I’m not ashamed to admit that the most immature part of me wanted it.
Do you know when at school the 4 in the math test was mitigated by the failure of the classmate you disliked the most? The well-known principle of “if it goes bad for me it must necessarily go bad for him too”?
A part of me would not have been able to tolerate Josh Allen raising the Lombardi to the sky before Lamar Jackson, but the most rational and empathetic part of my being – the one that allows me to type these words on the keyboard – can only be “devastated” by what the poor Bills quarterback experienced in the disastrous trip to Denver.
Well yes, even though I’m wondering what various journalists – including strange local journalists – would have written if those 4 turnovers had been committed by Lamar Jackson, every mistake by Josh Allen coincided with a stab in the heart that ended up tearing it apart.
material@matiofubol
I hate to interrupt my (ish) silence to talk about American football, but I’m unironically devastated for Josh Allen, if there was anyone who didn’t deserve a game like that it was him
[Non 猫 che un tweet del genere testimoni che il ricovero stia funzionando?]
Ari Meirov @MySportsUpdate
#Bills QB Josh Allen shows up to his postgame press conference with tears in his eyes:
“I let my teammates down tonight. … It’s been a long season. Hate how it ended. t is gonna stick with me for a long time. Can’t win with 5 turnovers.”
(馃帴 @WKBW)
1:33 PM 路 Jan 18, 2026 路 5.21K Views
8 Replies 路 1 Repost 路 44 Likes
Allen will certainly not be the last athlete to react in the most humane way possible to a failure in his job, but the tears that were streaming down his face during the heartbreaking press conference were undoubtedly weighed down by the clear awareness of the missed opportunity. A probably unrepeatable opportunity.
If we have learned anything from the last five years of American football, it is precisely that until under center there will be Josh Allen Buffalo will always be there to compete for the Super Bowl, but as said again and again what they just let slip out of their hands was probably the most sensational opportunity: of the playoffs without Burrow, Jackson and his nemesis Mahomes seemed to level the AFC with the Bills “without rivals”… in a year in which this term has no reason to exist given that the balance has put us in front of an infinite series of surprises and upset.
Maybe I was wrong to overestimate the Bills or underestimate the Broncos – I think the truth lies somewhere in between – but I was convinced that Buffalo’s furious experience would be enough to drag them to Levi’s Stadium.
Instead, at the worst possible moment he collected 40% of the turnovers committed in his career in the playoffs – out of 15 games played, a rather consistent sample: imagine that the last interception in the postseason dated back to January 22, 2023.
Almost three years ago.
It is in its own way astonishing that a team that was guilty of 5 turnovers lost by a field goal in overtime and that, despite everything, we are talking about a controversial refereeing decision without which Buffalo would almost certainly have won: looking at it with more patience I was able to ascertain that at the moment in which Cooks crashed to the ground he had not yet full possession of the spheroid, but I am still perplexed by the lack of uniformity of judgment on what a reception actually is.
The horrible fumble committed just a few seconds before the long break is the emblem of a desire for victory that is as visceral as it is debilitating.
Over the years, the MVP – a title used for once without any irony – has learned to take care of the ball, admirably limiting the turnovers that had marked the beginning of his adventure in the NFL. I can swear to you on my cat’s tail Don Capucino – I miss you – that in a normal regular season game he would never have committed such a foolish thing by forcing a situation that, quite frankly, had no reason to exist.
Buffalo would have received the kickoff in the second half of the game, risking the ball with 16 seconds left in the second quarter against a defense like that made no sense.
The urge to necessarily do more ended up going to his head, transforming him for a few seconds into the reckless rookie who didn’t respect who knows how much the sacred American football. It goes without saying that in a match decided in extra time those three “free” points made all the difference in the world.
It is a real shame that the only reason why the Bills are perpetually competing for Lombardi has become the main suspect for a defeat whose waste will – perhaps – never be disposed of.
Even if that “main suspect” is the same player who transformed a 20 to 10 Broncos into a 27 to 23 Bills – with the underrated help of a defensive unit that muzzled Sean Payton in the red zone.
Josh, even if the numbers say it’s your fault, it’s not your fault at all since, without you, Buffalo would still be rotting in the mediocrity that has characterized every twenty-first century championship of a franchise to which you, alone, have restored prestige and relevance.
Sport is one of the most effective metaphors of life for this very reason, for its inimitable ability to emulate its progress, forcing the most deserving of all to come to terms with the most repugnant injustices.
In twelve months both he and the Bills will once again be protagonists in January, even if it would at least be useful to provide him with a receiver worthy of a name since he has been called to face the playoffs with a repudiated sophomore, the bodies of Curtis Samuel, Brandin Cooks and Gabe Davis and Khalil Shakir as go-to-guy who for goodness sake is an excellent player, but he is definitely not Amon-Ra St. Brown.
Without forgetting that GM Beane will categorically have to renew the contracts of David Edwards and Connor McGovern, two fifths of one of the best offensive lines ever – even the backbone Matt Milano will be entering free agency.
Be that as it may, Buffalo will always be competitive, but I fear that in twelve months we will be forced to ask ourselves again if they have what it takes to do it against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Imagine how boring it would be if Ulysses had returned to Ithaca at the first good opportunity and not at the end of twenty years of war and adventures.
Maybe I’m exaggerating a little now.
The consequences of Saturday’s disastrous defeat fell entirely on Sean McDermott who was given the well served: after 9 years and 98 regular season wins and a jeff-fisheriano record of 8-8 in the playoffs, Buffalo decided to give itself an alternative.
In an offseason in which both John Harbaugh and Mike Tomlin were removed from the franchises of which they were leaders for almost twenty years, Buffalo’s choice does not appear so scandalous: just as said with the two coaches of the AFC North, it is preferable to change a coach rather than a franchise quarterback with an MVP on the board and, in a certain sense, the Bills’ front office had no choice.
Then, from a couple of veiled but not too much statements, I noticed a certain tension between him and GM Beane who, on the other hand, also received a promotion.
Maybe McDermott wasn’t the right man to lead them to the promised land, but rewarding a GM who forced Allen to play the playoffs of his life with Brandin Cooks and Mecole Hardman doesn’t seem all that ideal.
Be that as it may, if the Ravens kicked out a coach who added a Super Bowl to their trophy case, I don’t see why the Bills should persevere with McDermott. Be careful though, in case of further failures, the next head to blow will be Beane’s.
Let’s move on to the San Francisco 49ers, more or less literally planed by the Seattle Seahawks who are simply superior from every point of view.
Seeing the death of your season two wins away from the possibility of playing the Super Bowl in the comfort of your own stadium is particularly disgusting, but if I were a fan of the team coached by Kyle Shanahan I would be extremely proud of every single player and member of the coaching staff for what, despite the unfortunate epilogue, remains a sensational championship.
Twelve victories in the regular season and the playoff defeat of the reigning champions with a roster completely distorted by an endless series of injuries constitute a huge undertaking which, to be such, does not require the legitimacy of a ring: but what are we talking about?
