BY: JOE KONZE JR
What a week it has been for the Buffalo Bills.
On Monday night, they dominated the San Francisco 49ers 34-24 in front of 14.2 million viewers, quarterback Josh Allen won AFC Offensive Player of the week for the third time this season, and the architect that constructed their balanced roster, general manager Brandon Beane agreed to a five-year extension.
As a Bills fan, what more could you ask for? Well, maybe another win in primetime.
The Bills (9-3) will play host to the top-seeded Pittsburgh Steelers (11-1) in an AFC matchup at Bills Stadium tonight. The Steelers are coming off of a 23-17 loss to The Washington Football team and are without several key players on their defense. For the Bills, they have morphed into a playoff contender right before our eyes behind the brilliant play of their young, star-studded quarterback Josh Allen. They currently hold a one-game-plus-tiebreaker division lead over the Dolphins and are a step closer to capturing their first AFC East title since 1995.
Here are a few things to watch in today’s matchup.
Last time they met:
The last time the Bills and Steelers met, Devlin “Duck” Hodges squared off against Josh Allen in a Sunday Night Football matchup at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, PA.
With 7:55 left to play, Allen found tight end Tyler Kroft in the end zone for a 14-yard score to help the Bill clinch a playoff spot with a 17-10 victory. The victory secured the Bills’ second playoff berth in three seasons.
Josh Allen finished the game with 13-of-25, 139 yards, 2 TD (1 rushing), 1 INT. The Buffalo defense had four total interceptions, Tre’Davious White (2), Jordan Poyer (1), and Levin Wallace (1).
He said it:
“Josh Allen is a great quarterback. He’s a heck of a competitor, competes every play. He’s very similar to a young Ben who can extend plays in the pocket, and make plays with his feet as well.”
Steelers Defensive tackle Cameron Heyward on Josh Allen
Key Players to Watch
Buffalo Bills WR Stefon Diggs: Since his arrival in March, Diggs’ impact on this offense has been nothing short of impressive. So far this season, Diggs has 90 receptions for 1,037 yards and 4 touchdowns. He eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark for the third straight season on Monday night against the 49ers and currently ranks fifth in NFL among wide receivers, and is tied with Los Angeles Chargers receiver Keenan Allen for first in the league in receptions (90). With Steelers cornerback Joe Haden out for tonight’s matchup, it might be an explosive night for the Diggs/ Allen connection.
Pittsburgh Steelers LB T.J. Watt: Watt is a dangerous, high energy pass rusher that can beat lineman with his speed and power. Right now, Watt leads the NFL in sacks (12), tackles-for-loss (19), and quarterback hits (37). The last time the Bills faced an elite, high-caliber pass rusher was Week 12 against Joey Bosa. Although the Bills were able to grind out a win, Bosa gave them all sorts of trouble all day. If the Bills cannot contain T.J. Watt, it could be a long night for them.
Key Matchup:
Bills OT Daryl Williams vs. Edge TJ Watt:
It is going to be an absolute battle in the trenches tonight against edge rusher T.J. Watt. Bills tackle Daryl Williams will have his hands full and have to find a way to contain Watt’s power, speed, and bend to keep quarterback Josh Allen upright. In the last two weeks, Williams has struggled at times to stifle a few edge rushers, including the Chargers’ Joey Bosa. In Week 12, Bosa was unstoppable. Bosa finished the game with eight tackles, three sacks, five quarterback hits, six tackles for loss, a pass defended, and a fumble recovery. Outside of Josh Allen, I can’t think of a more important player to the Bills’ offense tonight than Williams.
It could be the perfect evening for the Bills to pound the rock as the Steelers are very thin at the linebacker position. They have lost Devin Bush (ACL), Bud Dupree (ACL) for the season, Vince Williams (Reserve/COVID-19 list), and Robert Spillane (knee) landed on the IR after last weekend’s game.
Avery Williamson, who was acquired via trade with the New York Jets on Nov. 1, and Marcus Allen will take the field at Bills Stadium tonight. Williamson is very familiar with the Buffalo Bills as this will be his third time facing the Bills. He has already faced them twice this season as a member of the Jets. Allen made the move from safety to linebacker just before the beginning of the season.
With the Steelers being a little banged up, the Bills may find someone holes in the second level of the defense. We have seen chunks of success this season from Bills’ running backs Devin Singletary and Zack Moss, but we have yet to see the rushing attack dominate the line of scrimmage.
Now that the Bills have solidified a strong starting offensive line in Dion Dawkins, Ike Boettger, Mitch Morse, Jon Feliciano, and Daryl Williams, all the pieces are in place for this rushing attack to finally take off.
Predictions:
Line: Bills by 2 (Over/under at 48.5)
The Buffalo Bills are one of the NFL’s hottest teams right now and are playing elite, high-caliber football. Josh Allen has been stunning and continues to make gigantic strides in year three of his NFL career. The Pittsburgh Steelers are without key defensive pieces, including No.1 cornerback Joe Haden. Without a No. 1 cornerback on Stefon Diggs, this Steelers defense could receive some serious burns from the Bills’ incendiary weapons on offense. Although the Steelers have 11 wins on the season, I think they are pretenders, a paper tiger , if you will. Who have they played? If the Bills can protect the football, keep Allen upright and control the line of scrimmage, I think they will find themselves with their 10th win of the season.
Bills 27, Steelers 17
Josh Allen’s coming off of his best showing of the season while the Steelers are coming off their worst. The Bills have shed the prime time stigma around them and come in as betting favorites against the 11-1 Steelers in a matchup that points in their favor. The Steelers are without integral defenders today like Joe Haden & Robert Spillane and had some weird travel for this game, electing to fly into Buffalo early Sunday before the matchup…have you ever tried to do anything after an early morning flight, let alone play football?? I know I’m shot for the whole day. I like the Bills to hand their second straight loss in a statement win behind a big day from Josh Allen. One thing I’ll be watching is Levi Wallace stepping up against Pittsburgh’s elite group of receivers. He has a tough job being opposite of Tre White, but I think his impact is felt today.
Bills 24, Steelers 20
Tune In:
When:
Today, at 8:20 p.m.
Bills Stadium
Orchard Park, New York
TV:
NBC (Nationally televised)
Radio:
Buffalo: WGR550 (550 AM)
Rochester: WCMF (96.5 FM) and WROC (950 AM)
Syracuse: WKRL (100.9 FM/106.5 FM)
Toronto: Fan 590 (590 AM)
The Sports Desk can be reached at editorialtrainwrecksports@gmail.com
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