The Buffalo Bills faced a significant setback during their recent preseason game, suffering a staggering 38-0 defeat against the Chicago Bears. While preseason outcomes typically hold little weight, Bills head coach Sean McDermott expressed deep concern about the quality of play exhibited by his team. In his post-game remarks, McDermott emphasized that the performance was “not even close” to the standards he expects from his players.
McDermott pointed out that despite the Bears playing their starters early in the game, the lack of a strong performance from the Bills was unacceptable. “Certainly not up to our standard, what we expect,” he stated. “Got a lot of work to do. That’s very clear.” He stressed that regardless of whether players were starters or backups, the team’s expectations for performance should remain high. “We expect them to perform, and we expect our level of performance to be much better than that,” he added.
One critical area of concern for McDermott was the line of scrimmage. He noted that the Bills failed to win at the line, and their fundamental play was lacking. “Too many penalties,” he remarked, highlighting specific issues that contributed to the team's poor showing. McDermott indicated that even when the Bills' second and third teams faced off against the Bears' respective units, there was little improvement in performance.
As the team prepares to move forward, McDermott acknowledged the need to evaluate players competing for roster depth. He stated, “We’ve got to look at it, figure some things out and evaluate some of the guys as well and see where we stand there.” This evaluation process will be vital as the Bills approach the regular season.
McDermott refrained from singling out any individual players for the loss, attributing the disappointing outcome to a collective team effort. “I’m concerned about a lot of things coming off tonight,” he confessed. “When you lose the way we did, it’s probably a little bit of everything.” His remarks underscore the importance of team cohesion and performance, particularly as they prepare for the regular season.
The Bills are expected to look markedly different when Josh Allen and the rest of the starters take the field in Week One. However, the coaching staff, led by McDermott, is keen to ensure that their roster depth is reliable and that all players are ready to contribute effectively. Moving forward, the focus will be on addressing the issues highlighted by the recent loss and implementing strategies to enhance performance in the upcoming season.
