Buffalo Bills

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott took the blame for clock mismanagement at the end of Sunday's matchup against Houston Texans.

The Texans won on a walk-off field goal after the Bills gave them the ball back with three timeouts and less than a minute to play.

"That's on me, the end-of-game situation on offense," McDermott said, per ESPN's Alaina Getzenberg. "We're in a tough situation ... they were holding three timeouts; they got a good field goal kicker. We needed to run the clock and move the chains, and that's on me. We didn't do that there, and that's my fault."

The Bills forced Houston to punt with less than a minute remaining after quarterback C.J. Stroud was called for intentional grounding, but McDermott chose to decline the 10-second runoff that came with the penalty.

Buffalo's offense went three and out after three incompletions from quarterback Josh Allen and the Texans returned the punt to Houston's 41-yard line. After a short play for five yards, Ka'imi Fairbairn drilled a 59-yard field goal to take the lead as time expired.

McDermott also took accountability for the play calls that led to the three and out.

"Overall, again, that's on me," McDermott said. "And so, we just gotta do a better job, I gotta do a better job in that situation."

It was Allen's worst game of the season as he completed just nine of 30 pass attempts for 131 yards and a touchdown. The game also marked back-to-back losses for the Bills after a 3-0 start to the season.

Buffalo appeared to be an early frontrunner to make it out of the AFC, but back-to-back losses, both against AFC opponents, have exposed plenty of weaknesses for the BIlls, one of which is game management.

The Bills have a chance to bounce back next week against the New York Jets.

Former Buffalo Bills guard and Pro Football Hall of Famer Billy Shaw died on Friday. He was 85 years old.

His family announced that he died of hyponatremia.

We are saddened to learn about the passing of Bills Wall of Famer Billy Shaw.

We are thinking of his friends, family, and loved ones during this difficult time. ❤️💙https://t.co/8A4wa0qMMU | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/u6GrmmEjml

— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) October 4, 2024

Shaw spent all nine years of his career at left guard for the Bills from 1961 through 1969, earning eight AFL All-Star nods. He also helped Buffalo win two AFL championships during his tenure with the organization.

Shaw was inducted into the Hall of Fame as part of the 1999 class.

Hall of Fame president Jim Porter said Friday in a statement:

"Billy Shaw holds the distinction of being the only member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame to play his entire career in the American Football League, but while that fact is worthy of noting and nice to recite, it comes nowhere near providing the reason he was elected as a member of the Class of 1999. Billy's all-around athleticism brought a new dimension to the guard position and made the 1960s Buffalo Bills a formidable opponent capable of bruising opponents with a punishing rushing attack. And while Billy could be unforgiving to anyone in his way on the football field, he was the classic example of the 'Southern gentlemen' off the field to everyone he encountered."

Shaw played four years in college at Georgia Tech from 1957-61. He earned a First Team All-SEC nod in 1960 as well as All-America honors in his senior season. Shaw initially played on the defensive line, but he switched over to the offensive line during the 1961 College All-Star Game following an injury to a teammate.

He was selected by the Bills in the second round of the 1961 AFL draft and was also picked by the Dallas Cowboys in the 14th round of the 1961 NFL draft. Shaw ultimately chose to play for Buffalo in order to be an offensive lineman, as the Cowboys wanted him to suit up as a linebacker.

"I never played linebacker before and I just didn't want to try to play a new position," Shaw later explained, via Sal Maiorana of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. "I signed with the Bills because they were going to play me at positions that I was used to playing."

He was a staple of Buffalo's first-string offense throughout his career with the Bills, starting in 116 of his 119 games played.

In addition to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Shaw was also inducted into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1979 and the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 1996.

As Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills prepare to take on Stefon Diggs and the Houston Texans, the star quarterback clarified how he feels about his former teammate.

"I've got a lot of love for [Diggs]," Allen said, per Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio. "I still do. The things that he did for me in my career, and the things that he did in a Buffalo Bill uniform won't be forgotten anytime soon, especially from me."

Diggs played alongside Allen from 2020 until this past offseason when he was traded to Houston. Diggs recorded 1,000+ receiving yards in each of his seasons catching passes from Allen and together they reached the divisional round of the playoffs four times and the AFC Championship once.

Now the Bills have a new identity without Diggs, and they've looked strong early on this year, winning three of their first four games.

Diggs and his new squad aren't doing too bad, either. The Texans are 3-1 on the season and Diggs had 233 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns. Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud has more than welcomed the addition of Diggs.

"It's been great," Stroud said. "I think he got a bad rap just by the media and by people. But he's been nothing but just amazing to this team and to his teammates. He's helped me out a ton. As you can see, we're clicking more and more every game. So, I'm very happy for him and I'm glad that he's finally having fun playing the game and doing what he loves to do because he loves football a lot. So, just really, really happy to be part of his journey and just being around him has been really awesome."

Sunday's matchup between the Bills and Texans will be interesting beyond the Allen-Diggs storyline. Both teams seem like early contenders in the AFC and will be looking to establish that notion even further with a big win.

A source with the Buffalo Bills told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler that wide receiver Stefon Diggs was traded ahead of the 2024 season in part because his contributions weren't as crucial to the team's success amid a shift in the offense's overall philosophy.

"Tremendous player," the team source told Fowler. "But the offense didn't need him anymore."

Fowler's report comes ahead of the Week 5 matchup between the Bills and Houston Texans, which will make Diggs' first time facing his former team since he was traded in April.

The deal came just months after Diggs completed the 2024 season as Buffalo's receiving leader with 107 catches for 1,183 yards and eight touchdowns.

A source told Fowler the team's attitude toward Diggs changed around the time head coach Sean McDermott fired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and promoted quarterbacks coach Joe Brady following the Bills' 5-5 start to the 2023 season.

Stefon Diggs has gone NINE weeks without 100 receiving yards in a game 😳

He started the season with 100 receiving yards in five of his first six games. pic.twitter.com/zoIvXr9iLP

— ESPN (@espn) December 24, 2023

Brady leaned more and more on the Bills' run game in succeeding games, and his reliance on the team's running backs led to Buffalo recording a season-high 266 rushing yards in a Week 15 win over the Dallas Cowboys.

According to Fowler, one source "who was on the scene that night" said the win over the Cowboys changed his perception of Diggs' role on the team.

"Team sources say the run-oriented attack wasn't about Diggs, but more about maximizing the overall personnel, involving several pass-catching options and setting more of a physical tone," Fowler wrote. "But it signified a page-turn in philosophy and preference."

According to the source, per Fowler: "For a while it was, 'No way we can play without this dude.' But I thought to myself, 'Oh, maybe we can do this without him.'"

Diggs addressed his offseason departure from the Bills in a recent interview with GQ's Clay Skipper, in which he said the 2023 season was "the worst mental space I've been in since I've been in the league."

The wideout told Skipper his role had changed in the last ten games after Brady had taken over as OC.

"Of course there's plenty of plays I want back. But there's a lot of plays that didn't go my way. I need a lot of things to go right to get the ball…. You tell me about the last 10. What changed? Were there changes going on?" Diggs asked Skipper. "I just pay attention to what really happened and not what people try to act like happened.

"Like, for the last 10 games, I forgot how to f--king play football?"

Diggs at times appeared to publicly express that frustration while in Buffalo, where one team source told Fowler that the receiver's attitude had a negative impact on the team.

"You always have to worry about how he feels. That wears on a locker room," the source told Fowler.

The Texans have leaned on Nico Collins as their top receiver through four games. Behind him, Diggs has made 33 catches for 233 yards and two receiving touchdowns through Week 4 in Houston.

The Bills are off to a 3-1 start to the 2024 season. Their lone loss, a Week 4 contest against the Baltimore Ravens, coincided with their lone game recording fewer than 100 rushing yards.

Buffalo will look to revive its run game once more on Sunday as they prepare to reunite with Diggs in Houston.

Despite his apparent frustration over a lesser role within the Buffalo Bills' offense during the second half of last season, wide receiver Stefon Diggs reportedly didn't clash with quarterback Josh Allen behind the scenes.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, team sources said Diggs and Allen "remained cordial" last season even as Buffalo's offense underwent a "philosophical shift" under offensive coordinator Joe Brady.

Through nine games last season, Diggs was on pace for another huge statistical season, as he racked up 70 receptions for 834 yards and seven touchdowns. However, his production dropped off a cliff over the final eight games to the tune of 37 catches for 349 yards and one score.

The biggest reason for the dip in Diggs' production was an offensive coordinator shift, as the Bills fired Ken Dorsey after a 24-22 loss to the Denver Broncos in Week 10, replacing him with Brady.

Per Fowler, the Bills went from running the ball roughly 25 times per game under Dorsey to running it an average of 38.8 times per game in Brady's first four contests as the OC.

The change worked wonders for the Bills, who won six of their final seven regular-season games and came from behind to win their fourth consecutive AFC East title.

Although Diggs was still clearly the Bills' No. 1 receiver under Brady, he went from getting 10.2 targets per game under Dorsey to 8.3 per game under Brady.

All of that led up to the Bills trading Diggs to the Houston Texans during the offseason. In an interview with Clay Skipper of GQ Sports last month, Diggs suggested that he wanted the trade to happen, saying: "Things had to shake because I kind of wanted them to shake."

That resulted in the end of Diggs' four-year tenure in Buffalo, which yielded him four Pro Bowl berths, one First Team All-Pro selection and four seasons with at least 100 receptions, 1,100 yards and eight touchdowns.

Additionally, the Bills won the AFC East every year he was in Buffalo, and Allen blossomed into one of the league's top quarterbacks.

As far as Allen is concerned, there are no hard feelings, as he made his feelings regarding Diggs clear last month, saying, "I love 14, I still do," per ESPN's Alaina Getzenberg.

While there is still plenty of season left to be played, the decision to split seems to have worked out well for both Diggs and the Bills so far.

In Houston, Diggs has 25 receptions for 233 yards and two touchdowns, plus a rushing touchdown through four games, and the Texans are 3-1.

Meanwhile, the Bills are also 3-1, and Allen is having an MVP-caliber season with nine total touchdowns and no interceptions.

On Sunday, Allen and Diggs will face each other for the first time since the trade, as the Bills will travel to Houston to take on the Texans in a battle between two of the AFC's best teams.

As part of an anonymous player poll, Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was chosen as the player most likely to be the next to win their first NFL MVP Award.

Mike Jones of The Athletic conducted the poll in August and September, and Allen came out on top with 17.6 percent of the vote. He beat out Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (15.7 percent), San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey (10.8 percent), Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7.8 percent) and Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (5.9 percent), among others.

Allen is off to a spectacular start to the 2024 season, having led the Bills to a 3-1 record while completing 69.3 percent of his passes for 814 yards, seven touchdowns and no interceptions, and also rushing for 106 yards and two scores.

AIR JOSH ALLEN.

📺: #AZvsBUF on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/GRHHzkeOOt

— NFL (@NFL) September 8, 2024

The 28-year-old Allen entered the NFL in 2018 as a first-round pick, and he has consistently put up elite numbers since the 2020 season.

In fact, Allen entered 2024 as the first player in NFL history with four consecutive campaigns of 40 or more total touchdowns.

Despite his statistical excellence, Allen has often been snubbed from accolades, having been selected to the Pro Bowl only twice. He has also fallen just short in the NFL MVP voting on numerous occasions, finishing second in 2020, third in 2022 and fifth last season.

Given his rocket arm, mobility and the fact that he has led the Bills to four consecutive AFC East titles and five straight playoff appearances, it comes as little surprise that many of his peers believe it is only a matter of time before he is recognized as the class of the NFL.

One player told Jones: "I feel like [Allen's] due for one. I don't know when, but he's going to get one."

Another questioned the results of last year's MVP voting, as Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson was a nearly unanimous choice after completing 67.2 percent of his passes for 3,678 yards, 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions to go along with 821 yards and five scores on the ground.

By comparison, Allen completed 66.5 percent of his passing attempts for 4,306 yards, 29 touchdowns and 18 interceptions, while also rushing for 524 yards and 15 touchdowns.

A player expressed their confusion to Jones over how Jackson beat Allen so decisively in the NFL voting, saying: "Josh should have won it the year [2023] Lamar did. If you look at any stat in that category, put them together, tell me how that worked out. I don't get it."

Allen's numbers were largely better than Jackson's last season with the exception of interceptions, which have been his biggest weakness over the years.

Allen has thrown 14 or more interceptions in each of the past three seasons, and there is little doubt that turnovers have held him back in terms of Pro Bowl and MVP voting.

He seems to be rectifying that issue so far this season, as Allen has yet to throw a single interception through four games. Allen is the only quarterback in the league who has started since Week 1 this season and hasn't thrown a pick.

If Allen can continue to protect the ball while still racking up touchdowns and wins, he has perhaps the best opportunity of his career to take home the MVP hardware.

The NFL suspended Buffalo Bills linebacker Von Miller and Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Mike Hall Jr. four and five games, respectively, for violating its personal conduct policy.

In November, Miller turned himself in to authorities in Texas after he was charged with third-degree felony assault of a pregnant woman. He called the situation "overblown" and "100 percent false" in December.

Hall landed on the commissioner's exempt list in August after he was charged with first-degree misdemeanor domestic violence.

Miller maintained in July that "no charges were ever filed and the case is closed," per the Associated Press' John Wawrow. His agent, Joby Branion, repeated in a statement to Wawrow that the case had been closed.

According to the police affidavit, the woman alleged Miller had put his hands on her neck twice and pulled out some of her hair. She said he had also pushed her, which caused her to fall into a chair.

The NFL declined to place the eight-time Pro Bowler on the commissioner's exempt list as his case was unfolding. He appeared in each of the Bills' first four games, collecting five total tackles and three sacks.

Hall, meanwhile, has been ineligible to suit up for Cleveland, so the second-round pick is yet to make his pro debut.

Hall's fiancée initially alleged she and Hall had gotten into an argument at a home they share on Aug. 12. He allegedly dragged her outside and down their driveway. Later on, after she re-entered the home, she said Hall held a gun to her head.

Lynna Lai of 3News reported on Aug. 21 the woman had recanted the portion of her story about the handgun. Hall subsequently pleaded no contest to a lesser charge of disorderly conduct.

Since he was on the commissioner's exempt list, Hall's suspension is issued retroactively. He's eligible to rejoin the team on Oct. 7 ahead of Cleveland's Week 6 matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles.

Miller's suspension is more straightforward. He won't return to the field until Week 9 when the Bills host the Miami Dolphins.

One defensive coach likened Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen to Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes in comments made to Dianna Russini of The Athletic, noting the freedoms he's afforded at the line of scrimmage as well as his processing abilities:

"A defensive coach preparing to face the Bills provided this perspective on Allen: 'He's doing more at the line of scrimmage, breaking the huddle faster, seeing the game better and getting in and out. Handling the protections. Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes are probably the only other two quarterbacks doing that.'

Allen is enjoying a tremendous start to 2024 and looks like the early frontrunner for the NFL MVP award. He's completed 75 percent of his passes for 634 yards, seven touchdowns and no interceptions. Allen has also rushed for 85 yards and two scores.

He's compiled those numbers despite turnover on the offensive side of the ball, including the losses of wide receivers Stefon Diggs and Gabe Davis as well as center Mitch Morse.

Allen is having this success under the reign of offensive coordinator Joe Brady, who took over for the fired Ken Dorsey in the middle of last season.

The Bills have gone 10-2 since Brady took over, and their 37.3 points per game rank first in the NFL thus far. They've done this despite not having any bonafide superstars in the pass game.

The wealth is shared in Buffalo, with 10 players catching passes last Monday in a 47-10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Only one player, Khalil Shakir, has more than eight catches this season. Shakir has also notably caught all 14 of his targets for 168 yards and two scores.

The Bills have started 3-0 and stand as one of the NFL's five remaining undefeated teams. A close 34-28 win over the Arizona Cardinals started the year before blowout victories against the Miami Dolphins (31-10) and Jaguars then came to light.

Up next is a tough one on the road against the Baltimore Ravens, last year's top NFL regular season team. Kickoff is set for Sunday at 8:20 p.m. ET.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen made it clear there's no ill will toward wide receiver Stefon Diggs after his trade to the Houston Texans.

Allen told reporters that "I love 14" and said others are trying to manufacture a level of tension between he and Diggs.

Josh Allen took exception with how people tried twisting his compliments about current WRs as a dig at his former no. 1.

“I love 14. I still do. But everyone wants to keep making this thing a thing. We’re so focused on what’s going on inside our building.” pic.twitter.com/Qqjc4SdOf2

— Matt Parrino (@MattParrino) September 25, 2024

The remarks come after the veteran signal-caller spoke positively about what has been a balanced passing attack in Buffalo and that "it's a fun and wonderful thing when you got a bunch of guys that don't care about the stats." Some read that as a veiled shot at Diggs.

It's not hard to see, how absent further clarification, some would have thought Allen was alluding to the four-time Pro Bowler.

In June 2023, the Boston Globe's Ben Volin reported Diggs was frustrated "with his role in the offense and his voice in play-calling." The decorated pass-catcher emphasized a month later that his focus was purely on team success.

By December, however, he acknowledged he was discouraged with his production, citing how much attention he was regularly getting from opposing defenses.

"I'm going to be honest, it's frustrating," Diggs told reporters. "A lot of things have to go right for me to get the ball."

Allen came to his defense at multiple points last year to tamp down any criticism directed at his No. 1 target. Both players said positive things about each other after Buffalo shipped Diggs to Houston too.

Allen said he'll "always love that guy like a brother," while Diggs said his former QB "was and still is my guy" and "really embraced me."

There's no question the Bills have a more egalitarian aerial approach so far. Through three games, 10 players have caught at least two passes, only two fewer than across the entirety of 2023. The gap between leading receiver Khalil Shakir (14 receptions) and the next closest players (James Cook and Dalton Kincaid, eight receptions) is also on pace to be much lower than last year as well.

But any success Allen has in 2024 doesn't have to automatically be a reflection of how his run with Diggs ended.

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin was all smiles after recording his first career interception in a 47-10 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday night.

"It's special, man," Hamlin told ESPN's Laura Rutledge after the game about the emotion of the play and seeing all of his teammates celebrating him on the sidelines.

Hamlin's pick occurred late in the second quarter when Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence overthrew Brian Thomas Jr.

DAMAR HAMLIN PICKS OFF LAWRENCE.

📺: #JAXvsBUF on ESPN
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/cSxknIWzDB

— NFL (@NFL) September 24, 2024

This was Hamlin's second appearance in a Monday night game since suffering cardiac arrest against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 17 of the 2022 season. He played 26 total snaps against the Denver Broncos in Week 10 last season.

After the Bills released Jordan Poyer and elected not to re-sign Micah Hyde as a free agent during the offseason, Hamlin earned one of the starting safety jobs coming out of the preseason.

The 26-year-old Hamlin had been a starter for most of the 2022 campaign. He has started each of the Buffalo's three games so far this season. His 10 combined tackles in the Week 2 win over the Miami Dolphins were tied for most on the team.

Hamlin has already tied his career-high with two pass breakups through three games. The Pittsburgh alum has been on the field for all but six defensive snaps so far this season. He's also played eight snaps on special teams for head coach Sean McDermott.

The interception for Hamlin was icing on the cake in another dominant win for the Bills.

Since falling behind 17-3 to the Arizona Cardinals in the second quarter of Week 1, the Bills have outscored their opponents by a combined score of 109-31. They scored touchdowns on each of their first five possessions against the Jaguars.

The Bills are one of five remaining undefeated teams in the NFL going into Week 4. They are 3-0 for the first time since 2020 when they advanced to the AFC Championship Game.