The Buffalo Bills wrapped up the regular season with a 13-4 record after their 23-16 loss to the New England Patriots.
"Good effort by the guys that were out there playing. I appreciate that effort," head coach Sean McDermott said. "Good for James to get 1,000 yards and then to tie the record, so a couple bright moments."
Despite the loss, there were several positives that were drawn from the game including backups playing that do not normally get to play and players fulfilling their incentives.
"It says a lot about this locker room, this team," P Sam Martin said. "There was a handful of guys who were chasing some incentives today. Everyone was rooting for each other. It's just a little microcosm of the bigger picture, but it makes it fun, especially going into a week like this."
In the third quarter RB James Cook also made history, rushing for his 16th touchdown, which tied the franchise record set by O.J. Simpson for most rushing touchdowns in a single season.
"He's worked all year for the offense, he's worked all year in the O-line in particular and James. and so, get a chance to get it on a short run, it was good to see," McDermott said.
After last week's victory against the Jets, RT Spencer Brown said that it was important for the team to get Cook the touchdown and to get him over 1,000 yards rushing for the season. Cook achieved the yardage in the second quarter and scored the touchdown in the third quarter.
"Getting Jimbo another touchdown and getting him to 1,000 yards was a big thing for us, so we were happy to do that," QB Mitchell Trubisky said.
"It was huge. Jimbo runs his tail off all year long, so to be able to get him an accolade like that, I think it's important for all the guys and the team. We support our teammates here, so any time you see a guy like that, who works his tail off, to get some recognition, get to 1,000 yards and tie the touchdown record, it's huge for this team. A lot of that comes down to being an unselfish player."
Even though the team saw the potential of having a 14th pass catcher catch a touchdown to break the NFL's record for most players to catch a touchdown, their unselfish play allowed them to achieve another record- the Bills became the first team in NFL history with 30+ passing touchdowns and 30+ rushing touchdowns in the same season.
"We had certain looks to break the record," Trubisky said. "We just weren't able to get the 14th guy. That's tough. A lot of guys scored this year, but we just feed off that mindset, that everybody eats mentality. A lot of unselfish play today and a lot of guys stepped up."
After the game, McDermott said that being as healthy and as strong as possible heading into the playoffs was a top priority. Although the Bills will not discover who their Wild Card opponent will be and when they will play until Sunday night, McDermott said that they are taking it one game at a time.
"Everything is earned, and there's nothing given in the playoffs, and you're going against the best every week," McDermott said. "So, we start with one week and really one day at a time as we get back in here and find out when we play and take it one day at a time."
When asked by reporters what success looks like for the Bills this year, McDermott, who has been to the Super Bowl twice, once as a defensive coordinator and once as a defensive assistant, made it clear that while they are taking it one game at a time, the goal remains the same every year- to win the Super Bowl.
"We're taking it one day at a time. When I've been to the Super Bowl and I've been there twice, that's how you've got to do it," McDermott said. "That's how you've got to. One day at a time, work your tails off to prepare. You can't shortchange it… It's right here. Focus on what's right here and right in front of us."
