4 Bills fatal flaws that have been exposed during 2-game losing streak

The Buffalo Bills were cruising heading into their Week 5 Sunday Night Football matchup with the New England Patriots. They were the last undefeated team in the NFL and, led by head coach Sean McDermott and reigning MVP Josh Allen, they looked unstoppable. However, the Bills’ two-game losing streak to the Pats and then the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football has exposed the team’s fatal flaws.

A miracle Week 1 comeback against the Baltimore Ravens and victories over the New York Jets, Miami Dolphins, and New Orleans Saints hinted at the flaws, but didn’t outright expose them. Buffalo did struggle at times against the Dolphins and Saints, though, which did suggest more issues than meet the eye.

Ultimately, the Bills’ fatal flaws, which doomed them the last two weeks, will cost them a chance to play for a Super Bowl again this season. Unless they can get these things fixed before the postseason, it will be another long, cold winter in Western New York without a championship.

Here are the four Bills’ fatal flaws that have been exposed during their two-game losing streak.

Josh Allen can’t be Superman

Let’s start with Allen, because while he is the solution to almost all the Bills’ flaws, he is also the cause of some.

Allen is Superman. But he’s better when he plays like Clark Kent most of the time. The MVP quarterback can do it all, but he’s best when he plays like a game manager and only pulls out the wild Josh Allen plays when it is absolutely necessary.

In the last two Bills’ losses to the Patriots and Falcons (and even against the Saints at times), his defense and wide receivers were letting him down so much that he felt the need to put on the cape and try to make amazing things happen too often. This leads to interceptions, and that’s not good for anybody.

Buffalo will only go as far this season as Allen will carry them. However, he needs support in order to do that to the best of his abilities, and right now, he’s not getting that. Allowing Allen to play within himself for the majority of the game should be the overarching priority for the Bills right now.

Why can’t the Bills stop the run?

Through six games, the Bills defense has allowed more rushing yards (938) than any team in the NFL other than the Miami Dolphins (1,011). That’s a problem.

This has been an issue for a while now, with top running backs slicing through the Bills’ D with little to no resistance.

Part of this is by design. With the team’s high-powered offense, they are often ahead, and defending the pass is more important than defending the run. Plus, their biggest rival, the Kansas City Chiefs, is a pass-heavy team where coverage and pass rush trump run stuffing.

So, the Bills have lighter, quicker defensive tackles than most pass-rushing defensive ends and smaller, faster linebackers for pass coverage. That’s...