The Buffalo Bills offense was lackluster all season and it showed in the playoffs. Now it’s imperative to move on from Offensive Coordinator Rick Dennison.
The Buffalo Bills Cinderella season came to a crashing end on Sunday in the Wild Card Round of the 2018 NFL Playoffs as they fell to the Jacksonville Jaguars, 10-3. The Bills played the Jaguars tough, and ultimately lost on a game clinching interception by Jalen Ramsey. Rookie quarterback Nathan Peterman threw the pick after he was forced into the game on the last drive when Tyrod Taylor was forced out with a concussion.
Buffalo’s offense struggled to move the ball all game. The Bills offense only totaled 266 yards and was shut out in the second half. Taylor was under duress all game and struggled to hit open receivers. LeSean McCoy and the Bills running game had some success early on, but struggled to gain any momentum in the second half.
When the Bills began the season in 2017, no one expected the offense to be anything special. However, no one expected them to be this bad. The Bills offense finished 29th in the NFL in total yards per game, only behind the Colts, Bears and Bengals. The passing offense was abysmal all season, ranking 31st. Some of the blame has to go on Taylor, as he was mediocre all season and failed to carry this team. Despite Taylor’s struggles though, offensive coordinator Rick Dennison deserves the majority of the blame.
Dennison was hired in the 2017 offseason after being with the Denver Broncos for the previous year. He won the Super Bowl with the Broncos in 2016, but was replaced by Mike McCoy after head coach Gary Kubiak resigned. Dennison was brought in to get the best out of Tyrod Taylor and this offense. In that task, however, he did not succeed.
The Bills offense did not have the best personnel group in the NFL, and that is no secret. After McCoy and wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin, there aren’t any true playmakers on offense. Dennison also failed to utilize the few playmakers on the roster though, especially towards the end of the season.
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McCoy finished the playoff loss with only 25 total touches, 19 of those being runs. In a game where they were never down by more than one score, that is unacceptable. An offensive coordinator must get creative and find a way to get the ball in the hands of his best players.
The Bills offensive scheme was not successful all year. The Bills only scored more than 23 points once in their last seven games, and the blame for that staggering statistic has to go on Dennison. A shakeup on the offensive side of the ball is much needed, and has to start with the offensive coordinator.