"Now the pressure is on Josh Allen to produce" - NFL analyst suggests Buffalo Bills will rely heavily on star QB next season
Last season, the Buffalo Bills were regarded as true contenders in the AFC, and they played like that until the very end. Their season fell short when they faced the Kansas City Chiefs in the divisional round of the playoffs. In an overtime thriller that's widely considered one of the best games played in NFL history, the Bills lost to the Chiefs 42-36, when KC got the ball first in overtime.
#Chiefs defeat #Bills 42-36 in OT on 8-yd TD pass from Patrick Mahomes to Travis Kelce; 8th time in 38 #NFLPlayoffs OTs that winning score was on a pass, first since the last #NFL playoff OT: 1/5/20, Min 26-20 at NO on 4-yd pass from Kirk Cousins to Kyle Rudolph (more)
In 2020, the Bills faced the Chiefs in the AFC Championship game and lost to them 38-24. While the Bills have had one of the best overall rosters for the last few seasons, they haven't been able to get over the hump and make it to the Super Bowl.
Former NFL defensive lineman Chris Canty talked about the expectations the Bills have and how all the pressure falls on Josh Allen.
Canty said:
"If you have a prolific offense like the Bills do, you're probably going to be playing with a lead a lot of the time, so guess what? You're going to need to pass for us to close out games, so I think the Buffalo Bills have all the makings of a championship contender. Now the pressure is on Josh Allen to produce and we can't minimize the loss of offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. Well, I think that's one of those things that could potentially loom large."
Canty added that since they lost offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, Allen will have more pressure working with a new coordinator in Ken Dorsey.
Canty added:
"Ken Dorsey is stepping into that role. So he's familiar with the things that Josh Allen does at a high level but we're still talking about some change in terms of the sequencing of play calling and the development of game plans. So that is a little bit of new learning for Josh Allen. So again, the pressure got to be all on Josh."
Buffalo Bills recently extended Stefon Diggs' contract and have been busy this off-season
The Bills have had a busy off-season. Yesterday, they made wide receiver Stefon Diggs the third-highest paid receiver in the league, with a new four-year deal worth $104 million with $70 million guaranteed.
Another mega deal: Bills reached agreement with WR Stefon Diggs on a 4-year, $104 million extension that includes $70 million guaranteed, sources tell ESPN. Deal ties Diggs to Buffalo for six more years, at $124.1M, with the intent from both sides to have him retire in Buffalo. https://t.co/ptSQ3eE54D
While keeping one of their key players in Diggs was very important, their biggest splash in free agency came when they signed edge rusher Von Miller. The Bills signed Miller to a monster six-year $120 million deal. Buffalo also re-signed WR Isaiah McKenzie, OJ Howard, Jamison Crowder, Duke Johnson, Roger Saffold, and Shaq Lawson.
The Bills have surrounded Allen with a bunch of talent this off-season, and they're looking to make another Super Bowl run.