Professional football is all about speed, and the Buffalo Bills didn’t have enough to beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs for a second straight year.

The speed at which players are able to move is only part of it. The Bills obviously lacked the quick decision-making ability from the sideline that is needed to close games at kickoff with 13 seconds remaining in regulation with a three-point lead.

As coach Sean McDermott refused on Tuesday to break down the breakdowns that unfolded in the Chiefs’ 42-36 overtime win, he boldly said the Bills were “right there” while acknowledging the need for more speed on his defense.

That defense finished the regular season ranked first in most categories, but was exposed as one of the weakest in NFL playoff history by Kansas City, which recorded 30 first downs, 552 yards. and 7.6 yards per game. The Chiefs also finished with a 9-minute advantage in possession time.

“This speed is obviously unique with [WR] Tyreek Hill and 17 [Mecole Hardman] and 13 [Byron Pringle]”, McDermott said. “They have a lot of guys who can fly, and that has an impact on the game, it has an impact on strategy, it has an impact on game planning. And then on the field, as you have seen, it impacts the result, right?

“…We’re going to continue to build that as well, and we’re going to continue to meet the needs, and I think not just this year, but evolving with the way the game continues to evolve, that we have to continue to evolve with him and trying to be in front of him all the time, so that’s what we have to do, and one of the areas we have to keep looking at is matching the speed of the team on both sides of the ball .”

Here are other key takeaways from a high-profile Zoom meeting with reporters that lasted nearly 40 minutes:

■ Kick-off.

Much like the final 13 seconds of regulation, McDermott did not provide details on what led to the decision to kick the ball into the end zone in the play that set up the fateful streak. The kickoff resulted in a touchdown, giving the Chiefs possession on their 25-yard line in no time.

“It comes down to execution,” McDermott said. “We didn’t perform. So hopefully you can understand where I’m coming from. That’s really where I was after the game, that’s where I am now. I said earlier, disappointing…because we pride ourselves on focusing on the details, we pride ourselves on execution and being excellent at situational football. We practice that relentlessly here…so it’s is disappointing to get this result. But it’s even more disappointing to know that we prepare and practice these situations a ton here in Buffalo

“…We’re not going to run away. We all have to face it and learn from it. And I believe we’re going in the right direction as an organization, and I believe we’ll definitely accomplish our goal, l ultimate goal that we have, and that will be part of why – as long as we face it, and that’s what we need to do right now.”

■ Quarterback Josh Allen will be involved in the search for a new offensive coordinator if Brian Daboll leaves for a head coaching job.

“He’ll know,” McDermott assured everyone.

Allen said Monday he would be “a big advocate for someone in the building.”

That someone is quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey.

When it comes to that, McDermott would also rather promote from within.

“That’s where you get your ROI,” he said. “That’s where you try to foster morale and camaraderie again and…just keep investing in the people that we have in our building.

“And there are two sides to that, aren’t there? So they have to show that they have what it takes to put in the time, and you would like to be able to do that in all situations. So we try to do as much as we can.”

■ On Allen’s continued growth as a player and leader after the 2020 season: “There were, I’m sure, questions that were left for people, and I think he answered all of those questions In my mind, he at least has. And you’re always looking, as an organization, to find a quarterback who says to you, “hey, that…he can do this and take your team to the highest level.” And I believe, without a shadow of a doubt, that Josh Allen has answered all those questions.”

■ McDermott would not comment on whether he thought Hill deserved a penalty for throwing a peace sign to Bills defenders as he completed a 64-yard touchdown reception, but thanked Kim Jones for asking the question.

“I appreciate you asking that, Kim,” he said. “You are very observant, but I won’t go any further.”

A penalty there would have given the Bills the option to turn an extra 33-yard run into a 48-yard attempt or take the yards at kickoff.

■ The Buffalo experience.

“It’s a unique place and I’m proud to say I’m a part of it,” McDermott said. “And you know, Buffalo is a winning organization. And I’m happy to say it’s back in that business again.”

■ Not there yet.

Like Marsellus Wallace, the fabulous character of pulp Fictionyou could say, the Bills are pretty far from OK.

“If you saw that plane on the way home, you wouldn’t come away feeling like we were okay,” McDermott said. “I think everyone…has a goal to improve, starting with me, and a commitment to achieve a goal.

“We’re going to be human here and try to rest a bit from this long stretch of the season that we’ve just been through and try to come back to it. So it will be led by [general manager] Brandon [Beane] and myself and trying to get us to where we’re trying to go as fast as possible. We will work tirelessly to achieve this, we will do it the right way and, again, we will continue to try to develop and improve what we are doing here.”

■ Recovery is an essential part of the process.

“It’s part of the job,” McDermott said. “That’s part of what we sign up for. … There’s a mental component that comes with the job, that you have to be able to stay consistent and mentally strong.

“But that’s what we’re made for, that’s what we do and that will be history. And you have to use that as a force to drive you forward and drive even harder towards the goal that we have.”

The Bills carefully and masterfully built a winning culture over five years. Now they’re tasked with making sure over the next five months that 13 seconds of inexplicable malfunction doesn’t reverse course.

It will be easier said than done.

Nick Fierro is the publisher of Bills Central. Check out the latest Bills news at www.si.com/nfl/bills and follow Fierro on Twitter at @NickFierro. Email [email protected]