Josh Allen leads balanced offense as Bills dominate Broncos for 31-7 wild-card win

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Buffalo Bills, who excelled in the regular season, showcased their multifaceted offensive strategy in the first round of the playoffs, leaving their opponents struggling to cope. Whether it was Josh Allen's 24-yard touchdown pass on fourth down to a sliding Ty Johnson, or James Cook rushing for 120 yards, including a 5-yard touchdown run, the Bills relied on a balanced attack in their 31-7 victory over the Denver Broncos in Sunday's wild-card game.

"I don't think anything particularly stood out. We just wanted to go out there and execute," Allen said. "Ultimately, we just wanted to put our best foot forward, and I think we did that today." Allen completed 20 of 26 passes for 272 yards and two touchdowns, and combined with the running game to amass 210 yards, as Buffalo methodically dismantled the Broncos by scoring on six of their first seven possessions, ultimately dominating time of possession by 23 minutes.

Allen completed passes to eight different players, including a 55-yard touchdown reception by Curtis Samuel to seal the win early in the fourth quarter. “I’ll speak for Curtis. He probably didn’t have the season that he wanted to,” Allen said of the eighth-year receiver, who had just 31 catches for 253 yards and one touchdown this season. “But he’s been working hard, and that’s been our mindset all season, everyone gets an opportunity. And today was his.”

The Bills, five-time defending AFC East champions, became the first team in NFL history to record 30 rushing and 30 passing touchdowns in a single season, advancing to the divisional round for the fifth consecutive year, where they will face the No. 3 seed Baltimore Ravens next Sunday night. The Ravens advanced after defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers 28-14 on Saturday, and previously beat the Bills 35-10 in Baltimore in Week 4 of this season. This will be the second playoff meeting between Allen and Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson, with the Bills having defeated the Ravens 17-3 in the 2020 divisional round.

“Isn’t that what everybody was hoping for?” coach Sean McDermott said. “So it’s going to be a great week, everyone will be looking forward to it, they’re a great team. I mean, they played pretty well in the first matchup, and they’re certainly playing well now.” The No. 7 seed Broncos, making their first playoff appearance since winning the Super Bowl in 2015, were thoroughly outmatched in this game. The Broncos' offense was largely stagnant after rookie quarterback Bo Nix connected with former college teammate Troy Franklin on a 43-yard touchdown pass. Nix completed 13 of 22 passes for 144 yards, and the Broncos punted four times and turned the ball over on downs twice.

The game served as a lesson for the first-round rookie and the Broncos, highlighting how far they still have to go after a promising season. Nix threw for 29 touchdowns this season, just two short of the NFL rookie record. “I’m really proud of these guys. We’ve overcome a lot, and we weren’t favored in a lot of games,” Nix said. “But to get into the playoffs is a special moment for this team. We can build off this moving forward … our goals are changing.”

Meanwhile, the Broncos’ offensive defense was stifled by Allen-led offense, which was content to pick up small chunks of yardage through time-consuming drives. The Broncos, who led the NFL with 63 sacks this season, only managed to sack Allen twice in this game, while the Bills punted just once. “Who got punched in the mouth?” Bills edge rusher Greg Rousseau asked dismissively, referring to the Broncos scoring 2 minutes, 24 seconds into the game. “It’s really just sending a message to ourselves,” Rousseau said. “We know who we are every week, and what we’re capable of doing, and what we’re supposed to do out there. And that’s all that matters.”

Although the Bills did not force any turnovers, they made an impact by limiting the Broncos to just two conversions on nine third-down attempts. Additionally, Cam Lewis made a diving tackle near the Buffalo 14-yard line early in the fourth quarter, pushing running back Jaleel McLaughlin out of bounds on a fourth-and-2 play. With Buffalo leading 13-7, Allen broke the tie by connecting with Johnson for a touchdown with 3:06 remaining in the third quarter. The score was upheld after a replay review, which showed Johnson’s feet were inbounds when he caught the ball.

“You tell me that’s completed, I’m going to agree with it every week,” McDermott said, expressing his trust in Allen’s ability to convert on fourth-down plays. “You guys know that. I trust him, and I trust in him.” Allen’s touchdown pass to Samuel came on Buffalo’s next possession. Cook became the first Bills player to rush for over 100 yards in a playoff game since Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas had 158 yards against Miami in the 1995 wild-card game. Allen's playoff touchdown passes increased to 23, breaking the team record of 21 held by Hall of Famer Jim Kelly.

Next: Broncos: Offseason. Bills: Host the Ravens in a matchup between two quarterbacks who were first-round picks in the 2018 draft.