LeSean McCoy

Buffalo Bills' win over Houston Texans keeps heat off Rex Ryan

Published Dec. 7, 2015 12:51 p.m. ET

Mike Garafolo

Rex Ryan knows exactly what Sunday's win over the Houston Texans meant for the Buffalo Bills.

"Man, we needed that," Ryan said to open his press conference, adding later: "At least we're still at it, we're still competing for it. I think, if we would've dropped this one, it wouldn't have looked real good."

Word around the league last week was Bills ownership was none too pleased with the team's recent play. There was even some talk of whether Ryan might be in danger of being the latest coach to be one-and-done with his new team. That seems like a bit of a stretch, but it's clear the Bills' new regime had visions of competing immediately, especially given the trade for LeSean McCoy, the money doled out to key defensive players and 2-1 start to the season.

Maybe Ryan wouldn't have been in danger of losing his job if the Bills had lost to Houston, but there would've been chatter. The team's first home game in nearly a month helped matters. Now, it's back on the road for McCoy's grudge match in Philly followed by another road game at Washington. Those are two tough games and the win over Houston only provided a little margin for error.

-This excerpt originally appeared in Mike Garafolo's Six Points column.

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