Alex Simone: This is Alex Simone, WBFO News. The Buffalo Bills are back in the playoffs for a fifth straight year. I sat down with a Buffalo media member to discuss what makes this year special.
... I'm with local Bills beat reporter Ryan Talbot. He has 10-plus years of experience covering the team, including NYup and Syracuse.com since 2016. Having that extended history with the team, what is it that, maybe, separates this year from recent Bills seasons?
Ryan Talbot: First and foremost, experience is a big thing for this team … You look, and it feels like the AFC is pretty wide open. You don't have the (Cincinnati) Bengals, a team that matches up well with the Bills. They start out the playoffs against a Pittsburgh Steelers team that, kind of, backed their way into the playoffs. I know they won their last few games with Mason Rudolph, but they needed help to get in from the (Tennessee) Titans to even make the playoffs. So, it's a favorable matchup.”
A: Is there, maybe, an X-factor that you're looking at where it's like, ‘okay, if this guy plays well, that's really going to say a lot about how the team is performing today.’
R: James Cook, obviously, and he might have been a guy that he wants to throw into that mix of taking them out of the equation. But when he's running well, that just makes this Bills team even more dangerous, because then you have to, kind of, leak the safeties up or play guys up a little bit closer to the line than you want, and that opens up things in the pass game. So, for the offense, I could list him, I could list Khalil Shakir. Shakir is coming on again late in the season, like he did one year ago. He had some big performances at the end of the regular season … So, I'm interested to see him on that side of the ball. And defensively, you know, Terrell Barnard at linebacker, he's been unbelievable this year. He has a nose for the ball, he's always around the ball.
A: Over the McDermott tenure as a whole, is there, maybe, a consistent theme contributing to why the Bills haven't been able to make it further and, possibly, win at all?
R: I think there's been times where he coaches a little bit tight in these big games, and you can say the same for some of these regular season big games. So, just like a player getting more experience on the field, you hope that this is the year that McDermott realizes that, ‘I can't coach tight. I have to be aggressive,’ like he was in the regular season finale. Going for it on fourth-and-one or fourth-and-inches from their own 37, that was a big-time play for this offense.
A: It seemed like there were times where, you know, Josh (Allen), of course, wasn't at its peak at certain times, but like the Bills have been able to win without Josh being at his peak even against good teams, right? Is that something where it's like, okay, that's promising that they can still get it done? Or is it maybe a little concerning that he's not at his peak all the time against the best teams?
R: I think it's more of a good thing than a bad thing. You're showing that you can win when Josh doesn't have his fastball, so to speak. He can make enough plays throughout, the defense can do their part, the run game, other guys step up. I think that's more of a good thing than a bad thing. I will say that after last week's game, especially in the second half, Allen said that he was throwing the ball better he felt like than he had in some time. And that's encouraging going into the playoffs.
A: This week specifically what are maybe the top things you're looking for against the Steelers?
R: Run defense, first and foremost. Making sure that you can keep their one-two punch at running back, and limit their carries, limit their yardage, limit their scores, because Nyjah Harris as of late has been running the ball very well. Jalen Warren, I think, is the more talented of the two backs and he can hurt you as well. But, you know, limiting them in that capacity is the first key to the game.
A: From the playoffs as a whole, what do you think is the biggest roadblock, maybe, the biggest team or something for the Bills, specifically, in terms of keeping them from winning the Superbowl?
R: I could easily say the Baltimore Ravens because of the one-seed in this conference, but I'll say the Kansas City Chiefs, even though the Chiefs are not the same team they've been in past years. The Bills have already beaten them in the regular season. This matchup would be at Highmark Stadium (in Buffalo). There's just been something about beating the Chiefs in the playoffs, and the Bills have not been able to do that … Can you finally defeat the team that has been the thorn in your side in the postseason? If you can do that, then I think that opens the door to knock off the Baltimore Ravens, it opens the door to go into the Super Bowl.
A: The Bills continue their season with a home playoff game at 1 p.m. Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers. For WBFO, I’m Alex Simone.
