There is no question that the performance Sunday by the Buffalo Bills against the Jacksonville Jaguars was the worst of the season. In fact, taking into account it was a 1-6 Jaguars team and the inability to put any points on the board, this was probably the worst loss this team has had under Sean McDermott as head coach of the Bills.
The offense needs to really shoulder the blame here as the defense was consistently put in a bad position in the second half. They held up well and in the end limited the Jaguars to only three field goals and under 220 total yards.
However, in the end, it is only one game in the loss column and the Buffalo Bills can’t let this game linger past this week. The Buffalo Bills have Super Bowl aspirations, and while it might seem foolish to think about a Super Bowl title after this game, they are certainly still in the hunt.
Entering this week, the Bills ranked first in the league in scoring offense and scoring defense. They have a talented quarterback in Josh Allen, with a deep wide receiver group and a defense that forces the opposing offense to earn every yard and point.
Every Super Bowl champion seemingly has a game like this during the season they win the Lombardi Trophy, where their resume is questioned. Last year, the Bucs lost to the Chicago Bears by a final score of 20-19. In 2018 the New England Patriots lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Detroit Lions in back-to-back weeks before beating the Los Angeles Rams in the Super Bowl later that year.
The key from those teams was they didn’t let those losses define their season and they didn’t let them linger into future weeks.
Am I saying the Buffalo Bills are going to win the Super Bowl this year? No, I am not.
Am I saying the Buffalo Bills are no longer a Super Bowl contender just because they lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars? No, but how they respond next week against the New York Jets and are able to move past this week’s game, will define this year’s version of the Buffalo Bills.