The Buffalo Bills had every chance to let their season slip through their grasp in the Wild Card round against the Jacksonville Jaguars. They were on the road with an injury-riddled offense against one of the hottest teams in the AFC. They were trailing 24-20 late in the fourth quarter when Josh Allen took over and willed his team to the finish line.
The most explosive and dangerous quarterback in the NFL led the Bills on a 9-play, 66-yard drive that culminated on his 1-yard run for the game-winning touchdown with 1:04 left in the game. The 27-24 victory earned the Bills a trip to Denver for a game against the top-seeded Broncos in the AFC divisional playoffs.
The Bills will not be at full-strength. They will be without wide receivers Tyrell Shavers and Gabe Davis, both of whom suffered season-ending injuries in the victory over the Jaguars. Tight end Dalton Kincaid was in a walking boot after the game, but he will be in the lineup against the Broncos and should be fine.
It will be up to wideouts Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman and Brandin Cooks to get the job done for Allen. They are the only healthy wideouts on the roster.
Allen is undaunted and is confident that the offense will produce. “Not an ideal situation,” Allen said, per The Athletic. “But I still trust that room completely. Whoever we bring up needs to step up, and we have full confidence that they will.”
Allen will lead offense with 2 passing TDs and 1 more on the ground
Getting the job done against the Broncos will be a major challenge for Allen and the Buffalo offense. Denver ranked third in points allowed, giving up 18.3 points per game. The Broncos were second in yards allowed, giving up 278.2 yards per outing.
It will clearly be a challenge to move the ball, sustain drives and put the ball in the end zone. However, Allen is up to the task physically and emotionally. The Bills have suffered multiple heart-wrenching defeats over the years, but they don't have to face tormentors like Patrick Mahomes or Joe Burrow this time around. This is Allen's time and he will be fully prepared even if he is banged up and sore (foot and finger) from the regular season and the victory over the Jaguars.
Allen completed 319 of 460 passes for 3,668 yards with 25 TDs and 10 interceptions. He remains a dangerous threat on the ground as he ran for 579 yards while averaging 5.2 yards per carry and scoring a remarkable 14 touchdowns. He added to that total with 2 more rushing TDs against Jacksonville, including the game-winner.
Cook leads supporting cast
Running back James Cook is Allen's partner in crime and he led the league in rushing with 1,621 yards on 309 carries. He has 9 running plays of 20 yards or more, averaged 5.2 yards per carry and scored 12 regular-season touchdowns. Cook is capable of taking quite a bit of the pressure off of Allen.
Shakir is Allen's go-to receiver. He led the Bills with 72 receptions for 719 yards and 4 TDs during the regular season and he was at his best in the win over the Jaguars. Allen targeted him 12 times and he caught all of those passes for 82 yards. Kincaid can be a game-changing tight end. He was the Bills' second-most productive pass catcher behind Shakir with 39-571-5 and 27 of his receptions resulted in Buffalo first downs. He also caught Allen's touchdown pass in the 4th quarter against the Jaguars.
Bills defense must sack Broncos QB Bo Nix 3 times
The Bills have not been a dominant defensive team. They ranked 12th in points allowed by giving up 21.5 points per game but they were a bit better in yards allowed as they ranked 7th in that category, giving up 293.1 per outing.
Safety Cole Bishop will play a crucial role for the Bills once again. In addition to coming up with the game-clinching pick against the Jaguars, he led the Bills in tackles this season with 85 stops. He also had 7 passes defensed, 3 interceptions, 2.0 sacks and 4 tackles for loss. Bishop can make contributions all over the field for head coach Sean McDermott and defensive coordinator Bobby Babich.
Defensive ends Greg Rousseau and Joey Bosa will have to put pressure on Broncos QB Bo Nix. Rousseau had a team-leading 7.0 sacks while Bosa contributed 5.0 sacks in his first year with the Bills. Those two must force multiple mistakes from the second-year Denver quarterback or the Bills could face a long and painful day.
