Buffalo Rumblings
The Buffalo Bills are writing a new feel-good story after winning the franchise’s first road playoff game in 33 years — which dates back to the 1992 NFL season and a road win over the Miami in January of 1993. It’s a fitting win, claiming victory in Florida again. There’s much to digest from Buffalo’s 27-24 win over Jacksonville, but the only thing that matters is that the Bills are moving on after outlasting a really tough and talented Jaguars team.
Once the playoffs begin, stats and pretty play really don’t matter the way most people want to believe is true. The most important factors are turnovers and favorable numbers on your favorite team’s half of the scoreboard. How they get those numbers matters not. I said at halftime that this felt like a bit of a throwback game for quarterback Josh Allen, and that’s exactly what happened.
Jacksonville’s top-ranked defense set out to stop Buffalo’s top-ranked rushing attack and running back James Cook III — and, by and large, that happened. Cook finished with 15 carries for 46 yards, and two catches for five yards. Too often it appeared that offensive coordinator Joe Brady was hell bent on forcing the issue with Cook up gut, and it didn’t pay off. Perhaps the best news out of that is Cook not turning the football over.
But in the aftermath of this win, there’s not enough room to fully criticize all that went wrong when, in the end, the Bills found a way to win. The formula: Josh Allen and an opportunistic pass defense.
Yes, the same defense that’s been taken to task for much of the 2025 NFL season proved to be one of Buffalo’s best attributes on a pleasant afternoon in Duval County. After surrendering an early touchdown in the first half, the Bills’ defense was almost immediately back on the field after a kickoff return fumble by running back Ray Davis. It was a great play by Jacksonville’s special teams, and a huge moment for Buffalo’s defense.
In the playoffs, defenses have to rise to the challenge, and there was no finer moment by the Bills’ stop unit on Sunday than when they refused to surrender a point of any kind off the turnover. With the Jaguars starting inside Buffalo’s 40 yard line, it seemed a given that they’d at least get three points. As Jacksonville continued to move toward the end zone, their offense got greedy. Facing a 4th & 2 near their goal line, Buffalo stepped up and linebacker Shaq Thompson wisely contacted Lawrence early enough during his scramble to force a turnover on downs.
The Bills took advantage of the Jags overconfidence, and turned their most detrimental play into, well… a nothing burger. Immediately after, Buffalo’s offense took possession at their eight-yard line and drove 92 yards for six on a scramble by Allen — and thus, at least a 10-point swing in a playoff game where points were at a premium.
Shaq Thompson was...
