Bills look ready to tangle with NFL's elite

INDIANAPOLIS (WROC) — For the first time ever, Sean McDermott is the head coach of an 8-2 football team. And it's this team.

McDermott has had other really good teams. The first year with Stefon Diggs team. The Von Miller is healthy for all of three months team. Neither of those started 8-2.

This team that sent a ton of veteran talent packing in the spring. This team that started the year relying on a mis-mash of weapons. This team that everyone expected would take a step back. This is the team that matched the Jim Kelly Bills for first ten weeks success.

So how did they do it?

First of all, this Bills team has avoided the dumb losses that have plagued the last few seasons. There are no London meltdowns. No Mac Jones winning drives. No Zach Wilson losses. No fumbled snaps on the one yard line. No special teams blunders. No Hail Mary's (in the fourth quarter). No heat games. No wind games. No 9-6 debacles against a two-win team.

And this year's Bills probably won't have one of those losses at all (famous last words, I know). I'm not sure the Rams will qualify. The Jets and Patriots will spend the last three weeks of the year dreaming about vacation.

You can win a lot of games in the NFL staying out of your own way and letting your opponent get in theirs. For reference, see Flacco, Joe. Even with two interceptions today, Josh Allen remains one of the league's least intercepted passers. Only three teams have less fumbles. The Bills don't commit egregious personal fouls in the final two minutes of tie games.

The Bills also get contributions from all over the roster. It's a point I've beaten into the ground in this space, but it happened again in Indy.

No Keon Coleman? No Amari Cooper? No problem. Enter Mack Hollins. Four catches for a team high 86 yards against the Colts. That's a 21.5 yards per catch average if you need him. I wasn't really surprised (here's the proof). Hollins can separate, which not only creates production. It creates penalties. He's not a star, but he is a professional and professionals near the bottom of the depth chart can be an incredible advantage.

Not that the Bills need any help creating advantages with their reserves. McDermott talks often about how much the coaching staff makes the effort to keep backups ready. It's something the coordinators echo.

I think that work up and down the roster earns buy-in from players. Everyone gets treated similarly, so everyone must matter. If everyone matters, then it's easier to get everyone to care. If everyone cares, then it's more likely everyone makes plays. Or at least is ready to make plays whenever their turn comes.

"If you're in the game, then you're the starter. If you're playing, you're the guy," Hollins said. "If the ball comes your way, you're expected to make plays."

It wasn't just Hollins in this game (it never is). Khalil Shakir was doing his waterbug act again for six catches and 58 yards. Dawson Knox hit another big play. Curtis Samuel was even a functional part of the offense for a hot second.

The Bills defense took sharing the success to a wildly higher level. Four sacks and four turnovers courtesy seven different players. You had linemen making interceptions and defensive backs getting sacks.

And it was start to finish. Taron Johnson took the opening Colts snap back for a touchdown and energized a defense that never came down off that high. Big plays spread like wildfire. It's a fire that only can burn if McDermott and the coaches suit up a roster ready to fuel it.

"You can feel the energy. Everybody wants to get a piece of it. It's a good feeling," Terrel Bernard said.

Tyler Bass is also still riding those good feelings. Six for six on kicks in this one. Two from 45-plus. The hope was that his dramatic, long range winner against Miami would clear whatever mental obstacles were hampering his season. So far, so good.

There's no doubt the schedule played a part in the historic 8-2 start. Buffalo's eight wins have come against seven teams that carry a combined record of 23-43. Of those teams, only the Cardinals have more wins than losses and you still have to squint at Arizona a while before thinking they're any good.

The schedule is about to get ridiculously tougher. Kansas City and Detroit are probably the best team in each conference. Sandwiched in between are two of the smartest offensive coaching staffs in the league with the Niners and Rams. Both teams oozing with talent to make those schemes hurt.

Buffalo didn't look all that competitive in their first two go-rounds with NFL elite. Baltimore hammered them and Houston was similarly in command until Nico Collins left the game.

Assumably, the Bills should have Cooper at some point over these next four games. That makes Buffalo tougher from the jump. I think many Bills are more comfortable in their roles. Greg Rousseau is currently a confident edge rusher. The corners are playing at an elite level. Shakir knows he's a headache once he has the ball. There are three running backs who can be counted on to propel drives.

We didn't even mention number 17, who put on yet another display of playmaking ridiculousness Sunday. It's gotten to the point where I thought the Colts, at the end of the half, would have been better served giving up an easy 12-yard throw on third and ten from the Bills 27. Because if you challenge Allen, you give him the chance to pull out a 50 yard miracle.

"As much as it happens, it's almost like it shouldn't be surprising anymore. Yet it is," Hollins said.

I think the Bills will be better prepared for the NFL elite this time around. I'm not sure if that'll be enough to erase the significant disparity between Buffalo and Baltimore or (healthy) Houston. The Bills have, at least, made it very fun to find out.

Dawson Knox was excited to hear he was part of this first 8-2 McDermott team. Even though he's trained to reflexively subdue credit and praise, Knox stepped out of the cliche world to emphasize how cool it was to be compared with the Kelly Bills.

Knox followed with a very logical point about why there would be no grand celebration in the Bills locker room about 8-2. He said that these ten games the Bills have played aren't the part of the season that matters.

That part might just be beginning.