FOXBOROUGH – The Patriots saw the Buffalo Bills Week 5. That was two months ago.
Round 2 is on tap Sunday.
So let the chess match begin.
As much as this game will be about the players, it will also be about the respective coaches. It’ll be about the preparation, implementing strategies, and critical in-game decisions.
Which side has the edge?
I’ll take Mike Vrabel, Josh McDaniels and Zak Kuhr over Sean McDermott, Joe Brady and Bobby Babich.
The Bills coaches are certainly good. McDaniels even boasted about the Bills defense being as “well-coordinated a group as we’ll play all year.”
It’s just hard to ignore that some of McDermott’s decision-making over the years in big games has led to plenty of head-scratching, not to mention losses.
All Vrabel & Co. have managed to do is turn a team that won just four games in each of the previous two seasons into a contender.
Vrabel has changed the culture, gotten full buy-in, made practically all the right moves on game day with his right hand man John Streicher, and has the Patriots riding a 10-game win streak.
It’s also worth noting that as a head coach, Vrabel’s teams are 6-0 following a bye, which is where they sit with the Bills in town Sunday.
McDaniels, meanwhile, has masterfully handled Drake Maye, furthering his development in Year 2, and utilizing his skillset to the greatest advantage.
The Patriots quarterback made a point of thanking McDaniels for his guidance Wednesday.
“He coaches at a really high level. He understands the game at a really high level. His offense helps the quarterback, helps me do my job,” Maye said. “I try to do my best to keep first downs and scoring drives going so I can help him do his job, but he understands the game. He understands defenses, what they try to do. He understands what we have on offense and our players, our personnel, and he uses us to our best ability. It’s been awesome this year, and I can’t thank him enough for what he’s done for me.”
Kuhr? He was tasked with stepping in for defensive coordinator Terrell Williams, who took leave to undergo cancer treatment, and with the help of Vrabel, has kept the ship afloat on that side of the ball.
“I think he’s done a great job doing what he can do, and bringing this group together in a way that ‘T’ would want us to be together,” linebacker Christian Elliss said of Kuhr Thursday.
While the defense has had some trouble keeping teams from scoring in the red zone, it’s hard to argue with the 18.5 ppg average they’ve allowed. That’s 5th best in the league.
They kept Josh Allen from beating them in Week 5. It’ll be interesting to see if they can do the same Week 15, with Allen coming off a win against Cincinnati where he donned the cape and willed the Bills to a win.
As daunting a challenge as Allen might be, the Patriots are ready. Given how well the coaches prepare them, and have prepped them all year, the Patriots are confident they’ll be able to handle Allen without incurring too much damage.
Cornerback Carlton Davis III arrived in Foxborough this year having played with a few teams. He says this coaching staff is “right at the top with the best of them” when it comes to game-planning and making adjustments.
“We feel like they care,” Davis said of the staff, “and they want to win as bad as you. That’s always a good thing.”
The Bills will certainly bring their ‘A’ game. They know this year might be their best chance to win it all given an AFC landscape that looks like it won’t have Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow as participants during the post-season.
While the Bills have won the AFC East in each of the last 5 seasons, their post-season rides have fallen short of the Super Bowl.
With a clearer path to the big game, they don’t want to surrender the division and home field to the Patriots, who hold a two-game edge with four to play.
The Patriots know Allen won’t go down without a fight.
“Just a huge challenge going against a quarterback that’s under control, he’s got command and just doesn’t look panicked or rattled when you rush him”,” Vrabel said. “Just an excellent, obviously, MVP quarterback.”
In the first meeting, a 23-20 Patriots win at Orchard Park, Allen completed 22 of 31 pass attempts for 253 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He was also the Bills leading rusher with 9 carries for 53 yards.
Games like this are when Vrabel is at his best. Given the stakes, the degree of difficulty, and the fact the Patriots somehow opened as underdogs, this is right in Vrabel’s wheelhouse.
“They’ve got some great players over there. They’ve got some great coaches, and they’ve won the division for five years,” Maye said. “So, we’ve got something that we need to go take, and we know it’s going to be hard to do, but we’re up for it … This is what you strap up your helmet and put on the shoulder pads for.”
