The Buffalo Bills may have clawed their way back into the playoff conversation, but a familiar flaw could make their postseason stay a short one. They knocked the New England Patriots out of a 10-game winning streak last week. But now they head to Cleveland, and ahead of the matchup, longtime Browns voice Vic Carucci added a little edge by pointing out what he sees as some cracks in Josh Allen‘s offense.

Carucci joined the Cleveland Browns Daily podcast and drew a clear line between the Bills teams of the past and what they are now, starting with the absence of one familiar connection.

“When Stefon Diggs and Josh Allen were a duo…that was a duo that was unstoppable. That was what put the Bills in conversation for the Super Bowl,” Carucci said.

“They were a contender, and that was the driving force. I say that because now, the last two years, they haven’t had anything close to that in the receiving corps. They don’t have a threat at receiver. It’s a collective group of guys. They’re morphed into a passing game now that is tight and running back-driven,” the Godfather added.

It’s pretty hard to argue with that assessment. During the four seasons Stefon Diggs and Josh Allen played together, Diggs led the league in receptions, finished fourth in receiving yards, and tied for fourth in receiving touchdowns. He posted four straight 100-catch seasons, tied for the second-longest streak in league history. Oh, and he made Josh Allen a better quarterback.

Allen has acknowledged that himself, saying his lasting memory of Diggs will be “the receiver that helped me become the quarterback that I am today,” and adding that he’ll always be thankful for that.

The Bills never got a Super Bowl out of that partnership. But it’s not hard to argue they were in the mix every single year it existed. That’s tougher to say about the last two seasons. The team stayed competitive, especially last year, but the passing game never carried the same fear factor.

This season has turned into a steady conversation about Allen needing more help on the outside. So far, that answer hasn’t really arrived. And as Buffalo tries to keep its season alive, that gap is becoming harder to ignore.

The Bills’ disappointing season starts with their receivers

The receiving numbers aren’t much different. Khalil Shakir is the one wideout who’s consistently delivered. He has 62 catches and four touchdowns, and he accounts for nearly three-quarters of the team’s receiver targets. Keon Coleman also has four touchdowns, but beyond that, the production falls off quickly.

That imbalance has shown up in Allen’s inconsistent season. Buffalo can win games like this in December. They probably will. Winning in January, however, is a different story; don’t bet on it.