Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane has said that the last game of your team’s season tells you what you need to work on in the offseason. I’ve never agreed with that philosophy, and the Bills’
loss to the Denver Broncos in the AFC Divisional Round of the playoffs serves as a great example as to why.
The two best players on Buffalo’s offense were responsible for five turnovers. The defense suffered multiple in-game injuries and watched those replacement players (who were often replacement players in their own right) get burned for scores.
The takeaways from the 2025 season and the questions that the organization will need to address in the offseason aren’t based on this game. Quarterback Josh Allen was a contributing factor to the loss against the Broncos. In addition to his four turnovers, he had multiple inaccurate passes to open receivers (a strange thing to type given the narrative surrounding Bills pass catchers this season) that could have changed the course of the game if placed better.
But nobody in their right mind is going to think the Bills have a Josh Allen problem that needs to be addressed. Running back James Cook III fumbled the ball on a promising drive and set into effect a swing in points that put Buffalo behind the eight ball for the rest of the game, but nobody thinks that extending the NFL’s 2025 rushing yards leader was a mistake and that the team should be evaluating his status as the top running back on the team.
The Bills played 19 games this season. In 18 of them, they were trying their best to win. There is an entire sample size by which to evaluate Buffalo’s season and decide what issues need to be addressed as the Bills face another offseason where the goal will be to make this a Super Bowl team.
Chief among those issues is the same issue that has been plaguing Buffalo for much of the McBeane regime: their utter lack of pass rush. It’s not like the Bills haven’t been trying. Every offseason seems to bring significant turnover on the defensive line, with draft picks and free agents being added to the defensive line to get that unit up to a level where it can be counted on to assist a defensive back seven that has been forced to carry the weight of Buffalo’s pass defense. The Bills’ need for additional pass-catching weapons is well-documented, and the free-agent wide receiver class has a few players that would immediately be the best receiver on the team. The Bills will likely need an addition at safety as well next to up-and-coming second-year player Cole Bishop.
But pass catchers weren’t the primary reason Buffalo lost in Denver. Pass rush was a problem as it has been since the back half of the regular season, but the Bills’ defense overall performed admirably given the positions they were put in by the offensive turnovers. Veteran defensive back Cam Lewis played markedly better than rookie defensive back Jordan Hancock in relief of safety Jordan Poyer (who was in relief of safety Damar Hamlin, who was in relief of safety Taylor Rapp).
No, Buffalo’s biggest issues against the Broncos weren’t even those you can hope to spend money or draft capital to fix. What will the to-do list look like? “Don’t have as many injuries, and don’t have two of the best touchdown scorers in the NFL turn the ball over five times.”
Brandon Beane and head coach Sean McDermott will have to look at more than just the team’s final playoff game for direction on what comes next for One Bills Drive. Josh Allen is still an elite player. James Cook is still a top running back. If they want to know where their focus should be, they’ll need to look at the entire body of work for the 2025 Buffalo Bills and not ascribe to Beane’s theory that the final game of the year tells you what you need to work on.
…and that’s the way the cookie crumbles. I’m Bruce Nolan with Buffalo Rumblings. You can find me on Twitter and Instagram @BruceExclusive and look for new episodes of “The Bruce Exclusive” every Thursday on the Rumblings Cast Network — see more in my LinkTree!
