The Bills set a franchise record for offensive yards on Saturday afternoon, but a coach who was hired for his defensive acumen still wound up losing to the Dolphins in overtime.
Rex Ryan’s defense was shredded by Jay Ajayi to the tune of 206 yards, which marked the second time he put up two bills against Buffalo this season and the third time they’ve seen a back cross 200 rushing yards this year. Ajayi’s exploits included a 57-yard run to set up Andrew Franks’ game-winning field goal in the 34-31 Miami win and came with just 10 players on defense for the Bills.
Ryan’s job security was believed to be quite tenuous heading into the game and the loss won’t help that. In addition to the defensive failings, Ryan opted to punt on fourth-and-two with 4:09 left in overtime when a loss or tie would mean playoff elimination for the Bills. Ryan said after the game that “every coach in America” would do the same thing and stood by his pedigree as a good defensive coach.
“Whatever happens, happens, but I’ll stand by my reputation,” Ryan said, via Mike Rodak of ESPN.com.
Ryan explained that there were 10 players on defense because cornerback Stephon Gilmore was being evaluated for a concussion, although it’s unclear as to why no one thought to replace him in the lineup. We’ll find out soon if the Bills find the answer for that and other questions lacking and opt to make a change after two seasons with Ryan.