking forward to September.

 

 

Edited January 27, 2021 by KD in CA

[Fansince88]

38 minutes ago, Virgil said:

Typically, when there's a delay between the end of the game and when I post these, it's because I needed more time to process the results or they played a late game and work was busy the next day.  In this case, I watched the message boards and saw countless amount of threads where people rushed into off season mode, tried summarizing the entire season into this game, or immediately got out the pitch forks.  For me, I was ready to write this as soon as the game was over, as I wasn't really upset or surprised with the outcome.  We lost to a team that should very well be going to their 3rd consecutive Super Bowl and has proven to have a dynamic offense that can flip a switch like anyone else.  Was I upset?  No.  Disappointed?  Of course.  But only 2 teams make it and 1 team wins it all. 

 

1 - Chess - As we've seen in each of the previous playoff games, the coaching game plans take it up a notch.  Our defense pulled out all the stops against the Ravens in an absolute masterful performance just a week prior.  In this game, the Bills clearly had a game plan, it was just unfortunately outdone by a better one.  The Bills weren't going to let the Chiefs go deep on them and they weren't going to get run all over.  In response, the Chiefs found ways to get the ball into their main two play makers hands within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage and let them take it from there.  The Chiefs kept shifting the pocket, neutralizing front four pressure and getting Mahomes outside the pocket, where he is the most comfortable.  And on defense, they pressed our guys and dared us to beat them man on man while we tried to run our offense through Motor.  Right or wrong, the Chiefs plan was better this game and the play makers took it home.

 

2 - Josh - It's frustrating when you lose a big game, especially when you know you didn't put your best effort out there.  Going into the game, some had concerns that the offense took a step back in the playoffs and the start of this game didn't help alleviate those concerns.  Josh looked off in this game, never looking comfortable, and making the high throws we last saw against the Titans and forgot how to throw out of a sack while trying to play hero ball.  On many replays, it was shown where the receivers weren't able to get open in the first half, and many would believe the Chiefs got away with their fair share of holding.  They definitely played physical and found a way to neutralize our best weapons.  Allen will tell you he didn't have a great game, but it wasn't all on him.

 

3 - Motor - When given the opportunity on the second biggest stage in the NFL, you hope your guys will step up and make the most of it.  Motor, unfortunately, did not in this game.  Motor's lack of burst and top end speed was apparent in this game and eventually got benched after an early drop in the wide open flat, which eventually led to a punt.  While he wasn't bad overall, he clearly wasn't going to be able to be the guy we could take advantage of to give us an edge.  The Chiefs were going to leave Motor alone for the most part, and he was unable to punish him.

 

4 - Dear old daddy rest his soul, left my mom a heavy load

She tried so very hard to fill his shoes

Workin' hours without rest, wanted me to have the best

Oh she tried to raise me right, but I refused.

 

5 - Offensive Line - This was easily one of the worst performances by our offensive line of the season.  Chris Jones dominated Williams on the right side and Josh faced pressure for most of the game.  The Chiefs didn't run a spy and Josh was able to make them pay on a few plays.  With the press, tight coverage and the eventual pressure. Josh was never able to get comfortable and the tempo was clearly in favor of the Chiefs

 

6 - Hill/Kelce - Tyreek was an absolute monster on the field and showed off why speed matters.  You had to tip your cap to him on the 70 yard slant route pass, where he juked out every single Bills player on the field.  Even when Tre was on him, Hill's speed was uncoverable and Mahomes had the time to wait for him to get open.  Kelce was more of a concern for me because we didn't seem to make any attempt to cover him in man.  By his seventh catch, I couldn't wrap my mind around why Milano or Poyer wasn't shadowing him or at least bumping him off the line.  To his credit, even Tre covered him a few times and couldn't slow him down.  When 70% of the offense runs through two players, you do have to question the defensive scheme a little. 

 

7 - Bass - If only he could have gotten that XP another foot higher, it would have been good.  Other than that, just great job by the rookie hitting some absolute bomb field goals.  Any concerns I had about this kid are gone and I feel really strong about him for the future.

 

8 - Refs - To be clear, I'm not putting this game on the refs, however they should have gotten ahead of the physicality in this game sooner.  Jones was caught on camera throwing a punch and there was A LOT of contact downfield against our receivers.  I understand letting them play, but there's a line.  You never want to say that another team beat you up, but the Chiefs beat us up in the first half and we couldn't recover.  By the end, emotions boiled over and we looked like the kids who can't handle a loss.  It was frustrating for a team that's shown such great composure and had a great time on the sidelines be reduced to this.

 

9 - Coaching - There's always going to be a lot of second guessing after a loss like this.  Why run the offense through Motor?  Why not go for 6 when in the redzone all those times?  Where were the blitzes?  Why not double Tyreek and Kelce and make someone else beat you?  Shoulda, coulda woulda.  I'm sure all the coaches would do something different if they could.  My bigger concern was the overall prep of the team.  Josh never looked dialed in this game and Mahomes was cool as a cucumber, even down 9-0.  They knew they were going to win this game and were better prepared.  That part is unacceptable.  Take your best shot and if you lose, okay.  This didn't feel like our best shot and that's what's frustrating

 

10- Season - Anyone who tells you they expected more out of this season is a liar.  We earned every win and did it against a really tough schedule.  Allen took an amazing leap forward and I leave the season knowing this.  The Bills learned from every single opportunity presented to them this year.  They took their licks, got right back up, and got better.  They will learn from this loss like they did against the Texans.  I have zero doubt this team will be back and win the whole damn thing.

 

Go Bills!!!!

Before I reply to this final (10 things) of the year I want to say thank you for joining us here on Bills-Fans. The addition of your writings are tremendous and this post was exceptional as always. That said:

Agree with 100% of this including your reason for waiting. #1) we went 15-4 on the season. #2) we won the division. #3) We swept the division. #4) We watched the young team break record after record this year. Finally, as you said in 10 Most of us wanted the division and 1 win in the post season. McD and company are calculating and they will grow from this. As they grow we will see improvement. LETS GO BILLS!

[IDBillzFan]

2 hours ago, Virgil said:

10- Season - Anyone who tells you they expected more out of this season is a liar.  We earned every win and did it against a really tough schedule.  Allen took an amazing leap forward and I leave the season knowing this.  The Bills learned from every single opportunity presented to them this year.  They took their licks, got right back up, and got better.  They will learn from this loss like they did against the Texans.  I have zero doubt this team will be back and win the whole damn thing.

 

Go Bills!!!!

 

Your entire write up was terrific, and I appreciate you bringing it over here for those of us who lost the stomach to show up ATOP.

 

This last point is the point that has helped lift my otherwise heavy heart. And it WAS a heavy heart because I genuinely went into this game prepared to NOT be surprised if they beat KC. But in the end, if you told me in September that the Bills would be 3-point dogs to the reigning SB champions in the AFC championship game after winning 15 games and would be on an 11-game win streak if not for a Hail Mary, I'd have had you committed.

 

As someone else noted, the playoffs is where you see your weaknesses revealed. I have every confidence this staff sees those weaknesses and will do their best to address them and, God willing, we make the run again.

 

Go Bills.

[Foxx]

Thank you for the write up Virgil.

 

Would like to echo @Fansince88 and @IDBillzFan words and say, you being willing to join us here and post your 'Thoughts' threads has been greatly appreciated. I do hope you remain and continue to offer up your insights.

 

Once again you have hit all the high points for me. I too am content with how the season turned out. Don't like how we got manhandled the last game but that is okay because I've no doubt that we will learn from it and be that much better for it next year.

 

 

[GG1]

12 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

 

2 - Josh - It's frustrating when you lose a big game, especially when you know you didn't put your best effort out there.  Going into the game, some had concerns that the offense took a step back in the playoffs and the start of this game didn't help alleviate those concerns.  Josh looked off in this game, never looking comfortable, and making the high throws we last saw against the Titans and forgot how to throw out of a sack while trying to play hero ball.  On many replays, it was shown where the receivers weren't able to get open in the first half, and many would believe the Chiefs got away with their fair share of holding.  They definitely played physical and found a way to neutralize our best weapons.  Allen will tell you he didn't have a great game, but it wasn't all on him.

 

I think we're accustomed to seeing sign of Sugar Rush Josh when he hits the field.  I noticed many comments in the Game Day thread for someone to pop a Quaalude in his Gatorade.  The kid definitely suffers from the Roger Clemens affliction who needs to regulate his adrenaline in big moments.

 

12 hours ago, Virgil said:

 

10- Season - Anyone who tells you they expected more out of this season is a liar.  We earned every win and did it against a really tough schedule.  Allen took an amazing leap forward and I leave the season knowing this.  The Bills learned from every single opportunity presented to them this year.  They took their licks, got right back up, and got better.  They will learn from this loss like they did against the Texans.  I have zero doubt this team will be back and win the whole damn thing.

 

Go Bills!!!!

 

Will echo what everyone was saying.  My optimistic prediction heading into the season was 10-6, maybe 11-5, based on the tough schedule.

 

Thanks again for the perspectives Virgil.

[Joe]

3 minutes ago, GG1 said:

 

I think we're accustomed to seeing sign of Sugar Rush Josh when he hits the field.  I noticed many comments in the Game Day thread for someone to pop a Quaalude in his Gatorade.  The kid definitely suffers from the Roger Clemens affliction who needs to regulate his adrenaline in big moments.

 

 

Will echo what everyone was saying.  My optimistic prediction heading into the season was 10-6, maybe 11-5, based on the tough schedule.

 

Thanks again for the perspectives Virgil.

 

I know I had them at 11-5 and winning a wildcard game.

 

They exceeded my expectations, really.

 

But, and this is a serious caveat, what I've learned from this season is that it's impossible to try and predict what the opposition will look like. Some of our "tough" games turned out to be not so tough.

 

 

[Seasons1992]

My man @Virgil, it has been an amazing year with your posts here and "there."

 

6, 9, and 10 are my three big takeaways on this season. (And any Dead reference)

The team will lose some of the fan faves, and will upgrade or potentially degrade. But the experience that JFA went through this season will only make him better. Hopefully we are in this position for the next 10 years and we're all "talkin proud."

[Ann]

13 hours ago, Virgil said:

Typically, when there's a delay between the end of the game and when I post these, it's because I needed more time to process the results or they played a late game and work was busy the next day.  In this case, I watched the message boards and saw countless amount of threads where people rushed into off season mode, tried summarizing the entire season into this game, or immediately got out the pitch forks.  For me, I was ready to write this as soon as the game was over, as I wasn't really upset or surprised with the outcome.  We lost to a team that should very well be going to their 3rd consecutive Super Bowl and has proven to have a dynamic offense that can flip a switch like anyone else.  Was I upset?  No.  Disappointed?  Of course.  But only 2 teams make it and 1 team wins it all. 

 

10- Season - Anyone who tells you they expected more out of this season is a liar.  We earned every win and did it against a really tough schedule.  Allen took an amazing leap forward and I leave the season knowing this.  The Bills learned from every single opportunity presented to them this year.  They took their licks, got right back up, and got better.  They will learn from this loss like they did against the Texans.  I have zero doubt this team will be back and win the whole damn thing.

 

Go Bills!!!!

Thank you for the great write-up, @Virgil.

Like many, I was disappointed in the loss, but even more disappointed in the coaching decisions that led to the loss. However, I had them at 10-6, winning the AFCE + 1 playoff game. This season exceeded my wildest imagination.

I am not certain what happened on other Bills forums, but here people were pretty realistic. Sad and disappointed? Yes.  Upset and angry? No.

I do believe the future is bright for this team.  They have their QB (who learns from all his mistakes and situations), and that is the chess piece that has been missing for most of the years since Jim Kelly.  The holes will be filled. 2021 should be another exciting year!


 

[Seasons1992]

 

5 minutes ago, Ann said:

I am not certain what happened on other Bills forums

 

[Alaska Darin]