The Buffalo Bills lose 23-20 to the Houston Texans in Week 5

In a game where the Buffalo Bills needed to come out and dominate from the start to prove they were still “that” team, they did just the opposite.

The Bills got a three-and-out on their first drive against the Houston Texans when quarterback Josh Allen rushed tight end Dalton Kincaid on a 3rd & 3 instead of taking the “normal” Allen route and playing it himself. However, it looked like the Texans weren't going to do much better, as Buffalo's defense kept them behind the offensive line and Houston didn't call wide receiver Stefon Diggs' number once.

And that was about the last time the teams played evenly for the rest of the first half.

While the Bills scored first on the next drive thanks to a field goal from kicker Tyler Bass, it wasn't a feel-good result as Allen couldn't hit any receivers and the three points were the consolation prize. Houston responded to Buffalo's field goal by using third-string running back Cam Akers to get the start since Joe Mixon and Dameon Pierce were sidelined by injuries throughout the Bills' defense. Akers ran in for an easy touchdown, while rookie safety Cole Bishop, replacing the beleaguered Taylor Rapp, missed a clean tackle and cornerback Rasul Douglas tried to make an early exit.

And then it became shockingly similar to Week 4, when the Bills lost in very inglorious fashion to the Baltimore Ravens. Penalties before the snap, Allen misses receivers and Sam Martin looks like he'll end up being the player of the game by making powerful punts and giving Buffalo's defense some room to work.

But Houston wasn't impressed with the space. Stroud hit wide receiver Nico Collins for 67 yards, including 64 through the air, as the Texans wide receiver ran down the middle of the field and into the end zone. Again, Douglas seemed to stop abruptly and turn to look for Bishop, who was once again unable to make a play. The play gave Houston a 14-3 lead, but cost Collins the day as he ended up in street clothes with a hamstring injury. But the Texans didn't need him to win.

The footage at the end of the first quarter showed how inefficient Buffalo's offense has become. Despite having eight more plays than the Texans, the Bills had just gained a whopping 68 yards and Josh Allen was 1-for-7 passing. Houston, meanwhile, had 138 yards of offense, with Stroud completing all five of his passes in the first quarter.

It wasn't until the second quarter that we got to see anything from Stefon Diggs, who finished the day with 82 yards but no touchdowns.

For Buffalo, the best part of the first half of the game was that they somehow went into the locker room only two points behind as the defense rallied behind the play of Terrel Bernard, making his return after two weeks out with a pectoral injury, and Dorian Williams.

At halftime, with the score 17-3, Josh Allen had only completed 6 passes for 56 yards and it looked like we would see him go without a touchdown for a second straight week. Stroud, on the other hand, had completed 12 passes for 187 yards and a score. While Buffalo had 102 total yards compared to Houston's 230 and the scoreboard was very lopsided, other stats showed there might be hope. The time of possession was nearly even, with Buffalo actually holding an 18-second lead. Third-period efficiency wasn't promising for either team, as Buffalo was successful on exactly a third of their attempts and Houston wasn't much better at just 42%.

With the game even more out of control than it showed on the scoreboard, Buffalo began the second half looking like they were going to produce more of the same that we had seen in the previous six quarters, leading up to the last week, saw.

It seemed like Houston would have no problem moving the ball, but they ended up faltering before reaching the end zone on their opening drive. However, they got into field goal range, making it a three-point game.

Then Buffalo acted like they finally remembered they were a football team and this was a competition. They started their first drive of the half with a 19-yard run by Ty Johnson. Allen fought his way to the seven, eventually taking the open field when it was available, and a late hit boosted his run. But then the Bills quarterback hit rookie receiver Keon Coleman in the back of the head with the football, which will likely soon become a viral meme. However, Kincaid managed to force his way into the end zone from the five with a 26-yard throw.

A 10-point game suddenly felt manageable.

Buffalo's defense continued to do its job, and after a forced punt, Allen got the ball and things looked good. Then they stopped. Again. This time with a 4th and 5th place in midfield. But Allen wanted the ball and insisted on keeping his offense on the field. It was the right call, and he hit Coleman for a 49-yard touchdown, making up for the aforementioned “going-to-be-a-meme” play.

Now it seemed like Buffalo was doing Buffalo things. Three points were needed to tie the game.

A Terrel Bernard interception gave more hope, but the Bills couldn't do anything with it and Josh Allen was injured on a 3rd & 8. Another massive punt from Martin that might have earned unofficial player of the game status, followed by a strip sack from Dawuane Smoot and recovery from Dorian Williams and the Bills were back! When they received the ball at the 14-yard line, they gained exactly zero yards and had to settle for a game-winning field goal.

So what do the Bills do with 3:18 left? They do Bills stuff. They spend all the timeouts while getting Houston into field goal range. But then Stroud is called for an intentional grounding and the penalty is a punt rather than a kick.

With only 39 seconds left to play, the Bills do more Bills things, throwing three consecutive incompletions, making Allen's total on the day 9 of 30 for 126 yards. Worse, they give Houston seven seconds. Just enough time to get five yards to field goal range, call a timeout and kick the 59-yard game-winning field goal.

Mismanagement of the clock? Secure. But would we be as biased if McDermott had told Allen to get on his knees and go into overtime? Only if they had lost. This game had a lot more problems than the last three plays. At the top of the list is the lack of threats to keep the defense away from Allen. A line that can't get the same spot it did in Weeks 1-3 is right up there.

No matter what the issue is, Josh Allen doesn't look like Josh Allen, and these Bills don't look like the Bills we've become accustomed to. This is certainly not the same team that brought the Offensive Player of the Month onto the field in September.

Whatever the problem is, it better be fixed or this season will spiral out of control. Fast.