By Alex “MereKat” LeMere
A massive game for the (10-3) Buffalo Bills coming into Mile High to take on the (5-8) Denver Broncos for some Saturday afternoon football.
The Bills had a chance to clinch the AFC East for the first time since 1995 and end the Patriots’ tyrannical reign with a win. Buffalo’s superstar wide receiver, Stefon Diggs, also just needed one catch to break the Bills’ franchise record for receptions in a season (T-1 at 100 with Eric Moulds) and inch closer to the yardage mark as well. A playoff berth being clinched with multiple games remaining in the season is something I’ve never seen in my lifetime, and they had a chance to do so in this one.
Some matchups I wanted to keep an eye on going into this game that I thought could be the difference makers were:
- Singletary/Moss against a bad Broncos’ run defense. Coming into this game, the Broncos had allowed the eight most rushing yards in the NFL this season and had 3 teams rush for over 200 yards. In comes Singletary and Moss, who have both had their moments this year, to step up and really take advantage of their opportunities.
- Bills’ defensive line versus the Broncos’ offensive line and Melvin Gordon. Buffalo’s defensive line has had its ups and downs this season but recently has started to piece it together against the rush. Gap integrity is my favorite term, and it’s something the Bills have to uphold against a back like Gordon whose coming off of two good games. Getting a pass rush from the interior of the line will be important against a QB like Lock whose easily rattled.
Let’s get into the action, folks
The Broncos received the ball to get this one going. Phillip Lindsay, not Melvin Gordon, starts running back for the Broncos and takes the opening carry for just a couple of yards. On second and 8, Noah Fant is able to bring in Lock’s first pass for 10 yards and the first. Lindsay gets 14 from his next two carries before Lock scrambles himself, into tacklers, for 13 yards and converting the third and 6. Gordon gets his first carry of the game for a yard on first down to the Buffalo 35-yard line before a short Lock scramble and incompletion, which Levi Wallace nearly picked off, brings up fourth down. The Broncos march out newly promoted kicker Taylor Russolino, who is wide right from 51 yards, and the Broncos’ scoring chance is squandered.
Josh Allen leads the Bills out onto the field for their first possession of the game and immediately gets the monkey off Diggs’ back, hitting the receiver for 7 yards. That catch would mark the 101st catch this season for the Bills, breaking the franchise record held by Eric Moulds. Singletary gets going on the ground and the air with a rush for 4 yards before a 2-yard reception to set up the third and 8. Allen hits Diggs short, who runs it out of bounds for 15 yards to convert. Allen is sacked on second and 2 after an 8-yard completion to Singletary and loses the football for a second but ends up with it. Allen rips a hard count the next play and gets the Broncos to jump offsides on a free play he ended up throwing an interception on. Cole “Bease nuts” Beasley gets involved with a grab for 5 yards to convert the third and 4 and then targeted on an incompletion the next play. Allen takes a designed run for 8 yards and brings up the third and 8. Allen was faced with heavy pressure and adjusts his route for Allen, who gets it to him for the first down on a play that showcases how in synch these guys are. Dawson Knox stays hot and brings in the 9-yard pass from Allen and into the end zone for this game’s opening score. Buffalo takes a 7-0 lead behind a 14 play drive.
Lock rolls out to the right and throws a dart to Noah Fant for a nice throw and catch on the first play of the drive for the Broncos. Matt Milano cleans up a stumbling Melvin Gordon for a short gain on the next play, and on second and 7, Lock dumps it in the flat to Gordon, who is once again tracked down by Milano and tackled for a 2-yard loss. Mario Addison and Jerry Hughes collapse Drew Lock’s pocket and take the QB down as he tries to escape the pressure to stifle the Broncos’ drive. The Broncos punt it away and, with a generous bounce, pin the Bills at their own 5-yard line.
Backs against their own goal line, the Bills gets some breathing room courtesy of a 5 -yard rush by Zack Moss. Allen then throws a perfect ball on second and 5 40 yards down the sideline to Stefon Diggs, who brings the ball in…but not his left foot, which steps out of bounds for the completion. A defensive offside gives the Bills a first down, and Singletary closes out the first quarter with a 2-yard dive. Allen’s second and 8 throw to Diggs in the middle is complete this time for the first down. A fresh set of downs, Allen fires for Diggs for a fifth time this game but overthrows it, and the record-breaking receiver can’t bring it in. Moss rushes for 6 yards and sets up the third and 4 where Allen throws a little stick route to, you guessed it, Stefon Diggs right at the marker, and it’s called a first down after a measurement. Beasley gets back into it with Buffalo’s longest play to this point after a catch and run of 17. Diggs makes a SICK diving catch from Allen for another 15 yards down to the Denver 29. A third and 5 arises after a short rush and incompletion, and superman Josh Allen takes it himself and scampers, unscathed, for the 24-yard rushing touchdown. Allen’s legs put the Bills up 14-0 early in the second quarter.
Down two scores early, Lock and the Broncos started to feel the heat to get the ball moving and not let this game out of hand. Lock has Tim Patrick open downfield but the rookie AJ Epenesa leaps and gets his paws on the pass to knock it down. To their dismay, the Broncos get nothing going this drive as Lock’s third-down pass for Jerry Jeudy is into coverage and incomplete.
The Broncos punt it off the Bills’ star returner, Andre Roberts, who muffs the ball on the fair catch, and the Broncos scramble to recover it off the rare mistake from Roberts. The Broncos get it right back in Bills’ territory.
Lock checks it down to Lindsay for 8 yards to the Buffalo 27. Melvin Gordon gets the call on second and 2 for a yard, and on third down, Locks fakes the handoff to Gordon and boots it outside for 14 yards on third down and into the red zone. Mario Addison and the Bills’ defense were completely fooled there by the perfectly executed fake. Lock is incomplete to KJ Hamler on second and 8 to bring up third and 8, where the Broncos’ fool the Bills’ defense again and hand it off on the inside to Gordon, who charges into the end zone. Denver chops into Buffalo lead and trail 14-7.
Roberts retains this return and is tripped up at the Buffalo 24 on the kickoff. Singletary opens the series with a 4-yard carry on first. Allen goes incomplete for Gabriel Davis on second down and then targets Diggs on third down, but good coverage forces it overthrown and incomplete to bring up fourth down. The Bills’ first time in this game, they didn’t convert a third down. Bojo boots it away to Diontae Spencer, who muffs, then fumbles the ball, but ends up with it at Denver’s 10.
Getting some help from special teams and scoring last drive, the Broncos had some momentum and a chance to tie this game before the half. First and 10 and Lock throws incomplete for Fant, who had Milano in coverage. Oliver and Addison stuff Gordon for just 2 yards on second down to bring on the third and 8 for the Broncos. Noah Fant gets the look from Lock again, but some great defense from Tre White sees the pass never gets to him, and another Broncos’ possession is punted away.
With just over 4 minutes left in the first half and a lead in hand, the Bills take the field with a chance to make a statement before the half. Diggs gets his seventh catch of the half on first down for 11 to lead into another first that Allen hits Gabriel (not Gabe) Davis for his first catch of the game and another 11 yards. The Bills pull one out of their back pocket Allen, as Allen fakes the pass and hands it off behind his back to Singletary, who takes it in for the score…but a penalty calls it back. An offensive pass interference from Diggs and a Dawkins’ false start after that absolutely crush the Bills and give them a “first and goal” from the Denver 30. Penalties stay killing us in terrible situations. Allen hits Isaiah McKenzie for 8 yards to get back to the 22, where Allen fires a BULLET to Jake Kumerow for the 22-yard touchdown. That would not only be Kumerow’s first touchdown as a Bill…but his first catch too, and the Bills climb out to a 21-7 lead.
Under 2 minutes to drive and get a score, the Broncos take the field even though there’s a feeling they might already be out of this one without something here. Lock hits Fant for back-yo-back 5-yard completions and then a dump off to Gordon, who takes it for 9. On second and 6, the Bills bring in a heavy blitz on Lock, who gets flustered under pressure and throws incomplete. Well, after the play, the refs call a roughing the passer against Bills’ #52, even though they don’t have a 52, and the Broncos get a free 15 yards into the Bills’ side of the field. Tim Patrick gets the first catch for a Broncos’ receiver in the game for 6 yards and out of bounds. Vernon Butler gets moving from the line and bats down Lock’s pass for Hamler, and on third down, he climbs the pocket in the face of pressure and hits Jeudy deep to Buffalo’s 6-yard line. No timeouts, 11 seconds left, and a first and goal isn’t the ideal red zone situation. Lock takes advantage, though, and hits Fant in the back corner of the end zone, who makes an INCREDIBLE catch from a great throw. There’s not much Milano can do in coverage, and the Broncos trail here 21-13 after Russolino misses the point after.
Halftime Grades:
Bills – B-
The Bills probably deserve to hold more than an 8 point lead going into halftime. They haven’t done much wrong at all, and without the Roberts’ muffed punt, this would be a different story. Allen and Diggs look like the best duo in all sports, and the defense has been solid. Allen has also done a great job with his legs when the Denver defense shows heavy coverages. Fant’s touchdown was just a great play, not bad defense. I won’t kill them here for the 3 straight penalties on the first and goal that negated a super cool Singletary score and pushed them back over 20 yards because they still scored anyway. Without stupid mistakes here, the Bills could be up big. Josh Allen will need to stay hot, and the team needs to avoid more stupid penalties for the Bills to run away with this one.
Broncos – B
Yes, I said the Bills probably deserve to be u more, but you can argue that the Broncos have just taken advantage of opportunities and should trail by less after a missed field goal and PAT from former-XFL kicker Russolino. Lock has looked both erratic and electric under pressure in this one so far and is having trouble with passes getting batted down. The touchdown throw to Fant was very well executed, though, and he might be able to cause some damage if he’s locked in the second half. I expect their receivers to have more than just 1 catch right before half out of halftime. Vic Fangio is actually coaching a good game thus far, and the Gordon touchdown call was a great one.
Andre Roberts gets some retribution for his fumble earlier in the game with a 53-yard return to the Denver 43 to kickstart the half. Beasley gets the deep ball from Allen for 22 yards, and the Bills are at the Bronco’s 21 after just a play. Bausby almost intercepts an Allen pass for Davis to bring on the second down where Beasley picks on Simmons’ coverage again with an open 10-yard catch and run first down conversion. Allen scrambles for 7, but Boettger gets ANOTHER holding, and the Bills are pushed back 10 yards. Allen hits Beasley for 7 and Diggs for 6 for the second and 6, where he hits Gabriel (not Gabe) Davis, whose second effort is just barely good for the first down. What an effort by the rookie. Allen takes it himself after a pump fake and beats the defenders to the pylon for his fourth touchdown of the game. Josh Allen carries the Bills’ lead out to 28-13.
Bass kicks it for the touchback, and the Broncos start their drive from their own 25. On the opening snap, Drew Lock drops back and is sacked by Tre White, who forces the fumble, and Jerry Hughe$ scoops the ball, runs like gotdamn Shady McCoy 21 yards and into the end zone for a Buffalo defensive score! The second straight week for a Bills’ defensive score, and they start to bury the Broncos with a score of 35-13 in the third quarter.
Buffalo’s defense takes the field like a pack of hyenas after the momentum building score and take the field flying. Lindsay gets 4 yards on his first carry before getting swallowed by the defense in the backfield on second down and loses 6. Lock’s third-down pass for Fant is incomplete, and the Broncos have to punt after just over a minute of possession.
With a comfortable 22-point lead at their disposal, the Bills’ offense comes out on the field with no pressure. They don’t sit back idly, though, and Allen unpaunches a missile for Diggs on the first play of the drive and hits him in stride for the 55-yard catch and into the Broncos’ red zone. What a tight window and perfect execution by the combo for their ninth connection of the game. After an incompletion, Allen completes one to Singletary out of the backfield for 6 to the Denver 7. On third down and 4, Allen hits Diggs for the tenth time of the game, but it’s just short of the first down. Instead of going for the field goal, the Bills go for the jugular and go for it with Zack Moss on fourth and short, but after some measuring, he’s deemed short, and the Bills turn over on downs.
Less than 4 yards outside their own end zone, the Broncos start the drive with a false start and pin themselves at their own 2 for the first down attempt. Zimmer and Milano lead a gang of Bills to meet Gordon behind the line of scrimmage for no gain, and then Hamler drops the shaky, second down pass from Lock. Lock tries to be Josh Allen with a third-down scramble but is tracked down and tackled by Milano after a few yards. The Broncos are forced to punt it away again.
The Bills open up with another big play as Beasley plays hot potato with Allen’s pass and brings it in for 20 yards on first down. Beasley gets another 4 yards on a short pass, and on second down Allen’s throw for Lee Smith is incomplete. Stefon Diggs continues to put on a show on third down with a diving catch and recovery for 16 yards. I mean, this is a play you have to see. The catch was just wow. The Bills get a first and goal following an unnecessary roughness and hand it to Zack Moss. Still, there’s another penalty against the Broncos after Ojemudia throws a punch at Gabriel (not Gabe) Davis and is disqualified from the game. The Bills run the formation I despise where we have Ryan Bates and Lee Smith run routes at the goal line, and Allen hits Smith for the score…but Bates, and offensive lineman, I remind you, gets a pass interference to negate it. Moss can get 4 yards on first and goal from the 11 before Allen throws another touchdown to McKenzie; a penalty negates that. Penalties will kill this Bills’ team come playoffs if they’re not fixed. The Bills can’t find the end zone and settle for a field goal. Tyler Bass hits it through from 27 yards, and the Bills’ lead grows to 25 points, 38-13 with 44 seconds left in the third.
A nearly defeated Broncos’ offense takes the field after a touchback with almost no chance of coming back in this one without a score on this drive. On second down, Lock hits his favorite target of the day, Noah Fant, for a first down after a short Phillip Lindsay carry. Melvin Gordon breaks one free for 14 yards and his longest run of the game on first down. Drew Lock throws one deep downfield for Tim Patrick that goes incomplete on the next play, but Tre White stays down on the play. A scary moment that would be a huge loss for the Buffalo defense if serious. He was able to walk himself to the medical tent after the commercial break. Ed Oliver breaks through, and sacks Lock for a 10-yard loss the next play. Jeudy gets a look deep from Lock, but Taron Johnson nearly picks it off…but drops it, and Levi Wallace is injured on the play. Still, Johnson forced the incompletion on third and 22 to force another punt. Andre Roberts calls for the fair catch but can’t get to it, and the ball rolls to pin the Bills at their own 5-yard line.
Zack Moss bullies his way to 9 yards on the first play of the drive for the Bills. Moss gets the call again and takes off 26 yards before getting the next carries for 7 yards. Allen picks up the blitz on third and 3, holds the ball and gets it right to Beasley over the middle for 27 yards on one of the best reads I’ve seen from Allen. A defender swats a bad throw by Allen on second and 9 to bring up a third and 9 just 25 yards from pay dirt. The Bills elect to ride the hot hand, and it pays off as Moss gets 10 yards to convert the first down on the ground and keep the clock rolling. The Bills run the ball three straight times without getting the first down and bring out the field goal unit again. Tyler Bass enjoys the thin air of Denver and kicks it home from 27 yards out, and this one’s over folks, the Bills lead 41-13 late in the fourth.
All the Broncos can do at this point is rack up some garbage time points and hopefully make the margin of defeat a little less embarrassing. The Broncos string together a couple of first downs off short plays quickly and get into Buffalo territory off a Gordon 7 yard run. Lock goes incomplete for Jeudy on second down to bring on another third, but he’s able to hit Tim Patrick for the first down with an accurate 10-yard toss. Out of the two-minute warning, Melvin Gordon rushes ahead towards to goal line but fumbles the ball into the end zone, and his own lineman recovers in the end zone. It’s ruled short but is brought to the booth, and it is reversed to a touchdown. Denver lessens the Buffalo lead to 41-19 after another missed PAT and under 2 minutes remaining.
Micah Hyde leaps into the air and grabs the onside attempt from the Broncos. This game is over with a first down…and DEVIN SINGLETARY TAKES OFF! Singletary takes the first play of the drive for 51 yards and into the end zone to pile it on and take a 48-19 lead. WOW.
The Broncos get the ball and don’t even try at this point. Three-straight rushes that resulted in nothing, and the clock runs out. This one is over.
The Buffalo Bills clinch the division with a 48-19 massacre of the Denver Broncos on Saturday and move to 11-3! THE BUFFALO BILLS ARE AFC EAST CHAMPIONS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 25 YEARS!!!!!!
Fulltime Grades:
Bills – A+++++++++++++++++++++++++
Yes, the Bills are getting 25 plusses on their A grade for the 25 years it’s been since they were the last AFC East champions. This team has never been trending higher after an absolute dismantling of the Broncos on national television. WON NOT DONE. All facets of the game were operating at full efficiency in this one, and the ferocity in the second half showed what this unit is capable of. The defense was defending passes constantly while keeping Lock under pressure. Josh Allen delivered another MVP-worthy performance behind Stefon Diggs’ dynamic showing with 147 yards on 11 catches. It was nice to get 149 yards (albeit 51 from Singletary’s late run) out of the thunder and lightning duo in the backfield. It’s time to really start getting excited about this team, #BillsMafia. Buffalo is abuzz, and we deserve this.
Broncos – D+
I gave the Broncos some respect with my halftime grades…throw that in the fireplace and burn it. They lost any shred of dignity in the third quarter, where they were outscored 17-0, and just fell apart. Drew Lock didn’t have that bad of a game, with his only costly mistake being the fumble that was resulted in a Bills’ score. Melvin Gordon had a decent showing, and I’m surprised they gave Lindsay so many looks with the success he was having. This team has room to grow and has lost the likes of Cortland Sutton and half their defense this year. They were just against an umbrella caught in Josh Allen’s hurricane today.
Kat’s Takeaways:
- Let’s get the bad out of the way…the penalties ARE STILL a problem. Yeah, we killed them, but they’re not a playoff team. I say it nearly every week that this kind of undisciplined play will kill us in the postseason. Three-straight penalties by the offense on first and goal before the end of the first half (one that negated the AWESOME statue behind the back pitch TD) and late in the third quarter when the Lee Smith score was negated by a Ryan Bates OPI and then an Isaiah McKenzie touchdown reception called back the next play due to an illegal formation. CLEAN IT UP.
- I AM BACK ON MY RESIGN MATT MILANO BULLSHIT. Matt Milano was EVERYWHERE tonight and flying around the field on every single play, it seemed. The stat sheet wasn’t stuffed with 6 tackles, 1 TFL, and a QB hit, but he was involved in a lot more than that. Milano looks 100% back after his injury woes earlier this season and played like the playmaking, sideline-to-sideline linebacker we’ve grown accustomed to. If he can be kept for the right price, I think we have to resign him.
- Stefon Diggs and Cole Beasley are an immovable force. The spotlight is on Diggs after his 11/147 game that saw him break the Bills’ franchise record for receptions in a season and close in on the receiving mark…but Cole Beasley went off today as well. Bease Nuts had 12 catches for 112 yards and provided his usual role as Allen’s safety blanket. John Brown should be back next week and well know what Gabriel (not Gabe) Davis can do…watch out opposing secondaries.
- Allen’s growth continues to take center stage. Josh Allen delivered another spectacle of a football game today and continues to dig himself deeper into the trenches of the MVP discussion. 392 total yards, 4 touchdowns, and no turnovers is just incredible, folks. He made so many nice reads today, and when there was no throw, he wouldn’t force anything and made moves with his legs. One play later in the game, he picked up a blitz and audibled to get Beasley into that vulnerable area, stood in the pocket under pressure, and delivered a strike. I love you, Josh Allen.
- WE ARE AFC EAST CHAMPIONS AND THAT’S A BIG DEAL. 25 years of being the stepping stones of the AFC East…we’re finally back on top folks. Just a surreal feeling is surrounding all of #BillsMafia. There might be two games remaining, but I know I have my sights set on the playoffs now. What an accomplishment. No lie, I’ve cried at least 3 times. This is the first time in my life we are division champs and it’s truly magical. THIS TEAM HAS LEGITMATE SUPER BOWL ASPIRATIONS, THERE I SAID IT.
- “How many times do we gotta score?” The offense exploded today, and Josh Allen yelling this one at a ref after having multiple touchdowns called back encapsulated the swagger this team carries with them this season. Pair that with the usual Diggs antics (today he congratulated a corner on finally having good coverage against him) and guys like Dawkins, this makes this team even more fun. If you didn’t enjoy that, then I don’t enjoy you.
Anyway, here’s a bunch of tweets that made me happy from last night, let’ go Bills, baby.
The Sports Desk can be reached at editorialtrainwrecksports@gmail.com
3 Responses
Love reading your articles. Keep going you make it interesting to the very end!!
Fantastic article nephew. Keep up the great work