Josh Allen and Bills crush the Broncos, setting up a massive divisional battle with Lamar Jackson and the Ravens
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Josh Allen and Bills crush the Broncos, setting up a massive divisional battle with Lamar Jackson and the Ravens

Posted on by Amelia Pressman

All season long, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson have outplayed each other from distance. Allen would have a big game and Jackson would get it done. Jackson would give us a great highlight, and then Allen would stun us with one. You couldn’t talk about the NFL MVP race without including both quarterbacks.

There have been few more exciting matchups in the divisional rounds than the one we’ll see next weekend in Buffalo.

The Buffalo Bills, behind two touchdown passes from Allen, advance to a 31-7 win over the Denver Broncos in the AFC Wild Card Round on Sunday afternoon. They face Jackson’s Baltimore Ravens.

The MVP votes have been submitted, but this upcoming game will help shape the debate for both quarterbacks, not just this season but beyond.

Allen and Jackson are great players who have yet to make it to the Super Bowl as both look to win a championship during the Patrick Mahomes-led Chiefs dynasty. One of them will go to an AFC championship game, probably against the Chiefs. For both electrifying quarterbacks, a big part of their legacy could be at stake.

Josh Allen (17) threw two touchdown passes, including one to Curtis Samuel, to lead the Bills past the Broncos and set up a major divisional showdown with Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)Josh Allen (17) threw two touchdown passes, including one to Curtis Samuel, to lead the Bills past the Broncos and set up a major divisional showdown with Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

Josh Allen (17) threw two touchdown passes, including one to Curtis Samuel, to lead the Bills past the Broncos and set up a major divisional showdown with Lamar Jackson and the Ravens. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

For a moment, it looked like we might not get to the Jackson-Allen showdown next week. The Broncos had a dream start. Bo Nix had a great throw to Courtland Sutton on third-and-8 to keep the drive going. He then jumped in just as he was about to be hit and delivered a great deep pass to Troy Franklin for a 43-yard touchdown. CBS said it was the first rookie-to-rookie passing touchdown in NFL playoff history.

That’s about it for the Broncos’ offense.

Denver’s defense then allowed long, methodical attacks that took up time but didn’t produce many points for the Bills. The Broncos’ red zone defense kept them in the game, even if their trouble forcing a punt between the 20s didn’t help them much.

The Bills took a 10-7 lead on a 5-yard touchdown run by James Cook. They maintained that lead when Denver failed a field goal attempt from the upright at the end of the first half.

Buffalo was able to run the ball and extend drives, but when they didn’t finish them with touchdowns, the Broncos stayed in the game. Denver’s offense just couldn’t take advantage.

The Bills finally hit the play that was the turning point of the game. They were leading 13-7 and decided to go for it on fourth-and-1. Allen stumbled around and eventually found running back Ty Johnson in the back of the end zone. Johnson had a sliding catch and was barely on the inbounds when he hauled it in for a massive 24-yard touchdown. The 2-point conversion gave the Bill a 21-7 lead. Considering how little the Broncos offense did and how Buffalo controlled the clock, that was a huge deficit.

It was a classic Allen highlight that bought time until he could either make a big gain or find a receiver downfield. It’s the type of game we see a lot from Jackson too.

The Bills decided the game on the first play of the fourth quarter. Buffalo caused some confusion for the Broncos by lining up four receivers on the left side of the formation and then having Curtis Samuel cross the field. He was open and maneuvered in the open field past the secondary for a 55-yard touchdown. The game was probably over beforehand, but Samuel’s touchdown made a big splash.

Allen completed 20 of 26 passes for 272 yards and added 46 yards rushing.

It’s not the first time in recent years that the Bills and Ravens have participated in the divisional round. According to Josh Dubow of the Associated Press, the AFC will play in the divisional round with the same four teams as last season for the second time since the merger in 1970. (It also happened in the AFC at the end of the 2011 season.) However, the narrative won’t change dramatically for Jackson and Allen unless they can finally reach a Super Bowl.

There will be great theater in Buffalo next weekend. It’s rare for two quarterbacks to face off in a playoff game when they finish 1-2 in the MVP race in a certain order – without knowing exactly which of them will win. The stakes will be much bigger than who wins MVP.

The live broadcast has ended31 updates

  • Damar Hamlin *almost* intercepted Bo Nix

    Who did Bo Nix throw this ball to? Because the only man in the area was Damar Hamlin. At first it appeared as if he was trying to catch the ball, but upon review it was determined to be an incomplete pass. It will remain a memory in the hearts of Bills fans around the world.

  • The NFL’s no-taunting rule is stupid, part 938927

    Mack Hollins steps over a Broncos player and is reported for taunting. Come on, NFL. That’s not so bad! Are you worried about an epidemic of kids stepping on each other in gym class?

  • Not a great day for Broncos rookie Troy Franklin

  • Bills opened the game with an impressive TD from Curtis Samuel

    Immediately after that wild Allen-Johnson touchdown, Allen throws another big throw, this time to Curtis Samuel, who expertly runs it in for a touchdown.

  • No seriously, that was a WILD touchdown

  • Wow, what a touchdown for the Bills

    Josh Allen was just attacked on 4th and 1. Ty Johnson was in the end zone on his way out.

    But they decided that science and the rules of nature didn’t matter. They connected for a touchdown, and damn what a touchdown it was.

  • Ray Davis is getting hit hard by the Broncos’ Brandon Jones

    Brandon Jones appeared to apologize and take responsibility for the hit on a defenseless player, in this case Ray Davis.

  • Broncos limit Bills to field goal after huge 3rd down stop

    The Broncos again stopped the Bills inside the 10-yard line, robbing them of a touchdown and limiting them to a field goal. Time of this obsession? 4:57.

  • Bills look explosive early in second half

    After just a few plays, the Bills are already in the red zone. They know they won’t win if they only score field goals on every six-minute possession.

  • Time of possession at halftime: Bills lead by a wide margin, but is that wise?

    In the first two quarters, the Bills were ahead in time of possession, but not in number of possessions.

    Buffalo is up almost 2 to 1, but only has a three-point lead. Their second-longest possession of the half, 6:36, resulted in a punt. That’s no better than the Broncos’ 1:35 possession that ended in a punt.

    Could the Bills be hurting themselves by hanging on for so long? You leave yourself less time and fewer chances to score more points when you need to. And if they don’t get points on every single one of those long possessions, they might need them.

  • Broncos DOINK

    It looked like that game-winning Broncos field goal was a good one…until the very loud DOINK sounded from the right upright. Bills hold on to their three-point lead until halftime.

  • Bo Nix strikes as time expires in the 2nd quarter

    The Broncos are trying to make something happen as time passes quickly in the first half. Nix made some great throws and ran for the first time, and now Denver attempts a 50-yard field goal with five seconds left.

  • Afterwards both teams were a bit restless.

  • Josh Allen finally gets a sack!

    Josh Allen was eventually released, which doesn’t happen often. Even rarer? He was fired by another Allen, Kyle Allen. Allen about Allen’s crimes!

  • Broncos steal possession with fake punt

    The Broncos needed another possession after a quick three-and-out, and they got it with a fake punt.

  • Bills held the ball for almost a quarter of the game. The Broncos? Not so much.

    The Bills held the ball for a total of 13:04 on their first two possessions, both of which resulted in points.

    The Broncos held the ball on their first two possessions (one of which resulted in points) for a total of 3:59.

    More time doesn’t always mean more points, but the Broncos definitely need more time with the ball.

  • Bills take the lead with a TD

    Let’s go. The Bills score their first touchdown of the day and take a 10-7 lead over the Broncos.

  • Taron Johnson approves concussion protocol

    The helmet-to-helmet hit on CB Taron Johnson looked tough, but he has passed the concussion protocol and there is a chance he can return to the game.

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