ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- If the Buffalo Bills' decision about whether to start Tyrod Taylor or Nathan Peterman at quarterback Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs was as obvious as it seems, coach Sean McDermott would likely have announced Taylor as his starter Monday.

Instead, McDermott stood by his call to start Peterman in Sunday's 54-24 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers and he is still "evaluating" who should start this Sunday.

It might sound ridiculous -- and it might turn out to be a disaster again -- but don't assume McDermott will turn back to Taylor when the Bills travel to Arrowhead Stadium this weekend.

"I remain confident in Nathan," McDermott said Monday. "There are some plays [Sunday] I know he wants back. There were also some plays when you look at it, you say 'that was pretty darn good.' [It was] hard to see -- on the surface, [the] 10,000-foot view -- hard to see that with the result being what it was. When you take it one play at a time and you really look at it, you can say 'Hey, we're moving the ball.' Sometimes you have to throw and you have to catch. But again, I own the decision and that's on me."

No matter how you spin it, Peterman's first full half of NFL action before he was benched for Taylor was historically bad. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Peterman became the fifth quarterback ever to throw five or more interceptions on fewer than 15 pass attempts in a single game, and the first since Archie Manning in 1973. The other three players accomplished the feat in the 1930s.

Yet McDermott has not come off alarmed about Peterman's performance. His message to the rookie was, "You don't lose, you learn," and in that sense, McDermott seems to be embracing Peterman's learning experience. It would not be surprising if the first-year coach sees enough appeal in having the rookie quarterback work through his struggles on the field instead of having him return to the bench with his confidence potentially shaken.

Doing so would be the equivalent of waving a white flag for the 2017 season as the Bills slip out of the playoff picture, but McDermott seems increasingly comfortable with that possibility.

When the Bills surprisingly started 5-2, McDermott said his players used preseason discussion about whether the team was "tanking" as motivation. The first-year coach insisted his plan all along was to win immediately.

Now, as that promising start has spiraled to the Bills' current 5-5 predicament, McDermott has changed his tune publicly.

"We're building," he said Monday. "This is part of the growth process. You go through these pains. It burns; it burns hard. You don't want that result that we had [Sunday]. I've been on the other side of it too. Every decision we make is with the thought of winning now, yes, but also winning the future. That's part of the vision for this organization."

Perhaps there has been a realization on McDermott's part that making the playoffs this season would be an empty accomplishment because title contention is unlikely thanks to a jaw-droppingly awful defense. Since Week 5, the Bills rank 32nd in points allowed per game (32.7) and 31st in yards allowed (407.3).

The play of Taylor and Peterman have contributed to the defense's issues, but it would be tough for any offense to overcome that sort of ineptitude on the other side of the ball. As McDermott evaluates his quarterbacks before likely announcing a decision Wednesday, he should consider whether Taylor would have beaten the Chargers and if Taylor stands a realistic shot of taking down the sliding Chiefs (6-4) and surging Patriots (8-2) over the next two games.

Although it is painfully obvious to the entire country that Taylor gives the Bills the best chance to make the playoffs, McDermott might ultimately conclude that such a chase is not worth it.

The nation might be debating whether the Bills should move away from Taylor in the long term, but McDermott's decision to bench Taylor last week was a clear indication he does not view Taylor as the answer in 2018 and beyond.

If so, why not fold on 2017 and give Peterman the development time he desperately needs?