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Little went well for Josh Allen in a frustrating game on Thursday evening against the Texans.

And still he nearly managed to driving the Bills to a win before an late pick in the final minute sealed their fate in a 23-19 defeat.

The quarterback endured back-to-back tackles for loss on the Bills’ last drive, leading to a fourth-and-27, but Buffalo (with seven wins) gained 44 yards on a quick throw from Josh Allen to Josh Palmer, who flipped a lateral to Khalil Shakir.

Following a pre-snap infraction created a fourth-and-6 for Buffalo, Calen Bullock picked off the quarterback's pass at the 9-yard line with under half a minute remaining.

“We had a chance to win it there at the conclusion,” Josh Allen stated. “We did a good job of staying in it and our defensive unit saved us a couple of times. We must find a way, and unfortunately we failed.”

It was difficult for Allen to establish rhythm on a night he was sacked a career-high on eight occasions and pressured four other times. The QB passed for 253 yards with a pair of picks and no touchdowns after producing six touchdowns in a victory over the Buccaneers the previous week.

“When they pressure our QB 12 times, that's unacceptable,” Bills coach McDermott said. “I don’t like that stat at all. It’s just not a healthy way to play and it isn't a good way to preserve our quarterback in good shape for the remaining games. We need to play better.”

Allen was sluggish to rise after a sack in the opening two quarters. He indicated he was OK and that his shoulder “lost some feeling” after he landed on it in an awkward manner. He was questioned about being contacted so frequently during the game.

“It’s not fun,” he said. “I encountered a few personally. I’ve got to be better at throwing the ball away. Too many times, I found myself losing ground.”

Allen surrendered 70 yards on the eight sacks. Will Anderson Jr. had two and a half tackles for loss to top the Houston defense. Another sack came when he nearly sacked the QB near the line of scrimmage, but he escaped and the defender rose and chased him across the field to drop him for an 18-yard deficit to result in a punt in the third quarter.

The Bills played for a second consecutive matchup without receiver Keon Coleman after he was again a healthy scratch after he was tardy to a team meeting before their previous contest. He was previously held out for the opening drive of a defeat to New England in the fifth week after additionally being delayed for a team session.

“Nothing new. We are approaching it day by day,” the coach noted. “I thought he had a improved week, but we are taking it step by step. It was not that it was ignored, but we went with the players that provide the best chance.”

Khalil Shakir led the Bills with eight receptions for 110 yards and Cook had 116 rushing yards and a touchdown.

Allen was frustrated that the team couldn’t make plays in crucial moments.

“Ultimately, we’ve got execute, and we failed to succeed of that tonight,” he concluded. “No matter the situation and any circumstance, we need to discover a solution, and we didn’t.”