Speaker 1: We're live right now. Hey, we're live. Everybody got me
Speaker 1: not Let's go, baby, Everybody do their job. One love well,
Speaker 1: Calvert deflets, Let's go, no overthinking, right, go play some ball.
Speaker 1: We'll play some football. It's an exciting time to be
Speaker 1: a Buffalo Bill and of the sand of the Buffalo Bills.
Speaker 1: Welcome everybody to Week fifteen of the Sean McDermott Show,
Speaker 1: presented by Connors and Ferris, your workers comp attorneys. Sean,
Speaker 1: thanks as always for joining us. You're coming off a
Speaker 1: huge win over the Steelers, who are one of the
Speaker 1: top two teams in the National Football League by way
Speaker 1: of their record, and a lot of critics are calling
Speaker 1: this a statement win. But what did you learn about
Speaker 1: your football team? Well, you know, I'm not sure what
Speaker 1: a statement win is, honestly, Steve. I think that term
Speaker 1: has been being thrown out there about our games this
Speaker 1: past season, and that's fair, I know. I think the
Speaker 1: bigger thing is it's number ten. It was number ten
Speaker 1: and now we're focused on number eleven. Give their players
Speaker 1: and coaches and staff for a tremendous amount of credit
Speaker 1: for the plan that was put in place and executed
Speaker 1: at a high level. Oh, the offense got off to
Speaker 1: a really slow start against Pittsburgh and then tarn Johnson
Speaker 1: snagged to pick six right before halftime. What did that
Speaker 1: interception do to energize your team knowing that they were
Speaker 1: going to get the football right after the half? Yeah,
Speaker 1: I thought it was a pivotal moment in the game.
Speaker 1: You know, great called by Leslie Fraser, well executed by
Speaker 1: the entire defense, and you know those players don't happen
Speaker 1: by themselves. A lot of times the rush has to
Speaker 1: compliment the coverage and vice versa. And I thought that's
Speaker 1: what happened really on both of our takeaways. You know,
Speaker 1: well right after the halftime, you got Steph Diggs involved,
Speaker 1: and really that ignited your entire offense. Diggs had six
Speaker 1: catches for eighty three yards and a touchdown in the
Speaker 1: third quarter. What adjustments did you make at halftime to
Speaker 1: get him and your offense going in the third quarter.
Speaker 1: Just great community, location and collaboration overall, Steve at halftime
Speaker 1: with the offensive staff players, and it just different. Came
Speaker 1: out with the different attitude. You know, Josh was able
Speaker 1: to get into a rhythm that our offensive line did
Speaker 1: a better job in the second half, right from the start,
Speaker 1: establishing the line of scrimmage, which is what you need
Speaker 1: to do to play winning football. Well, Steph Diggs can't
Speaker 1: get going if Josh Allen doesn't get going. Josh was
Speaker 1: ten of ten for one hundred and sixteen yards and
Speaker 1: two touchdowns in the third quarter alone, and after he
Speaker 1: found Diggs for the touchdown, then he came back and
Speaker 1: found Gabe Davis for a touchdown on the next drive.
Speaker 1: How did josh is bounce back from the first half
Speaker 1: and turn things around, arguably against the top defense in
Speaker 1: the National Football League? How did that happen? I think
Speaker 1: that's really the cool part about the way we played
Speaker 1: in the second half is that things, Yeah, things didn't
Speaker 1: go our way. We were a little bit more challenged
Speaker 1: and we wanted to be or not in a rhythm
Speaker 1: offensive in the first half. But when you can make
Speaker 1: those adjustments, when you can play yourself through it, I
Speaker 1: think that says a lot about our group. And the
Speaker 1: communication obviously was there, and you don't want to hold
Speaker 1: those adjustments and you don't want to turn on the
Speaker 1: film on Monday morning and say, oh, man, I wish
Speaker 1: I would have seen that. We saw what was going on.
Speaker 1: We adjusted in the players executed, and another player, Levi Wallace,
Speaker 1: had one of the biggest plays of the game and
Speaker 1: somewhat sealed the victory for you with his interception in
Speaker 1: the fourth quarter. He made a great play on a
Speaker 1: deep ball and one on one coverage against James Washington,
Speaker 1: who had beaten him earlier in the game for a touchdown.
Speaker 1: What can you say about the way Levi stepped up
Speaker 1: big for you in the fourth quarter. Well, I think
Speaker 1: it goes back to his week of practice, Steve. He
Speaker 1: really had a great week of practice and I was
Speaker 1: focused on really growing throughout the week and love that
Speaker 1: attitude in that mindset that he embraces. And he went
Speaker 1: out executed his technique and played at a very high level.
Speaker 1: And he was certainly being tested, as was Josh Norman.
Speaker 1: But I thought that two of them combined did a
Speaker 1: really good job. Levi making that big play at the
Speaker 1: end for us. After the Levi Wallace interception, your offense
Speaker 1: went to work and he didn't let Pittsburgh touch the
Speaker 1: ball for the final seven men and eleven seconds. You
Speaker 1: threw the ball, you ran the ball. It really couldn't
Speaker 1: be stopped. How did it feel to see your offense
Speaker 1: put together a game closing drive of that magnitude. Well,
Speaker 1: it was fun to watch, it really was. That's why
Speaker 1: we practiced the way we do and sometimes people wonder why, Well,
Speaker 1: that's why. That's why we go on pads and work
Speaker 1: against each other ones versus ones and do our run
Speaker 1: drill like we do or like we've been able to
Speaker 1: do most of the year, and that's got to continue
Speaker 1: down the stretcher for us. Well, coach, your defense held
Speaker 1: the Steelers in check on third down. They were just
Speaker 1: one of ten in the game. It's pretty incredible. What
Speaker 1: was your key to slowing the Steelers down on third down?
Speaker 1: How did you plan to carry that into your upcoming
Speaker 1: game plans? I just think overall, our players took a
Speaker 1: good game plan sculpted by our defensive staff Leslie Frazier,
Speaker 1: and they added their signature to it. You know, they
Speaker 1: played physical, they played fast, they complimented one another, as
Speaker 1: I mentioned before. And to get a Hall of Fame
Speaker 1: quarterback to go one for ten basically on third downs,
Speaker 1: it's tough, but give our guys a lot of credit. Man.
Speaker 1: They came out and they understood what we had to
Speaker 1: do to win the game and they execute. Now, your
Speaker 1: offensive line did a great job handling the pass rush
Speaker 1: of the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are arguably the best team
Speaker 1: getting after the quarterback. You only allowed one sack and
Speaker 1: Daryl Williams neutralized t J. Watt. What did your coaching
Speaker 1: staff do to prepare for a team like the Steelers
Speaker 1: and their pass rush and what adjustments did you have
Speaker 1: to make to slow them down? Well, Number one, it
Speaker 1: starts with us. I thought, our offensive staff always starts
Speaker 1: with a good plan of Hey, you know what do
Speaker 1: we do best and let's start with that. And then
Speaker 1: you know who do they have that can that can
Speaker 1: ruin the game plan? And certainly t J. Watt and
Speaker 1: Hayward and their group on that defense, very talented defense
Speaker 1: to ruined game plans that are hurrying, and that's where
Speaker 1: the adjustments come in. It's it's one thing to have
Speaker 1: a plan, and it's another thing to be able to
Speaker 1: adjust to the course of the game. Thanks coach, We'll
Speaker 1: catch up with you later in the show and get
Speaker 1: your final thoughts on your upcoming match with the Denver Broncos.
Speaker 1: Shopping Wood is presented by Saint Bonaventure University, the official
Speaker 1: education provider of the Buffalo Bills. Welcome back to the
Speaker 1: Sean McDermott Show. In his time now to break down
Speaker 1: the film in another edition of Chopping Wood with our
Speaker 1: good friend Eric Wood. Eight. The Bills got off to
Speaker 1: a slow start offensively, but the defense got them their
Speaker 1: first touchdown and then the offense got rolling in the
Speaker 1: second half. What were the biggest difference makers for the
Speaker 1: Bills against the Steelers. Well, I'll say early on in
Speaker 1: the game, when you're facing the best defense in the NFL,
Speaker 1: the offense is going to need a little time to
Speaker 1: get some traction. Well, the defense provided a bunch of
Speaker 1: stops in the first half, and they also provided a touchdown,
Speaker 1: which you know, half that you only score three points
Speaker 1: as an offense, it's great to go into the half
Speaker 1: of the league. Yeah, Well, let's start with this pick
Speaker 1: six by Taron Johnson before or a half. Taron Johnson
Speaker 1: does a great job here. It keeps his eyes on
Speaker 1: Ben the whole way. A bunch set, which is what
Speaker 1: the Steelers had to start this play. It's a tough
Speaker 1: formation for defensive backs to always diagnose. There's a lot
Speaker 1: of moving parts in front of him. He does a
Speaker 1: great job of jumping the route, catching the football which
Speaker 1: both sets of receivers earlier in the game had trouble doing,
Speaker 1: and then he takes it to the house. Later on,
Speaker 1: we got a glimpse of Stefan Diggs in this first half.
Speaker 1: He's caught a slant on a third and three, then
Speaker 1: he bounced off a big hit from Minca Fitzpatrick for
Speaker 1: a twenty three yard game. The Bills desperately needed a
Speaker 1: first down at this point of the game. They're already
Speaker 1: down seven. They couldn't give the Steelers defense the ball
Speaker 1: right back, and Stefan Diggs is the guy you got
Speaker 1: to go to in the situation. You know, he's got
Speaker 1: two guys in that area. He bounces off Minca Fitzpatrick
Speaker 1: gets another twenty plus yards on the ground himself, and
Speaker 1: throughout the night, Stefen Diggs was too much for the
Speaker 1: Steelers to handle. The Bills got it together over halftime
Speaker 1: and they came out firing in the third quarter. Josh
Speaker 1: connected with Diggs four times on the first drive after half,
Speaker 1: and the fourth one went for this nineteen yard touchdown.
Speaker 1: Twice on this drive, Stefan dis made cornerbacks fall in
Speaker 1: the moisture in Orchard Park might have lent some of
Speaker 1: that to it, but he was also running incredible routes.
Speaker 1: Once the dB falls here, Stefan Diggs sees the opening
Speaker 1: of the defense, splits the safeties and does a great
Speaker 1: job of capping off this drive for a touchdown. Yeah.
Speaker 1: So the defense forces a three and out and then
Speaker 1: Josh and Days go right back to work on the
Speaker 1: next drive. This one goes for twenty two yards on
Speaker 1: a first and ten. Yeah. The Steelers were out there
Speaker 1: three linebackers heading into this game, so the middle of
Speaker 1: the field is an area they wanted to attack. But
Speaker 1: in order to attack that area with your receivers, you
Speaker 1: got to have protection. The protection wasn't always there in
Speaker 1: the first half. Well, here it was. They run a
Speaker 1: play action and as Moss sat in front of the linebacker,
Speaker 1: that created a huge opening for Diggs right behind him. Yeah.
Speaker 1: And then on the very next play, Josh came back
Speaker 1: to Diggs again and this one went for nineteen yards
Speaker 1: as well. Yeah, this route concept, this is extremely tough
Speaker 1: for a defensive back, and this is basically Josh and Digg.
Speaker 1: It's just understanding and having trust that Diggs is going
Speaker 1: to sit in an open zone. He makes a couple
Speaker 1: different moves trying to sell that he's going to run
Speaker 1: an over route all the way across the field, and
Speaker 1: that's what the safety thought, and he's the linebacker broke
Speaker 1: when Josh went to release, he thought the exact same thing,
Speaker 1: and sure enough Diggs is sitting behind him on the
Speaker 1: play as well. Then in the fourth quarter of the
Speaker 1: Steelers look poised for maybe a comeback, and then Levi
Speaker 1: Wallace comes up with the enormous intersection. Levi Wallace was
Speaker 1: beat earlier in the game by Washington for a touchdown,
Speaker 1: and he does a great job of staying with this
Speaker 1: play and then making an incredible play on the ball
Speaker 1: in the air. I would I like to see him
Speaker 1: put a little bit better effort in on the return,
Speaker 1: and I'm mainly kidding there, but he does a great
Speaker 1: job of making a play on the ball. And if
Speaker 1: they're going to get cornerback play like this across from
Speaker 1: Tredavious Wifer the remainder of the season, then the Bill's
Speaker 1: defense is going to be in great shape. It was
Speaker 1: great to see the Bills get a statement win and Eric,
Speaker 1: thanks for this with us. Thanks for chopping wood again
Speaker 1: this week. For sure. Thanks Steve Matti glab here with
Speaker 1: this week's game preview. The ten and three Bills are
Speaker 1: heading to the Mile High City to face the five
Speaker 1: and eight Bronchos in a week fifteen matchup. With a win,
Speaker 1: the Bills would win the AFC East for the first
Speaker 1: time since nineteen ninety five. Buffalo will be taking on
Speaker 1: a Denver offense that ranks low in several categories. They
Speaker 1: averaged just under twenty points per game, which is twenty
Speaker 1: ninth in the league, and have the most giveaways in
Speaker 1: the NFL with twenty nine. Quarterback Drew Lock has thrown
Speaker 1: thirteen touchdowns in thirteen interceptions. He also has the worst
Speaker 1: completion percentage at fifty seven point three percent, but they
Speaker 1: still manage to have big play success. The Broncos have
Speaker 1: fifty five plays of twenty or more yards. The Broncos
Speaker 1: defense allows close to twenty seven points a game, ranking
Speaker 1: twenty third amongst other teams. The Bills are coming off
Speaker 1: a win against the Steelers, were two receivers in Cole
Speaker 1: Beasley and Stefan Diggs both hit career highs in receiving
Speaker 1: yard first single season. Figs is also the first receiver
Speaker 1: this year to make it to one hundred receptions. Buffalo
Speaker 1: ranks ninth, averaging twenty seven point six points per game
Speaker 1: and has the third best passing offense, averaging two hundred
Speaker 1: and seventy two point eight passing yards a game. Josh
Speaker 1: Allen has the sixth best completion percentage in the NFL,
Speaker 1: completing passes sixty eight point eight percent of the time.
Speaker 1: The Bills defense has takeaways in eight straight games and
Speaker 1: multiple takeaways in four of the last five. They currently
Speaker 1: tie for fourth with twenty one takeaways this year. Over
Speaker 1: the last seven games, the Bills tie for ninth allowing
Speaker 1: only twenty one point nine points per game and ranks
Speaker 1: second allowing a third down conversion rate of only thirty
Speaker 1: one point three percent. The Bills leave the series against
Speaker 1: the Broncos twenty two sixteen and one, winning the last
Speaker 1: two matchups. That's this week's game preview, Steve back to you.
Speaker 1: Thanks as always, Maddie, coach. You're coming off back to
Speaker 1: back prime time wins. You now have a different kind
Speaker 1: of primetime game this week against the Broncos on Saturday.
Speaker 1: How much does the slightly shorter week impact your preparation
Speaker 1: and how would you say your team is adjusted to
Speaker 1: playing in the national spotlight. I'll take the latter part
Speaker 1: of that question first here. It's you know, the biggest
Speaker 1: thing for us is getting into a good routine, and
Speaker 1: I think our players have adjusted nicely to these shortened
Speaker 1: weeks and and and getting the rest of they have
Speaker 1: to have to have to go out there and play
Speaker 1: good football, and so it's a continual adjustment. But you know,
Speaker 1: you've got to be comfortable being uncomfortable, and that's what
Speaker 1: that's what happens down the stretch. And so real, real,
Speaker 1: proud of the guys and listen, there's there's challenges every
Speaker 1: week and we just got to embrace the challenge and
Speaker 1: find a way to get it done. Well. With a win,
Speaker 1: you could clinch your first AFC East title and the
Speaker 1: first for the franchise in twenty five years. How important
Speaker 1: is that to you and your guys in the locker room. Well,
Speaker 1: it's one of our goals for the season. Um, you know,
Speaker 1: it's it's important that we win number eleven. That's really
Speaker 1: what our focus is all about this week, and we're
Speaker 1: happy that we have the chance an opportunity to do that.
Speaker 1: And you know, I think the bigger thing is is
Speaker 1: what it would mean to our fan base, and our
Speaker 1: ownership and our organization as a whole. As competitors, you know,
Speaker 1: we're focused on number eleven, all right, Thanks coach, good
Speaker 1: luck this week against Denver. We're gonna be back next
Speaker 1: week to recap your game against the Broncos and preview
Speaker 1: your Week sixteen matchup against the New England Patriots. Everybody
Speaker 1: at home, thanks for watching The Sean McDermot Show, presented
Speaker 1: by Connors and Ferris and as always, go bills final thoughts.
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