Bills ‘Tricky Leadership’ Praised Amid Distractions
The good news was that the Buffalo Bills were able to forget about a loss to a divisional opponent as quickly as possible. The bad news is that the prime time loss to the New York Jets was buried by the most blatantly brutal circumstances.
A 22-16 overtime defeat to the Jets paled in comparison to accusations from former NFL Network reporter Jim Trotter, who accused Bills co-owner Terry Pegula of racist comments in a lawsuit filed last week. In a far smaller, but nonetheless distracting, story, receiver Stefon Diggs was at the center of another event horizon, one beyond his control but still placing the mercurial catcher in an unwanted spotlight.
For three-plus precious hours on Sunday, those events were temporarily placed on the back burner. Behind a 450-yard offensive performance, Buffalo (1-1) summarily dismantled the Las Vegas Raiders to the tune of a 38-10 shellacking at Highmark Stadium, keeping pace in an AFC East currently overseen by the Miami Dolphins.
Coach McDermott
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Trotter's accusations will (rightfully) be investigated and Diggs' future will continue to be a subplot of a fateful season for Western New York football. In the immediate response, Bills head coach Sean McDermott praised the way his team came together, especially in a short week considering the extra period madness at MetLife Stadium landed on a Monday.
“I thought the guys really did a great job from a leadership standpoint and that’s always good to see," McDermott said, per SI's Albert Breer. "The short weeks are tricky, especially after a loss. You want to put a lot of time in, but you can’t, because the players need to be fresh. Your work on the field isn’t as much as you’d like it to be in order to make some adjustments, and it’s already the season. That makes it to where you’re trying to develop more fundamentals. It makes it hard.”
McDermott didn't dive into the full extent and scope of the controversies but was proud of the way Diggs came out in response. The fourth-year Bill picked up 66 yards on seven receptions in the lashing of Las Vegas. Each of his final three grabs picked up first downs en route to a much-needed triumph.
Unlike a prior controversy in training camp, McDermott knew exactly where Diggs was and was pleased that he was able to play a role in a potential season-shifting win.
“The guy loves football,” McDermott said. “He’s got a really unselfish approach. That could have, if he didn’t handle it the right way, become a distraction. It was to begin with. But it could have become a bigger one.”
The Bills will look to keep the good vibes going on Sunday when they hit the road to face the Washington Commanders on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS).
