ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The Process began in 2017, when Sean McDermott became the coach and Brandon Beane the general manager.
The Process was catalyzed a year later, when they traded up to draft franchise quarterback Josh Allen.
The Process, however, has involved neither a playoff road victory nor a win in Jacksonville of any kind.
Welcome, Buffalo Bills, to your 2025-26 postseason.
To reach the Super Bowl, barring a very specific sequence of wins and losses in the AFC bracket that would put the conference title game back to Highmark Stadium against the lower-seeded Los Angeles Chargers, the Bills will need to win three straight games outside Orchard Park.
The journey begins at 1 p.m. ET Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars in EverBank Stadium.
McDermott and Beane are 0-5 on the playoff road, with Allen the quarterback for all but one of those defeats. Buffalo was the underdog in every game, but didn’t come close, as expected, going 1-4 against the spread. Granted, three of those games were against the mighty Kansas City Chiefs, but the Bills have won plenty at Arrowhead Stadium in the regular season. The other road playoff losses were at Jacksonville in 2017-18 and in overtime at Houston in 2019-20.
“Playing on the road anytime is tough, in particular in the playoffs against a good football team,” McDermott said.
“We’re playing a heck of a football team this week. So we know that. We’ve got to be dialed in on the challenge that’s in front of us and be ready.”
The Bills had a pretty cushy road schedule this year, playing once outside the Eastern time zone, yet staggered around early. After an all-too-easy blowout over the New York Jets at the Meadowlands, the Bills won a single road game over their next four tries, including losses to the Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins.
But the Bills have won three straight road games, pummeling the Pittsburgh Steelers, storming back to beat the New England Patriots and holding on against the Cleveland Browns.
The Jaguars, meanwhile, have been a strong home team. They went 7-1 in EverBank Stadium, losing to the Seattle Seahawks, the NFC’s best regular-season team. The Jaguars technically lost another home game, a 35-7 beatdown versus the Los Angeles Rams in London.
“It’s a team that we played last season, but the team overall has changed, the complexion of the team, some of their roster has changed as well,” McDermott said.
“I thought one of the moves that’s made a difference for them offensively was adding Jakobi Meyers, good pickup for them – probably a guy that’s, quite honestly, been undervalued in his career. But going against him in New England, a ton of respect for his game.”
Much has been made of McDermott’s winless road record, but Sunday’s matchup also puts Beane in the spotlight because of Jacksonville’s ability to land Meyers at the November trade deadline. Beane was unsuccessful at acquiring boundary receiver help for Allen, but the Las Vegas Raiders traded Meyers for fourth- and sixth-round draft choices. In nine games for the Jaguars, Meyers caught 42 passes for 483 yards and three touchdowns.
Buffalo also won’t have rookie cornerback Maxwell Hairston for at least this week. He suffered an ankle injury in Sunday’s meaningless game. Hairston would not have played as much if Ja’Marcus Ingram were still on the roster. Beane cut Ingram to make room for waiver pickup Darius Slay, who refused to report. The Houston Texans snatched up Ingram immediately.
With the Bills thin at linebacker Sunday and wanting to rest edge rushers Joey Bosa and Gregory Rousseau, veteran Tre’Davious White and Hairston started at cornerback. It wasn’t ideal that White, who’ll turn 31 next week, had to play 100 percent of the defensive snaps.
Other than Hairston and kicker Matt Prater, McDermott on Monday delivered a hopeful injury report: Defensive tackle DaQuan Jones, linebacker Terrel Bernard and safety Jordan Poyer are getting healthier.
But if the game comes down to a field goal, that might be a problem. Prater aggravated his previous quadriceps injury Sunday. McDermott said Prater is “more day to day,” but added the club “more than likely will bring some kickers in” Tuesday for tryouts in case Prater cannot go. Last month, the Bills signed Michael Badgley for two games. He missed an extra point in each game and has missed five all season, including time with the Indianapolis Colts.
Imagine the stress and potential heartbreak if Buffalo’s hopes to advance to the second round come down to an extra point or field goal.
McDermott tuned in Sunday night when Baltimore Ravens rookie Tyler Loop’s win-to-get-in, 44-yard attempt squirreled wide right as time expired against the Pittsburgh Steelers. McDermott watched to monitor whether Ravens running back Derrick Henry would chase down James Cook for the NFL rushing title. Cook held on, becoming the Bills’ first rushing king since 1976, but the second half produced a series of astounding plays and four lead changes.
“Playoff-level football,” McDermott said. “The game reminds us quite a bit of how you win games. We can stand to learn from that.
“Overall, just look at the second half of the way the game was played. Some things working out, some things not working out. I can promise it’s not because they’re not well-coached or it’s not because they’re not trying. I don’t want to go into strategy right now, with all due respect, but those are things we can use as teaching mechanisms for our team.”
Both of McDermott’s losses in EverBank Stadium were awhile ago, but each memorable in its own way. The venue will generate nothing but negative memories when the buses pull in, when the Bills prepare in the locker room, when they go out onto the field.
The Bills ended their 17-year playoff blight in January 2018. Their reward was a trip to play former coach Doug Marrone and the Jaguars. The Bills’ quarterbacks that day were Tyrod Taylor and Nathan Peterman. They lost 10-3.
Stakes were lower, but the performance somehow uglier when the Bills returned in November 2021. They were favored by 14.5 points over a deplorable Jaguars squad. Josh Allen lost a fumble, threw two interceptions and was sacked four times in a 9-6 defeat. It was the second and final victory of Urban Meyer’s NFL coaching career.
“You’ve got to start by playing with great fundamentals,” McDermott said of the road playoff formula, “not beating yourselves, taking care of the ball, all those things that’s important to us as a football team and the discipline that goes with that.”
Jacksonville ranked second with 31 takeaways and 22 interceptions this season. Linebacker Devin Lloyd made five interceptions, a fumble recovery, six tackles for losses and 10 quarterback hits despite missing two games.
Buffalo’s biggest vulnerability this season has been against the run. The Jaguars’ Travis Etienne rushed for 1,107 yards and seven touchdowns, while quarterback Trevor Lawrence ran for 358 yards and nine TDs on a pedestrian offense that ranked 18th at 5.2 yards per play, 27th in yards per carry (4.0) and 12th in net yards per pass attempt (6.3).
Lawrence threw for 4,007 yards and a career-high 29 touchdowns with 12 interceptions. He was sacked 41 times, once more than Allen. The NFL’s other Josh Allen — the Jaguars defensive end who changed his name to Josh Hines-Allen last year — leads Jacksonville with eight sacks (one for a safety) and 28 quarterback hits.
To say the road to the Super Bowl goes through Jacksonville sounds silly in the NFL’s grand scheme, but for a talented and decorated Bills group that never has won there, that’s the first stop on the quest.
For Allen, McDermott and Beane, a victory there would be unprecedented.
“At the end of the day,” McDermott said, “it’s a new game. It’s a different team this year. We’ve got to play and perform up to a certain level or we won’t have a chance to win.
“But that’s the key to our process this week.”