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The Buffalo Bills kick off their NFL playoff run with a matchup against the Denver Broncos on Sunday. While they are heavily favored to win their Wild Card Weekend matchup, the playoffs have been tough for Buffalo. Josh Allen has only been to the AFC Championship Game once, losing in the Divisional Round three years in a row. What fatal flaw will prevent the Bills from winning their first Super Bowl?
The Bills finished the season 13-4 with their fifth straight AFC East title. It is a great run of success for a franchise not far removed from a 17-year playoff drought. But their issues from years past still exist, even without Stefon Diggs. They traded the star wide receiver and it worked on offense, as Allen is the MVP front-runner. But they still have one issue they have not solved that could cost them in the playoffs.
It will not come up during the Wild Card matchup with the Broncos. Denver took three chances to win their final game and lock in a playoff spot. They could have avoided playing the Bills by holding on against the Chargers way back in Week 16. But a loss there and a loss to the Bengals forced them into the seventh seed. They are 8.5-point underdogs on FanDuel and are not expected to win this game.
The Bills have not had problems in the Wild Card Round in the Josh Allen era. They lost his first playoff game to the Texans in 2019, but four straight Wild Card wins have that bugaboo behind them. The fatal flaw that will cost the Bills is their inability to beat the class of the AFC.
Bills have struggled against other top AFC teams in the playoffs
There is a lot of talk heading into Wild Card Weekend about the Baltimore Ravens. Lamar Jackson made his first AFC Title game last year but has some grizzly losses, including one against the Bills. That is actually the only Divisional Round game Buffalo has won in this era. If they are going to make the Super Bowl, they will have to beat two great teams to make it.
The Ravens hosted the Bills for a Sunday Night Football game in Week 4. Even after a slow start to the season, Baltimore rode Derrick Henry to a dominant victory, 35-10. They beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Orchard Park in Week 11, but they won't have that game at home if they meet again. These three teams will be the class of the conference for the foreseeable future, but the Bills need to swipe the Lamar Hunt trophy off the Chiefs' mantle to make the most of this team.
The Bills' fatal flaw does not have anything to do with the roster on the field or even their coaching. But Sean McDermott has been the goat of a few losses over the years. The most recent one was their loss to the Texans, where they threw the ball instead of running out the clock which cost them the game. Allen can paper over a lot of issues against most of the league but in big games, they need everyone pulling their weight.
The NFL playoffs are almost here and the Bills have immense pressure on them to finally win the AFC. Without a Super Bowl appearance, the questions will continue to rise around Allen and Buffalo. But if they can slay the demons and win the conference, it will be a celebration in Western New York.
