The Buffalo Bills won't be the next team featured in our "Stick a Fork in Them" series, but hope is diminishing in upstate New York.
Buffalo's frustrating loss to the Tennessee Titans was symptomatic of a team not ready to discuss a playoff push. The Bills, after all this time, still are figuring out who they are.
"I think we have to reevaluate everything you do," coach Chan Gailey told the team's official website. "That is what you do with the bye week. You reevaluate everything. You look at it. What is good, you try to keep. What is bad and needs work, you try to see what you have to do to get it done. That is what you do during the bye week. Everybody does it. If we had won, we would still be doing that."
The Bills poured greenbacks into a defensive line that has failed to pressure the quarterback. Defensive coordinator Dave Wannstedt's scheme asks the front four to win matchups, allowing the back seven to shut down the pass. Mario Williams and Co. haven't played well enough to win those competitions, and Wannstedt's rather vanilla scheme can't make up for it. The personnel and the plan don't match up.
This means Buffalo rarely plays with a lead, contributing to inconsistent play from quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick.
The Bills starter continues to frustrate, but Gailey expresses confidence.
"He made a bad throw at the end," Gailey said. "Other than that, he played really, really well. He made one bad throw. If you get rid of all of the quarterbacks for one bad throw, you are not going to have any quarterbacks left."
Follow Marc Sessler on Twitter @MarcSesslerNFL.