San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
BILLS HAND PATS WORST PLAYOFF LOSS UNDER BELICHICK
Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills erased any doubt of who now rules the AFC East.
Allen set a team playoff record with five touchdown passes, including two to Dawson Knox, and Devin Singletary ran for two scores in the first half of a 47-17 throttling of the division rival New England Patriots in a wild-card playoff game Saturday night.
Allen finished 21 of 25 for 308 yards in a game Buffalo scored on each of its seven possessions that didn’t end with a kneeldown.
“That sounds like some Pop Warner stuff,” defensive tackle Harrison Phillips said.
Added Allen: “We had guys coming out here, we were ready to play. Good week of practice. Lot of preparation went into this one.”
Bills 47, Patriots 17
The Bills beat New England for a second time in three weeks and rebounded from an embarrassing 14-10 loss at home on Dec. 6 in which the Patriots attempted just three passes while finishing with 222 yards rushing to counter the blustery conditions.
And don’t think for a moment Bills defensive end Jerry Hughes forgot. He recalled how reporters specifically questioned safeties Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde as being embarrassed.
“It was a little bit on my mind,” Hughes said, accusing the media of antagonizing his teammates and a defense which led the league in fewest yards and points allowed.
“There was a lot of disrespect coming toward our defense. And so we felt like the only way to shut people up is to go out there and play football and let you guys sit and watch and talk,” Hughes added. “And that’s what we’re doing right now, playing football.”
The margin of defeat was the largest in the playoffs for New England in coach Bill
Belichick’s tenure, which began in 2000.
Though the winds were relatively calm Saturday, the Bills were hot in frigid conditions, with a game-time temperature of 7 degrees.
The third-seeded Bills advanced to the divisional round to host either the Cincinnati Bengals, who beat the Raiders earlier in the day, or travel to Kansas City, depending on the outcome of the Chiefs game against Pittsburgh today. A trip to Kansas City would feature a rematch of last year’s AFC championship game, which the Chiefs won 38-24.
Buffalo gained 300 yards of total offense, had 19 first downs and built a 27-3 lead at halftime. The 30-point margin of victory and 47 points scored were the second most by the Bills in a playoff game behind a 51-3 win over the Los
Angeles Raiders in the AFC championship game on Jan. 20, 1991.
“I think we feel good,“Allen said. “There’s some things that we can clean up and work on. But at the end of the day, we moved on, we’re on to the next one and it doesn’t matter what we did today. It’s what we do next week. We’ve got to put our foot forward and be ready for the next one.”
The Bills rolled into the postseason by winning their final four games to clinch their second consecutive division title. After losing 35 of 40 meetings to New England from 2000 to 2019, Buffalo has now defeated the Patriots in four of the past five meetings, coinciding with Tom Brady’s departure to Tampa Bay. throws for touchdowns.
First was a perfectly timed, pinpointed strike into traffic for a 7-3 lead, on thirdand-goal from the 7.
“Joe threw a dot,” said the recipient, tight end C.J. Uzomah. “That was an incredible throw. I was like: All right, bro — is that what we’re doing today?”
Burrow used improvisation to create the other TD.
He maintained his gaze into the end zone while rolling … rolling … late in the second quarter.
Finally, inches from the sideline, he made a twisting throw against the grain to uncovered receiver Tyler Boyd.
A whistle that was audible to some players was blown as the 10-yard pass got near Boyd. Though it didn’t materially affect the play, if the officials had decided one of their own had tooted too soon, it would’ve negated the TD.
Burrow’s gem stood, expanding the lead to 20-6.
“That’s what you expect from the No. 1 pick in the draft,” Taylor said. “Making a play where there’s no plays to be made.”
The Raiders didn’t get a much-needed big game from their offense. Carr had an average performance, made more challenging by his five linemen all incurring at least one penalty. The QB in the first playoff game of his eight-year career, had the game’s first turnover: A strip sack caused by top Bengals pass rusher Trey Hendrickson (exploiting tight end Foster Moreau and Carr not throwing to an open Desean Jackson). It led to three points.
The Bengals (11-7) got away with questionable coaching moves late and, said Uzomah, “got a little tense as an offense in the second half.”
Instead of Bungling, they matched the 1990 Bengals, who in the wild-card round beat a team (Houston Oilers) that no longer exists in a venue (Riverfront Stadium) since razed behind a coach (Sam Wyche) who died in 2020. Allowing the Raiders just one TD on five trips to the red zone, the Bengals finally advanced.