Over four months have passed since the Buffalo Bills‘ 27-10 playoff loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, a frustrating defeat where quarterback Josh Allen and the offense never gained any sort of momentum.
The defense looked gassed from the start. This loss highlighted the weak spots in the Bills roster and has propelled much of the team’s offseason moves.
In the process, Buffalo released wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie, who sounded off Buffalo’s postseason loss during a recent appearance on Tyler Dunne’s “Go Long” podcast. The Bills will have the advantage competing at home in Orchard Park and will be the team best prepared to play in such wet and snowy conditions.
McKenzie said the Bills failed to adjust their game plan with the inclement weather. The 28-year-old also said that the Bengals didn’t do anything all that impressive to win, which didn’t sit well with Bengals star Ja’Marr Chase.
“The Bengals ran basic routes, maybe we should’ve did that, ran basic routes,” McKenzie said. “Like out routes, go balls, you know, instead of running routes that you have to be going lateral or coming back to the football, or turning and running curls and things like that. If we were in a dome it would have been a totally different game.”
Chase, who finished last season with 87 receptions for 1,046 yards and nine touchdowns, clapped back on Twitter.
The former AP Rookie of the Year tweeted, “My first time ever playing ina snow bro. just gotta play at the end of the day roun.”
my first time ever playing ina snow bro. just gotta play at the end of the day roun https://t.co/5nT7h8h9z3
— Ja’MarrChase (@Real10jayy__) May 18, 2023
While McKenzie has since signed with the Indianapolis Colts and won’t be on the roster, odds are that the Bills and Bengals will get a chance to face off once more when the playoffs roll around next year. As it stands, the 2023 NFL regular season schedule has the Bills traveling to Cincinnati to take on the Bengals at Paycor Stadium in Week 9 on Sunday Night Football.
Bengals WR Tyler Boyd Also Took Issue With Isaiah McKenzie’s Comments
Bengals wide receiver Tyler Boyd took issue with McKenzie’s comments and sent some shade on Twitter. On Friday, May 19, Boyd tweeted, “We just different lil man.”
Interestingly enough, Boyd also used the word “basic” when describing the Bills ahead of their ill-fated and ultimately cancelled Monday Night Football matchup on January 2.
We just different lil man
— Tyler Boyd (@boutdat_23) May 19, 2023
Boyd called the Buffalo’s defense pretty “kind of basic” while speaking to reporters ahead of their primetime matchup. “They don’t do too much disguising. Ya know, it’s kind of straightforward. They don’t kinda do all the trickery things that we’ve seen a lot from a lot of defenses.
But again man, they playing us. So, every team kind of prepares differently towards us.
