ORCHARD PARK, NY – The list of positives Sean McDermott could conjure up after the Buffalo Bills’ 33-6 loss in their season opener to the Chicago Bears on Saturday was short.

The injury situation was fine, kicker Tyler Bass made both field goals and “maybe” the red zone defense stood out early in the game. Other than that, McDermott said, there’s “a lot of work to be done.”

“We didn’t play to our level today,” he said. “That’s not how we play, so we still have a lot of work to do to prepare for this performance.”

The frustration was palpable after a game in which the Bills struggled to get anything done on the ground. Four running backs managed 36 yards on 19 carries, and troubles on the offensive line led to eight sacks. Quarterback play by backups Mitch Trubisky and Shane Buechele was also shaky throughout the day.

The Bears, on the other hand, allowed only one sack and averaged 4.7 yards per carry.

“We didn’t control the line of scrimmage from the beginning to one of our last offensive series when we tried to get a first down on third-and-1 … and didn’t get a yard,” McDermott said. “That’s where the challenge lies. We have to rise to the challenge. We have a lot of work ahead of us.”

Quarterback Josh Allen played some of two drives, making three plays on his first drive and out, then completing five more plays before being subbed out mid-drive at the end of the first quarter — or “ripped to shreds,” as he later described it. He completed two of three passes for 22 yards and one run for 7 yards.

“I wanted to finish the drive,” Allen said. “So I put a lot of effort into getting ready for the game and taking those few snaps. But I understand the reasoning behind it.”

The wind affected the special teams, with returners KJ Hamler and Daequan Hardy struggling to track the ball and punter Sam Martin having an inconsistent day.

McDermott also said the Bills were responsible for the 11 penalties, especially the pre-snap penalties.

“If you put a blood pressure cuff on me during the game, it probably would have exploded,” McDermott said. “When you’ve been around as long as I have, you know you have to try to keep things in perspective. That’s why we’re called coaches, to take a team to where they’re at and make them better. That’s what we did here, and that’s what we want to continue to do.”