Very little went well for the Bills' quarterback in a disappointing game Thursday night versus the Texans.
Yet he nearly managed to driving the Bills to a victory before an late pick in the final minute sealed their fate in a close loss.
Allen endured back-to-back sacks on the team's final possession, resulting in a fourth-and-27, but the Bills (with seven wins) gained 44 yards on a short pass from Allen to a receiver, who tossed a backward pass to another teammate.
Following a pre-snap infraction led to a fourth down situation for the Bills, a Texans defender intercepted the quarterback's throw at the Houston 9 with under half a minute remaining.
We possessed a chance to come out on top there at the conclusion,” Allen stated. “We did a good job of staying in it and our defense saved us a couple of times. We must figure it out, and unfortunately we failed.”
Proved difficult for Allen to get anything going on a evening he was sacked a personal-worst on eight occasions and hit four other times. Allen passed for 253 passing yards with two interceptions and zero scores after producing six TDs in a win over the Buccaneers last week.
“When they pressure our QB 12 times, I don’t like that,” Bills coach Sean McDermott commented. “I disapprove of that statistic at all. It is not a healthy way to compete and it isn't a smart way to keep our field general healthy for the remaining games. We need to play better.”
Josh Allen was sluggish to get up after a tackle in the opening two quarters. He indicated he was OK and that his shoulder “went a little numb” after he fell on it in an awkward manner. He was questioned about being contacted so many times during the game.
It's unpleasant,” he said. “I encountered a couple myself. I’ve got to be better at disposing of the football. Too many times, I was going backwards.”
The Bills' QB surrendered 70 yards on the eight quarterback takedowns. Anderson had 2.5 tackles for loss to lead the Houston defense. His second one came when he nearly sacked the QB near the line of scrimmage, but he wriggled away and Anderson rose and chased him downfield to drop him for an 18-yard deficit to result in a punt early in the third.
The Bills played for a second consecutive matchup without wideout Keon Coleman after he was again a non-participant after he was late to a squad gathering before their previous contest. He was previously benched for the opening drive of a loss to New England in the fifth week after also being delayed for a meeting.
No change. We are approaching it day by day,” McDermott said. “I thought he had a improved week, but we’re taking it step by step. It was not that it wasn’t thought about, but we opted for the players that give us the optimal opportunity.”
Shakir led the Buffalo with eight receptions for 110 receiving yards and Cook had 116 yards and a touchdown.
The quarterback was frustrated that the Bills were unable to make plays in crucial moments.
“Ultimately, we’ve got perform, and we failed to succeed of that tonight,” he concluded. “No matter the scenario and any condition, we need to discover a solution, and we came up short.”
