Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane is already sick of hearing that he needs to go and get a star wide receiver. After Buffalo went with a very defense-heavy approach in the 2025 NFL Draft, fans were quick to point out the lack of star receiver and critique the fact that Buffalo didn't take a wideout until the seventh round of the draft. In an expletive-filled rant during an appearance on WGR in Buffalo, Beane was very open about his annoyance with the dialogue surrounding the Bills' pass-catchers.
"You guys are b*tching that we don't have a receiver," Beane said. "I don't get it... we just scored 30 points in a row for eight straight games. A year ago, I get you guys asking why we didn't have receivers, but I don't understand it now. You just saw us lead the league in points. When you add all the postseason [games], no one scored ore points than the Buffalo Bills, including the Super Bowl champions. So you just saw us do it without Stefon Diggs... our job is to score points and win games. Where do we need to get better? Defense. We did that."
Beane's not completely wrong. The Bills did lead all teams in points a season ago. And it's also refreshing to hear him hint at what everyone has been thinking for years - the defense has let down Josh Allen in the biggest games. The Kansas City Chiefs scored 30 points once last season - in the AFC Championship Game against Buffalo. In four playoff games against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs, the Bills are averaging 28 points per game and are 0-4 - that's a defensive issue, not an issue with No. 17.
So while the defense was rightfully the focus in the draft, that doesn't make the need for a top receiver any less important. The Bills currently have a total of zero receivers who have ever had a 1,000 yard season. Since 2006, only five teams have won the Super Bowl without having a 1,000 yard receiver:
- 2023 Chiefs
- 2018 Patriots
- 2017 Eagles
- 2013 Seahawks
- 2012 Ravens
Even so, these teams are all massive outliers to the norm. The Ravens were middle-of-the-road in almost every major statistic and just got ridiculously hot at the right time, and Joe Flacco had an all-time playoff run. The 2013 Seahawks had one of the greatest defenses of all time in The Legion of Boom. The Eagles were top five in rushing offense scoring offense, scoring defense, and rode a magic carpet with Nick Foles that will likely never happen again. The Patriots are the Patriots and the Chiefs are the Chiefs.
On top of that, not only did the Bills not have a 1,000 yard receiver, they didn't have a 900 yard receiver. Over the last 20 years, only three teams have won a Super Bowl without at least a 900-yard receiver, and they are the 2013 Seahawks, 2017 Eagles and 2018 Patriots, all of whom we've already discussed as complete outliers and teams that also had other elite aspects of their roster, which the Bills currently do not.
And again, it's important to reiterate that the Bills had a good draft and that Beane isn't wrong for wanting to improve the defense. From Week 12 onward in 2024, Buffalo's defense ranked 20th in EPA per play and allowed 40 points twice. That said, look at the firepower that every other playoff team in 2024 had compared to the Bills - Buffalo probably ranked 14th out of 14 in terms of offensive weapons.
The "Everyone Eats" mentality is all well and good. But in the biggest moments of the biggest games, someone has to sit at the head of the table and be the go-to guy. Just because you have Josh Allen, who puts a lot of makeup on the face of the Bills' offense doesn't mean he should have to get dolled up for a gala in each of the Bills' biggest games. And even when Allen makes the Bills look beautiful, they have always been left without a rose at the end of the season. And while the defense is public enemy No. 1 and the largest party to blame for that, the lasting image of the 2024 season was Dalton Kincaid dropping a pass that hit him right in the chest that Allen somehow got to him through a sea of Chiefs. Fixing one problem doesn't mean another doesn't exist, and the current Bills receiving corps has more questions than answers heading into the 2025 season.
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