'The sun came up this morning:' How Dawson Knox, Josh Allen, Von Miller 'n co. are processing this Buffalo Bills defeat
After landing back in Western New York around 3 a.m. on Monday, the Bills shook off the cobwebs and tried to both make sense of this 32-29 loss to Kansas City and how to move forward.
ORCHARD PARK, NY — That’s a wrap on the 2024 Buffalo Bills.
This team’s legion of fans will not be descending upon Bourbon Street next week.
To put a bow on this season, here’s a collection of thoughts from players at One Bills Drive on locker-room cleanup day. From Josh Allen to Dawson Knox to Quintin Morris and Ray Davis, there was plenty of reflection and insight. The tight end Morris put it best in our conversation. He’s been around for these playoff losses since the “13 Seconds” defeat in 2021.
Balling up a fist, Morris said this 2024 edition was knocking on the door again, got that door to open up a crack, and… then everyone saw that door “slam shut” in their face. A brutal feeling.
As we wrote, you only get so many opportunities to kick that door down. This was another squandered opportunity:
I promise we’ll get to the Main Event — Kansas City vs. Philadelphia in Super Bowl LIX — soon enough.
Until then, here’s how the Bills are interpreting their 32-29 loss to Kansas City and why they remain optimistic about the future.
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Josh Allen, QB
On how this loss will linger: I feel like I’ve said this every year. There are 31 unhappy teams, but I will say this about our team — emphasis on team. This is one of the more special units I’ve ever been around in my entire life from Pop Warner through high school, through college into the NFL. Guys truly cared about each other. Everyone kind of understood their role and their assignment and we had a huge internal belief when we all got here for camp and we worked extremely hard to get to where we got. We’re constantly knocking at the door and when you’re playing a team like the Chiefs who’ve done it so well for so long, you’ve got to not just knock, you got to kick the door down and we didn’t do that.
On replicating this all next season: I don’t know what’s going on front-office wise of who’s staying, who’s coming in, and I guess we’ll all figure that out as time rolls, but just making sure that we understand the vibe and really the feel that we had in this locker room and try to have our core guys replicate that with anybody new that comes in and whoever comes into this building understands what it is to be a member of this locker room, to come in here and be themselves each and every day to be the best version of themselves, and that’s all we can do is just go out there and play hard for each other.
On having the ball late with a chance to win: Yeah, it sucks. You keep going back and thinking about what you could have done differently, plays even throughout the game. It’s something that’s so little, but dropping the snap on that second and 6 and turning it into a third and 9 where I probably catch the ball and I dart it to “Coop” and it’s third and 1 instead of third and 9. It’s not going to be in the stat sheet, but as a competitor I think of those things of like, “Man, only if I could have done this differently.” And again, anytime you lose, you’re going to have those thoughts in your head and it’s understanding that you’re not promised opportunities like that all the time. You’re not promised to get into the playoffs each and every year. And again, you can’t just knock on the door, you’ve got to kick it down and that’s something that I feel like all offseason is what we’re going to try to do.
On his belief that they will kick the door down vs. the Chiefs: Yeah, I think it’s just the trust and the faith that we have in one another. How hard we work. It’s hard to win in this league. It’s hard to win Super Bowls in this league. We understand that. And again, when you’re playing a team that’s now been to three in a row, you got to go out there and you got to beat ‘em. You got to take it from them and we didn't do that.
On pending free agents Mack Hollins and Amari Cooper: They’ve meant so much. Mack’s juice and energy throughout the entire locker room, it’s infectious the way that he carries himself. He’s a competitor. And then with “Coop,” obviously coming in about halfway, I’ve got nothing but love and respect for Amari Cooper. I will never in my life say a bad thing about him for him to come into this situation and understand the role that he was brought here to do. He is a true football player, a true teammate, and I’m just honored to share the field with him as well as Mack.
On James Cook’s growth: He was playing like a man possessed — really the entire year. The way that he ran the ball, he ran angry. That play that he made last night on fourth down, which again was an unbelievable play him reaching out like that on fourth down, given the moment, that was a special play made by a special player. Every year that he’s been in the league, he’s gotten better and looking forward to continuing that next year.
On Dalton Kincaid becoming a bigger threat in this offense: I’ve got to be better for him. I didn’t feel like I put him in enough good situations this year. Ball-placement wise. Even the one last night across the middle, I left it behind him, allowed 32 to make a play on it. And again, he can sit there and think about that play over and over, but I’ve got to be better for him. That’s what it comes down to, and getting him more involved. I know he’s been battling throughout the entire year, bumps and bruises and probably games that he shouldn’t have played, he was in. But he's a tough sucker and I got nothing but love for him with how he’s approached this year. He's going to be so much better next year. Let his body heal up. And I’m going to be better for him. I can promise you that.
On players saying the Bills always have a chance with 17 at QB: It’s why I play this game — to be in situations like that. Obviously, you want to get ‘em done. To have the support and the trust from your teammates, that’s all I care about to be honest. All the outside noise and no offense to the media, but the only thing I care about is those 52 other guys in this locker room as well as the 15 or 20 or so practice-squad guys and what they think of me and how I can be the best teammate, the best leader that I can be. So that’s the most important thing for me.
On Damar Hamlin, a pending free agent: I think he’s meant a lot to this team. I think he’s meant a lot to the city. His story is one of the greatest stories of all time. He’s such a special human being and he’s using all of his influence in a positive light. It’s not easy to do what he’s done. I command him so much as a person, as a player for going out there and continuing to play extremely hard and he’s a special one.
On Sean McDermott: It’s going to sound weird. I’m just so proud of coach. I don’t know why he’s not recognized more in the award stuff and that’s the cruddy thing about it. But time in and time out, he’s got us in position. We’ve won the AFC East, the last how many so years, and obviously we’re fighting to get over that hump and he gives his life to this. I will tell you that. He is so committed to doing whatever it takes and to see him adapt and really grow as a coach has been fun to watch. … It’s the growth. From my first year here to now and the way that he’s let players be them. Really give us the keys to the team and lead it from down in that locker room. It’s not easy to do that. I respect hell out of coach.
On his confidence level that he’s the guy to get the team over the hump: Extremely confident.
Dawson Knox, TE
On his message to teammates: I think every guy’s different. Every guy needs different amounts of space or time to get through these feelings that you worked your whole year for. Really your whole life as a football player works for these moments. So to come up short, it sucks. There’s no better way to put it. It sucks. But we know that life goes on, the sun came up this morning, Life’s not over. There’s going to be ups, there’s going to be downs, but I’ve learned a lot more in my life from the hard moments than I have from the good moments. So there’s always a silver lining, even if you can’t see it right now. There’s a lot of good learning opportunities and I think relying on that, knowing that the Lord has a perfect plan, that’s something I’ve really got to lean into that I try to remind the guys of as well.
On what he’ll remember most about this season: The fun that we had. This team was so special, so fun to be a part of, and I think that’s the hardest part of every season coming to an end. Knowing that it’s not going to be the same. There’s going to be different guys in the locker room. Some coaches might be different. So knowing the good times we had together, not necessarily even on the field or in the locker room, but hanging out outside the building, hanging out at each other’s houses, going to dinners. Those are the moments I’ll cherish forever. So I think those moments of just the camaraderie and the chemistry this team has, that’s something I’ll always hold close to my heart.
On what he thinks this team will learn from the KC loss: Football can easily be turned into a results-driven business. What I learned is that this team is special, it’s resilient, and the mindset I think we’ve had all year is the same mindset we want to have next year. Especially as an offense. Just the unselfish mentality that so many of our guys had celebrating with other guys when they made big plays and then having everybody celebrate with you in a big moment. Those are things we want to continue to build on. So I don’t think we need to change anything. The Chiefs have an incredible team. They are well-coached. They have great players all over the field and they made some good plays. So I don’t think we need to necessarily go and reinvent the wheel, but there’s a lot of amazing, incredible things about this team that we’ll carry over to next year.
On bringing Joe Brady back as OC: Everyone talked about how this year felt different and I think that stems from Joe in a way. There’s pieces of that feeling that come from everywhere in the building, but Joe’s mentality of “everybody eats,” the communication he brought to the table, how he encouraged us to talk to him, how he wanted to pick our brains on stuff, whether it’s a gameplan or a certain philosophy he had for the week, that two-way street of communication that he cultivated — some of it’s invaluable. So to have him back means a ton. It’s been so much fun to play for him and the energy he brings, how down to earth he is. Every single dude in this locker room loves him. He’s really just a privilege to play for. So I feel really blessed to play for him.
On the O-Line all coming back in 2025: I don’t know the exact statistics, but I feel like they gave up the fewest sacks in the league. It’s got to be some type of record, but their communication, their chemistry, the way they love each other, the way they hang out outside the building, it really is special. So knowing those guys are coming back, we always talk about how the O-Line and the D-Line are the lifeblood of this team. Everything we do runs through them: controlling the line of scrimmage, protecting Josh, opening up lanes for the run game. We go as they go. There’s no one else I’d rather have up there in those starting five positions.
On supporting Dalton Kincaid: Watching that play back, he’s running full speed one direction. Josh had three guys in his face and just had to throw up a pop fly and Dalton had to completely change directions and dive for the ball. The fact, he even got contact on the ball is impressive first of all. And also the dude’s been playing on a torn PCL in one leg and then his other knee, he doesn’t even know what’s wrong with it because he hasn’t had it scanned yet. But it’s got so much fluid in it. It’s insane what he has played through. The selfless nature it takes to be able to put your body on the line for your team, even when you’ve got a torn PCL in one knee and, in the other knee,he doesn’t even know what’s wrong with it, but it’s messed up, too. The ability that he has, what he brings to this offense, I told him we wouldn’t have even been in that game if he wasn’t on this team. What he brings to this offense, the incredible weapon he is. I don’t know if we would’ve won the division without him. I don’t know if we would’ve made the playoffs without him. So if he tries to shoulder this as his fault, I’ll probably just laugh at him like, “Dude, you’re acting crazy right now.” But we all love him. He’s such an incredible dude, but he’s going to be alright and he’s going to be an incredible staple to this team for years to come.
On if there are any common threads in all of these playoff losses to Kansas City he can point to, to get over the hump: Nothing comes to mind for me. I thought we executed well as a team and they executed well as a team as well. So their homefield environment is awesome. That gives them an advantage as well. But they’re extremely talented, extremely well-coached across the board and they’ve kind of set the standard for excellence in the league. So for us to be the best team in the NFL, we got to beat the best. Right now the Chiefs are the best, so we’ve got plenty of time to figure out what it’s going to take for next year. We’re not even looking at that right now. Right now I’m just filled with gratitude for what this season has been for me and what this team means. I’m just so thankful that I'm here and I pray that I get to spend the rest of my career here.
On how tough this loss is for Josh Allen: Yeah, I mean, I can’t even begin to fathom what that dude has to put on his shoulders every single week. I mean, he’s got the whole city on his back and he carries it with grace and better than anybody that I could possibly imagine carrying it — what he has to go through. The plays he made last night, I mean, he gave us every chance that we needed to win the game and we know him to be the best player in football in the world. So he’s of course going to try to take the blame on himself as he does because he’s just an incredible leader. But the game could have easily gone our way and then we’d be having different conversations now. But it’s kind of similar with Dalton. We’re just going to come alongside him, lift him up, make sure he knows it’s not on him. You kind of just can’t help but laugh. Like, dude, we wouldn’t even be close to where we are without you. He really is the embodiment of Buffalo and he puts on that cape every Sunday and I really feel blessed to play on a team with him and, man, I just try to pray I get to play with him for a little bit longer.
On what he says to guys so The Chiefs do not become a mental block: Everybody that plays in this league is mature. They’re competitors and there’s no magic words you can say to guys to have them more prepared to be in this business. You have to be the best at what you do. And that comes from preparation, that comes from time on task and the confidence you have in yourself, and we got all the guys we need to do that. So there’s no type of magic saying or magic words to help that in any way.
O'Cyrus Torrence, RG
On the short-yardage troubles vs. KC: Those plays, it’s always you’ve just got to win your block and hopefully the call is good enough. I mean, it’s still just a game of inches. You watch film and you kind of know what the defense might do and then you come out there and do something different and I think that’s what was getting us a little bit. They slammed a few times and sometimes they didn’t. And they were crowding the ball real well, things like that. But I mean it’s just something that me personally, I’ll go back and look at some of the stuff to see what I could’ve done better or just what we could have did better as offense. I don’t think we necessarily did those plays bad. I think they just executed better on defense on those plays than we did offense.
On KC’s defense vs. their sneaks: I didn’t know how automatic it was until I was hearing people talk about it after the game. Other guys do interviews and people were asking them but we were getting them just about every time and then I think this game, we came to the situation like three or four times and we only got it once. So I feel like there has been a staple in our offense when we get to that — we will do that. And that’s why we never went away from it. That’s why we were just like “If we don’t get it, we don’t get it because we’ve been getting that all year.” So I don’t feel bad that coach was calling it. I’m glad he did put the game in our hands and give us a chance to get the first down. We just have to get better at it and don’t try to change too much of it up.
On how Buffalo can get past KC: We’ve got to put together what we do in the regular season in the playoffs. We have their number in the regular season but playoffs, they just do a little bit better. We’ve just got to make those plays when it counts.
Greg Rousseau, DE
On Bobby Babich’s first year as a defensive coordinator: I’m super excited. He did an amazing job, fantastic. He pushed each and every one of us every day to be the best in the world. He pushed me personally more than any coach has ever pushed me from a defensive coordinator. The energy that he brings and the belief that he has in us, we wouldn’t trade it for anything. We wouldn’t trade him for anything. So excited to run it back.
On building into next season: You just keep going. I feel like we did a really good job building an identity this year. On offense. On defense, taking the ball away. We just have to keep that going. And we have a lot of dudes coming back, so our core is still there and we’re excited for next season.
On what’s next for him to take another jump: My focus will be everything, whether it’s stopping the run, pass rush, whatever it is. And with me taking a step, I credit that to just the coaching in our room — Matt (Edwards) and Coach (Marcus) West, ‘CT’ (Christian Taylor), the coaches, just the little keys they give us day after day, whether it’s third down, first down, second down, how they pour into me and all the other players. And also just the group, the people out there like Smoot calling the games, Ed always creating havoc, Von, AJ, whoever it was on the field. I might’ve had the production, but there’s a lot of good players out there that were helping me do my thing. And just the communication, all that stuff I don’t take it for granted.
On seeing more pre-snap with his experience: Yeah, I think so. I think I saw plays come before they came and I wish I could have done a little more of that last night to help the team win, but I mean it didn’t go that way. But yeah, with being in the league, the more reps you get under your belt, the more stuff you see, the more familiar you get with certain plays of certain formations or whatever.
Quintin Morris, TE
On what it’ll take to get past the Chiefs: They’re a good team. They obviously have a great player over there and I’m sure we’ll be talking about him as one of the greatest players of all-time — Patrick obviously. But that’s what they’re known for. They find ways to win. And I mean, it’s unfortunate. It’s not like we’re far off. Maybe a little bit of luck falls our way. Obviously, there’s always some calls that you wish you could have got, but that's part of the game. I don’t want to sit here and blame refs or whatever it is because there’s calls throughout the league and throughout the game, that could probably be the same either way. But it’s just one of those things. Obviously in the business we know it’s result-driven. You either won the Super Bowl or you didn’t, but there’s nothing for us to hang our heads down about. It sucks, but hell, half the people in the world didn’t even see us getting this far because we lost everybody: “They’ll be lucky if they go .500.” We weren’t even talking about winning the division, let alone the playoffs. Making it to the AFC championship? So as far as all the doubters and stuff, I think we proved them wrong, but obviously we always knew internally that we could get there. So I think it just hurts because our expectations were higher and obviously we wanted to not only just get to the Super Bowl, but win. Especially in my four years being here, we’ve been knocking on that door but not being able to get in. You’ve got your foot in the door and they slam it. Close it on you.
On the controversial spot: Yeah, the spot. And there were a few times they were in the neutral zone and there was no call. Obviously there’s the big first-down conversion where it looked like an incomplete pass. There’s a lot of things you can blame it on. But at the end of the day, we didn’t get the job done. And again, there’s 31 other teams that are going to feel like this unfortunately at the end of the season.
On not letting the Chiefs get into their head. Mahomes. Reid. The Chiefs. Something like that happens, and they smell blood: It’s just one of those things, again, I feel like there’s so many variables that go into the game that you can’t control. Obviously, you can’t control the refs, you can’t control weather. You can’t control how a lot of things are going to flow sometimes. And again, sometimes even luck plays a factor into it. And there’s a lot of things that got to go right for you to get over that hump. And I think it has less to do with what we did as a team. Say we get the first down, we go down there and score. What’s the conversation they’re probably having?
On still having a chance when Josh makes a crazy play on fourth and 5: Yeah, it is just one of those things where I don’t really like to blame it on anything. I really do believe it's one of those games where we fought hard. Yeah, maybe there was a mistake here and there that you want to have back, but for the most part that’s just what football's about. That’s two good teams going down all the way to the wire. If we’re going to lose like that, hey, I can hang my hat on it. And it sucks because it’s been that team for a minute now. But internally, I won’t say we’re not upset. It sucks because it’s the same team. But it’s just one of those things where I can sleep a little bit at night just knowing that we generally got everybody’s best effort.
On not knowing how many opportunities you’ll get with this QB in his prime, needing to start this all over again: And it’s been that every year. I think in the years past, people have actually believed we had the roster to get it done. This year, nobody believed we had the roster to get it done. So I think that’s what makes it a little bit more special. I think internally it was just one of those things that it would’ve been icing on the cake to win the big one. Losing everybody. Not having any talent. And just really just putting that final hush on everybody that was doubting us. So it sucks, but I’m not mad at this season. It’ll happen. Leave it up to God at the end of the day. Football’s not everything. Super Bowl’s not everything.
On playing with a torn labrum all year: All year. I always had that brace on and stuff, so I played with that. Really just building up the strength and then towards the end of the season, I think my strength was pretty good, so I eventually took the brace off. But battling through that, battling through the groin. It was like a strain, but then it moved to almost like a sports hernia deal. So yeah, a lot man that you push through. Obviously the Super Bowl is one of those things that kind of makes it somewhat feel worth it at the end. A lot of guys are going to be on operating tables, guys that were just pushing through — just to have a chance at it. So you can't be mad at this team.
Ray Davis, RB
On the season coming to an abrupt end: It sucks. I think you look at the season and all the hard work we put in, to go out like that. But I think you really have to reflect on the season as a whole. What we did, what we accomplished. Seeing 17 go out there and making some spectacular plays. Watching the defense do some good things throughout the season. So obviously it sucks to lose, but you look forward to what we got as a team and what we really could look forward to in the future.
On his biggest takeaway from his rookie season: I got to watch “Jimbo” do a lot of good stuff, so I’m going to definitely add a lot to the repertoire there, but I’m excited to be able to just be here. I’m excited to have the opportunity to play for the Buffalo Bills and to have, in my opinion, a pretty decent rookie season. There’s a lot that I want to do and get better at, and I’m excited for. The offseason’s going to be pretty good for me and just to get back here and continue to prove that I am who I am and continue to showcase my ability in all facets of the game.
On why he’s excited for 2025: Because we got 17. When you got Josh, I think there’s a lot of things that can happen and you look forward to, but also just this team, the brotherhood, the chemistry, the camaraderie that we were able to build, I think that’s going to continue to grow and elevate you’ll continue to see that throughout next season.
On what’s missing in this Bills-Chiefs matchup: Just gotta play football. It’s a 50/50 game. That’s the way the game goes. That’s the way life is. There isn’t, in my opinion, one particular thing that’s missing. I think we just got to go out there and execute and continue to play Buffalo Bills football and the rest will take care of it itself.
Amari Cooper, WR
On if he wants to be back: Of course. Just to give it another run, to have another opportunity at doing what we just did, but obviously finishing. So, yeah.
On Allen in in the big game: It was amazing. Josh is an amazing player. He goes out there and puts it all on the line and he does a good job at getting the guys to rally behind him. The way he plays is very galvanizing. So I mean, it’s amazing. Obviously, it wasn’t enough, but just to have a guy like that at the helm leading us, it’s pretty amazing. We always have an opportunity.
On how Allen factors into deciding his own future: It’s a huge factor. Truth be told, it’s the most important position on the field because their position just holds a lot more weight based off of the responsibilities that they have. And whoever’s in that position, on any given team, is going to say a lot about the team and their ability to win in the big moments. So yeah, it’s very important.
Von Miller, DE
On Bobby Babich in his first year as DC: Bobby Babich, man. He beat up all the big dogs. We went over to Detroit. He beat up over on that offensive coordinator. He beat up on the Chiefs during the season. Miami. He did a great job scheming up the guys. He’s a leader of men, too. To go in there and command all those alpha males around and really get them to buy in. If I was a GM, I would love to have him on my squad, coaching my guys. And the same with Joe Brady, too. I would love to have those guys on my team. We’ve really got three head coaches on this roster right now, so it was an honor and a privilege to work with Bobby and to see him grow. And he’s got a bright future as well.
On Mahomes running: The plays where he got out, it was just Mahomes magic. He just saw a little crease and got out. Whether it was a stunt that we had that way or whether it was a blitz that we had the opposite way, he just saw it and we knew in the playoffs, the odds of him running go way up. Because he’s the guy over there. Just like Josh, Josh runs a little bit more in the playoffs and he was just seeing those creases and he was just making it happen. And out of all the stuff that happened, it all came down to a couple of plays. And even though it’s hard to live with, I can live with it.
Ty Johnson, RB
On this season: Just the fun and the amount of happiness I’ve had in here. Obviously I’ve been with two other teams before that aren’t nowhere near how it is here. So that’s kind of one of my biggest things, telling the young guys or guys who’ve always been here their whole career that it’s not like this everywhere else. So just really embracing the community and the love and the respect that everyone has for each other regardless if you’re a player or staff, kitchen, anything. It’s like no other place. So that’s really reflecting on just the people and the relationships you build.
On processing the loss: I got in at 3 a.m., so not really. I’m here right now. It’s a shitty feeling. Kudos to the Chiefs and everything, but we just didn’t play our best ball and some calls didn’t go our way. Yeah, so we’re here. We’re going to be watching. So that’s it.
On his future here, as a pending free agent: I don’t know. We’ll see. If everything works out, that’ll be the case, but I don’t know. Just let everything play out how it plays out. Get some rest. Let the next few weeks go by and see what happens.
This morning, I chatted Bills-Chiefs with Buffalo News beat reporter Jay Skurski:
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