During his Monday press conference, Bills head coach Sean McDermott shared the team’s plans for Week 18 and how they are deciding who will play and who will sit in Sunday’s game against the Patriots.
Buffalo (13-3) clinched the No. 2 seed in the AFC with its 40-14 win over the Jets which means the team has the option to rest players on the road in New England as the game’s result will have no bearing on their playoff matchup.
McDermott confirmed that the team will indeed rest some key players this week in advance of the postseason.
“What we’re going to do is you’ll see some starters out there playing, and you’ll see some other players who we want to take a good look at. So it’ll be a blend of both,” McDermott said.
Bills QB Josh Allen will start the game, and play only for a very brief time, according to McDermott. Allen holds the longest active streak among all NFL QBs with 114 consecutive starts dating back to 2018.
“He will be out there for a very, very short-lived amount of time and then he’ll be off rather quickly,” McDermott said.
The consecutive starts streak is a milestone for any NFL player, regardless of position, as it shows their durability, longevity and commitment to their teammates. Such is the case with Allen.
“It’s important to him for a great reason. He wants to be out there with his teammates,” McDermott said.
While McDermott didn’t share the full list of starters for this week, he did indicate that the Bills are hoping to have back both safety Damar Hamlin and wide receiver Curtis Samuel.
“Damar hopefully will be coming back. We’ll see how that goes, and getting him some run there this week will be important for us as one who’s been out,” McDermott shared. “And then Curtis Samuel, we’ll see where his situation is this week and hopefully he can get back and get some reps as well.”
As the Bills progress through the week, McDermott said there will be time dedicated to helping players get rested for the playoffs, spending some time scouting for New England and also trying to get a jump on preparation for their Wild Card opponent.
“We want to win this game, there’s no doubt. At the same time try and get a little bit of rest. That’s the obvious,” he said. “And then also try and prepare a little bit if we can forecast a little bit who we might play. So it’ll be a week that’s focused on New England, but also moving our team forward as well.”
