After a chaotic few days at One Bills Drive, Bills Mafia is still thinking about what could have been for the Buffalo Bills this season if not for the controversial officiating call that gave Broncos’ DB Ja’Quan McMillian an interception instead of a catch to Brandin Cooks.
The fan base, and many within the team, feel convinced that Cooks caught the deep shot from Josh Allen last Saturday night in overtime before McMillian stripped the ball away after Cooks should have been ruled down by contact. Officials saw it the other way, ruling that Cooks had not completed the process of the catch all fully to the ground.
Just days after the timeline-altering play, Cooks joined Good Morning Football on Thursday to discuss his perspective on the play that changed everything for Buffalo in 2026.
Bills WR Brandin Cooks recounts the play that ended Buffalo’s season
“At the end of the day, it was a catch," Cooks said. "Not just what it looked like, but what it felt like. You see examples throughout the league all year, in previous years, and you’re like, ‘Wait a minute, that was a catch. There’s no brainer that this was a catch.’
“At the end of the day, it was a catch. Not just what it looked like but what it felt like.”#Bills WR Brandin Cooks with us on @gmfb to give his perspective on the pivotal INT that knocked Buffalo out of the playoffs and Sean McDermott out of a job. pic.twitter.com/2TuYo96601
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) January 22, 2026
Of course, any player in such a situation is going to argue in favor of the outcome that best benefits them. Still, every Bills player, coach and supporter has tried to lend some objectivity to the ruling by also pointing out the the result of the play should have been reviewed for longer.
Now-former head coach Sean McDermott did all he could do in the moment, replay challenges only coming from the booth in overtime, calling a timeout in hopes that it would spark an official review.
“I think when you loook back on it, the time that was spent on it to review it, wasn’t enough," he said. "Given the magnitude of that game, and the situation, it’s a little disappointing.
Still, it was Cooks who went up and back down with the ball in his hands. It was a brief moment as he and McMillian fell to the turf that possession changed hands. Cooks believes he completed the entire process of the catch before that brief moment.
“… Knee hit, shoulder hit, back hit, whatever case may be, my hands never left that ball. The other thing is a tie goes to the offense. But, I really feel in my heart of hearts that I caught that ball. And, you know, it doesn’t matter now what I think or what I know. We’re sitting here not playing.”
The Bills aren’t at home because it was an interception. The defense didn’t do enough to slow down the Broncos on the ensuing drive, knowing that the next points would end the game. That’s a big reason Terry Pegula decided, as he walked through the locker room after the game, to fire McDermott.
Still, because of Pegula’s comments on Wednesday, and the chaotic fallout Bills Mafia has been subjected to since that play happened, it’s the apex moment of the franchise going forward. Whatever comes next for the Bills, for better or worse, begins with that play. Unfortunately for the Bills and the Mafia alike, there’s no telling what the other side of reality holds if Cooks did, in fact, catch that pass.