Speaker 1: But we're live right now. Hey, we're live. Everybody got
Speaker 1: me not Let's go bury. Everybody do their job, what
Speaker 1: to love it well, caliber defense, Let's go no overthinking, right,
Speaker 1: Go play some ball, Go play some football. It's an
Speaker 1: exciting time to be a Buffalo Bill and a fan
Speaker 1: of the Buffalo Bills. Hello, everybody, Welcome to the Sean
Speaker 1: McDermott Show, brought to you by ECMC and Clyde to Health,
Speaker 1: the official healthcare providers of the Buffalo Bills. Or please
Speaker 1: to join again. Sean McDermott, coach. It's playoff week when
Speaker 1: it's been a long climb. It's been a long, slow,
Speaker 1: steady rise to this point of the season. But man,
Speaker 1: oh man, you gotta feel good about where you're sitting
Speaker 1: this last game, meaningless game against the Jets. How did
Speaker 1: you strike the balance between maybe taking your foot off
Speaker 1: the gas but still staying sharp. Well, it's important for us, Steve,
Speaker 1: that we stayed sharp, and we had work to do
Speaker 1: to come out of the Pagets game and certainly continued
Speaker 1: to grow, improve fundamentally, improve execution wise, and so just
Speaker 1: in those two areas we spent the week really trying
Speaker 1: to do that improve as an overall football team and
Speaker 1: hoping that that would have carried through the Jets game.
Speaker 1: In some ways it didn't. In some ways it didn't,
Speaker 1: and we have to continue to grow. You know, you
Speaker 1: had a great moment in the early part of that game,
Speaker 1: is Zoe Alexander. You surprise Lorenzo Alexander with his daughter
Speaker 1: singing the national anthem. Everybody appreciated that in the stadium.
Speaker 1: I think obviously the players on the sidelines appreciate that
Speaker 1: as well. Yeah, a moment last year with Kyle when
Speaker 1: you got to touch it with a cash but this
Speaker 1: with Lorenzo a little different. It was a family thing.
Speaker 1: His whole fan was down there for the anthem. It
Speaker 1: surprised him, and then you completely wasted a time out.
Speaker 1: I mean that says something about the quality of guy
Speaker 1: Lorenzo has been for you. Yeah, I mean it really does.
Speaker 1: You know. I said to the team in the locker
Speaker 1: room after the game, I said, I don't think there's
Speaker 1: a guy that has exemplified what it means to be
Speaker 1: a Buffalo Bill on and off the field this year
Speaker 1: or in year's pass more than more than Lorenzo Alexander.
Speaker 1: Just the way he handled the whole situation and didn't
Speaker 1: want it to be about him. He wanted to keep
Speaker 1: it on his family. And so that was a good moment. Really,
Speaker 1: I got some right in my eyes after that national anthem,
Speaker 1: and so it was special. Absolutely. Yeah. So your team
Speaker 1: finishes up ten at six, first time since nineteen, first
Speaker 1: time in twenty years. What's that say about the direction
Speaker 1: this franchise is in. Certainly the finances are in, or
Speaker 1: the cap is in, or you've got some foundational players
Speaker 1: that are improving in your squad. I don't know if
Speaker 1: you've even spoken to Kim and Terry about this franchise
Speaker 1: being here at this point looking up, and it's hard
Speaker 1: to imagine that it would have gone anymore according to
Speaker 1: plan than it is right now. Well, we've been fortunate
Speaker 1: to have Terrying Kim from a leadership standpoint and commit
Speaker 1: to what we're trying to do, and they're all in
Speaker 1: on trying to win and bring a championship to this
Speaker 1: city and the fan base. And I think that the
Speaker 1: thing that's a little bit unique as we were heading
Speaker 1: into the game this past weekend was, you know, you
Speaker 1: want to be able to wrest some guys and take
Speaker 1: a look at some young players. We're wresting some young
Speaker 1: players because those are the guys that are playing for us,
Speaker 1: and instead of them being out, they're playing in the
Speaker 1: Jets game. So that boats well for the future of
Speaker 1: the organization. I think. I think we've built a pretty
Speaker 1: good foundation, absolutely, and this one of the big steps
Speaker 1: this last offseason. Throughout this regular season, you turned over
Speaker 1: nine starters on your offense, so you knew you were
Speaker 1: going to have some jelling to take place. You had
Speaker 1: to wait for those guys to kind of get up
Speaker 1: to speed with each other. But man, oh man, this
Speaker 1: offense has grown and grown and grown. Josh has grown
Speaker 1: the offense and grown the guys you brought in Cole Beasley,
Speaker 1: John Brown, the entire almost the entire offensive line. Where
Speaker 1: do you see that group on that side of the
Speaker 1: ball moving forward, Well, it's to build on the foundation
Speaker 1: that they've built through the year. Here at this point, Steve,
Speaker 1: and we've found a way to win. Sometimes it's been pretty,
Speaker 1: sometimes it hasn't been pretty. But overall as a football team,
Speaker 1: I think that's the biggest thing I could say about
Speaker 1: our football team is these guys are resilient and they
Speaker 1: find ways to get it done. Yeah, Well, the poster
Speaker 1: boy for your improvements, Josh. When you look at his statistics,
Speaker 1: every conceivable quarterback statistic there is, he's improved himself. Talk
Speaker 1: about his work ethic, his mindset, his commitment. I mean,
Speaker 1: what has it taken and what have you seen from
Speaker 1: him him that you know kind of makes you want
Speaker 1: to jump on board with Josh and know that he's
Speaker 1: the guy going forward. Well, I don't think I don't
Speaker 1: think there's a guy in our building that doubts that
Speaker 1: he's the guy for us moving forward. And he works
Speaker 1: extremely hard. The habits that he's built at an early
Speaker 1: part of his career is what really helped him improve
Speaker 1: this year with a lot of runaway in front of
Speaker 1: a ship. But I don't think there's a player on
Speaker 1: our team that doesn't want Josh under center and critical
Speaker 1: moments of the game in particular, and what he's done
Speaker 1: to will us and himself to victory had different parts
Speaker 1: of games has been very impressive. Well, there's an old
Speaker 1: adage in the NFL and all around football, the defense
Speaker 1: wins championships. If that's the case, you gotta feel pretty
Speaker 1: good about your ability to make a deep run into
Speaker 1: these playoffs. Yeah, no, we've got a good defense. You know,
Speaker 1: We've had some moments like everyone does, but we've made adjustments.
Speaker 1: I think Leslie Fraser and his staff have done a
Speaker 1: really good job. And the players, man, they just buy
Speaker 1: into everything that we're trying to do. And they come
Speaker 1: in hungry every week for the game plan and they
Speaker 1: and they help evolve into about the game plan. So look,
Speaker 1: at the end of the day, they're the ones that
Speaker 1: are out there. And I think the leadership that you've
Speaker 1: seen Tremaine Edmund's developed this year in that way in
Speaker 1: the operation and then up front, you know, we've been
Speaker 1: playing well and it's been a little bit by committee
Speaker 1: and the and the guys embraced that and so and
Speaker 1: then the back end not giving up big plays has
Speaker 1: been the hallmark of our defense. And so we've got
Speaker 1: to continue to do that if we want to play
Speaker 1: well in the playoffs. Here. It's good stuff, an exciting week,
Speaker 1: and we're looking forward to this game in Houston. We'll
Speaker 1: be back with your final thoughts and some more things
Speaker 1: about this Houston matchup later in the show. Shopping Wood
Speaker 1: is presented by Saint Bonaventure University, the official education provider
Speaker 1: of the Buffalo Bills. Hello everybody, welcome back to the
Speaker 1: Sean McDermott Show. Well, it's time to start Wildcard weekend
Speaker 1: and it's going to be a big matchup as the
Speaker 1: Bills go down to Houston for bonus football in January.
Speaker 1: To celebrate it, let's bring our good friend back, Eric
Speaker 1: Wood to chop some wood in the film room. These
Speaker 1: playoff games always have marquee matchups, Eric, and this one
Speaker 1: is no different. This weekend, We're gonna see Tredavious White,
Speaker 1: one of the top flight cornerbacks in all of football,
Speaker 1: going against one of the best wide receivers in all
Speaker 1: of football in DeAndre Hopkins. This headline matchup is going
Speaker 1: to be a lot of fun. It will be and
Speaker 1: i'd imagine we'll see Turdavious White trail Hopkins round the
Speaker 1: field and it'll be a fun matchup to follow throughout
Speaker 1: the game. Like you mentioned, one of the top receivers
Speaker 1: in the NFL and Turdavious White this year heading to
Speaker 1: his first plural poll. Really excited about this matchup. Yeah,
Speaker 1: on these two teams, really it is a strength against strength.
Speaker 1: I mean the playmakers for Houston's offense against that really
Speaker 1: stellar Bill's defense. Let's start like talking about Tredavious White,
Speaker 1: a guy who's really been good all three years of
Speaker 1: his career in Buffalo, but he's gotten better every year
Speaker 1: and this year's no exception. Let's go back and look
Speaker 1: at the Sunday night football matchup in Pittsburgh. What do
Speaker 1: you see on this play as Tredavius really just dropped
Speaker 1: back and reads Duck's eyes and makes the play. Yeah,
Speaker 1: this is a phenomenal break on the football about your
Speaker 1: Davis White understanding the rolete concept. I would have loved
Speaker 1: to seen him a touchdown here. Just a phenomenal play
Speaker 1: about your Davious White. And you see it from the
Speaker 1: end zone angle he comes down. How much confidence does
Speaker 1: it take for a guy to break on a route
Speaker 1: like this with so much confidence. Certainly not a great
Speaker 1: throw by Duck Hodges, but man Tardavious is all over it. Yeah,
Speaker 1: and you said it perfectly. He's so confident right now
Speaker 1: and he understands so well in year three with the
Speaker 1: Buffalo Bills, what is coming at him, what they're trying
Speaker 1: to do against them, and he's making teams just pay
Speaker 1: over and over four. One of the things that's fun
Speaker 1: to watch. Is that how he's become a leader on
Speaker 1: the team, and leaders come through in big moments. You
Speaker 1: look back to the Week seven matchup with the Miami Dolphins.
Speaker 1: He breaks once again on a badly thrown ball from
Speaker 1: Fits and comes up with an interception that really does
Speaker 1: a couple of things. One, it obviously gives Buffalo the football,
Speaker 1: but it also takes away an incredible scoring opportunity for
Speaker 1: the Yeah. If you remember back to this game, at
Speaker 1: this time, the Bills desperately needed to play that Altins.
Speaker 1: We're gonna go up two scores and this is at
Speaker 1: the time a winless Miami team. This is a game
Speaker 1: that you could not drop at home, and in your
Speaker 1: biggest moment of the game, maybe your best player on
Speaker 1: the entire team makes an incredible play and this really
Speaker 1: led to the Bills come back victory against at Altins. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's interesting too. White has been a guy who has
Speaker 1: he has not given up a touchdown all year. He's
Speaker 1: had five hundred and ninety nine snaps in coverage not
Speaker 1: giving up a touchdown. But he's going against a guy
Speaker 1: in DeAndre Hopkins in Houston this weekend who has a
Speaker 1: ninety nine rating on Madden Football. I mean, he's a
Speaker 1: force on the football field. Certainly, Turnavis may trail him
Speaker 1: a lot, but they'll try a number of different things
Speaker 1: to take DeAndre off the field, right, Yeah, I think so.
Speaker 1: And I think anytime they're in mand de man coverage,
Speaker 1: they're going to make sure that Turdevias White is on him.
Speaker 1: I would imagine you have to mix up the coverage
Speaker 1: because DeAndre Hopkins is the perfect combination size, speed, great hands,
Speaker 1: great running ability. And for the Bills to come out
Speaker 1: of Houston with a victory, they're likely going to need
Speaker 1: to keep DeAndre Hopkins at bay. All right, Eric, one
Speaker 1: last thing. I mean, you've seen these this teams play,
Speaker 1: this Buffalo Bills team. They're going down to the playoffs
Speaker 1: on the road. What are your thoughts about what it's
Speaker 1: going to take for them to walk out of there
Speaker 1: with a victory When you know that this matchup that
Speaker 1: we've been talking about is going to be so crucial. Ultimately,
Speaker 1: you got to make plays. You're gonna you're gonna have
Speaker 1: to put up some points. And this is a defense
Speaker 1: in Houston that's ranked twenty seventh in the NFL. This
Speaker 1: opportunity for the Bills to go in there and put
Speaker 1: up some points and move the football. NRG Stadium will
Speaker 1: be extremely loud, so I would imagine it'll be a
Speaker 1: hostile environment that the Buffalo Bills are walking into this. Well, Eric,
Speaker 1: I know you're looking forward to wild Card weekend, as
Speaker 1: are the rest of us. Have a great broadcast, and
Speaker 1: good luck and go Bills. All right, thanks Steve. Game
Speaker 1: preview it's ended by independent health from your every day
Speaker 1: you're unexpected. That's the Red Share treatment. Mattie glab here
Speaker 1: this week's game preview. The Buffalo Bills are on the
Speaker 1: road to start their playoff run, heading to Houston for
Speaker 1: the four to five wildcard matchup with the Texans. Houston's
Speaker 1: offense is led by a very accurate quarterback, into Shaun Watson,
Speaker 1: who has plenty of weapons. Watson is sixth in the NFL,
Speaker 1: completing sixty seven point three percent of his passes and
Speaker 1: has thirty two total touchdowns to his twelve interceptions. The
Speaker 1: Texans defense sits near the bottom of the league at
Speaker 1: twenty eight. Over the last six games, they have dropped
Speaker 1: to the last in the league, allowing four hundred and
Speaker 1: eleven point five yards a game, including two hundred and
Speaker 1: sixty seven point three passing yards a game, which is
Speaker 1: twenty nine. Buffalo's offense has cleaned up their turnovers since
Speaker 1: the beginning of the season, and our type for tenth
Speaker 1: with a plus four turnover ratio. The Bills have less
Speaker 1: turnovers due to Josh Allen's ability to protect the football.
Speaker 1: Allen has twenty nine total touchdowns and only nine interceptions
Speaker 1: this season. It's no lie Buffalo's defense travels. They have
Speaker 1: allowed more than twenty five points in a game just
Speaker 1: once this season, which is the fewest in the NFL.
Speaker 1: They have allowed only fifteen passing touchdowns to this season,
Speaker 1: which is the second fewest in the league. The Bill's
Speaker 1: defense is the only team this season to keep an
Speaker 1: imposing team out of the end zone on a deep pass.
Speaker 1: The last time Buffalo be Houston was in twenty fifteen.
Speaker 1: The final score was thirty to twenty one in Orchard Park.
Speaker 1: Steve back to you. That's great stuff, Mannie. Thanks and Sean,
Speaker 1: We're back for thirty on Saturday afternoon. You're the opening
Speaker 1: game of the two nineteen NFL playoffs down in Houston.
Speaker 1: As always as you would expect in a playoff game,
Speaker 1: Elite players on both sides of the ball, and starting
Speaker 1: with Tradevious White and DeAndre Hopkins for the Houston Texans.
Speaker 1: Both these teams ten at six, some fun matchups and
Speaker 1: a really good football game on the horizon. Yeah, I
Speaker 1: believe so. I mean it's two good football teams, two
Speaker 1: teams with some premier players in the league. Some of
Speaker 1: our premier players maybe a little bit younger than some
Speaker 1: of theirs, but just overall, I mean, just good matchups.
Speaker 1: Tredavious DeAndre Hopkins. You look at the two quarterbacks, i'llbit
Speaker 1: there not playing against each other. You just look at
Speaker 1: the line of scrimmages on both sides of the ball.
Speaker 1: You know, it's important that we can go down there
Speaker 1: whether the storm and be prepared to play discipline football.
Speaker 1: How does your message change to your team? I mean,
Speaker 1: you've been pretty consistent throughout the year, and yet there's
Speaker 1: no denying this is you know, this is what you've
Speaker 1: played for, the kind of moments that you want to
Speaker 1: get into. What do you tell your team? And I
Speaker 1: guess the message may not change, but certainly you're the
Speaker 1: way you give it or something that it's a pretty
Speaker 1: special week. Yeah, I don't think motivation will be it
Speaker 1: will be an issue. If it is, you know, we'll
Speaker 1: address that. But overall, it's it is, it's it's being consistent.
Speaker 1: I think as a player, you look for your coach
Speaker 1: and you say, hey, is he in tune to how
Speaker 1: we should win this game? A? And then be is
Speaker 1: he being consistent right now and setting clear expectations for
Speaker 1: how we're going to get it done and what it's
Speaker 1: going to take. And and that's what I try to
Speaker 1: prepare our team for every week. And that'll be the
Speaker 1: same this week, and just make it real clear to
Speaker 1: them so they can go down there and be them
Speaker 1: and we can be the Buffalo Bills and the way
Speaker 1: we've played all season. Sean, thanks a lot for that. Everybody,
Speaker 1: enjoy the game this weekend. Thanks for watching. We'll see
Speaker 1: you next time. The Sean McDermott Show is sponsored by
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