That led to the sacrifice of Greg Roman as offensive coordinator.
Sporting News has learned that Buffalo’s front office leaned on head coach Rex Ryan to make a significant change in hopes of appeasing a disgruntled fan base. Thus, Roman was on the outs Friday following a 37-31 home loss to the New York Jets.
Anthony Lynn, a well-respected assistant coach, was announced as Roman’s replacement.
Roman, 44, helped the Bills field the NFL’s top rushing offense in 2015 and played a pivotal role in the development of quarterback Tyrod Taylor, who was recently rewarded with a six-year contract extension that could reach $92 million in value.
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Ryan himself is feeling the heat after defeats against the Jets and Baltimore. Since the NFL adopted a 12-team playoff format in 1990, only 12 percent of teams that started 0-2 reached the postseason.
The Bills haven’t reached the playoffs since the 1999 campaign.
A defensive specialist, Ryan blamed the unit for the shortcomings against the Jets.
“Their offense against our defense, it looked like a mismatch today,” said Ryan, whose team surrendered 374 passing yards and one touchdown to Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. “You look for a difference in the game, that was the difference in the game.”
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Buffalo’s next contest is Sept. 25 at home against Arizona followed by a road trip to New England. The Cardinals and Patriots were both finalists in last season’s conference championship games.
Roman, who received head-coaching consideration while serving as San Francisco’s offensive coordinator from 2011 to 2014, established the type of ground-based, ball-control attack Ryan was seeking when becoming head coach last year. At the same time, Roman helped the Bills field a big-play element as well.
As noted by ESPN, Buffalo’s offense was eighth in the NFL in yards per play and 10th in 20-yard plays since the start of the 2015 season.
Roman is believed to have one year left on his Bills contract.
