Getty Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen scrambles and waits for a receiver to open up downfield.
The Buffalo Bills have suffered disappointing years in the past.
They’ve lost on heartbreaking plays, undergone season derailing injuries, and have ultimately gone through 25 disheartening years without a playoff victory. But that all changed on Saturday when the Bills held off a charging Indianapolis Colts team to win their first playoff game since 1995, 27-24.
In past years, a win like Saturday’s might have meant a little more. If the Bills would’ve taken down the Houston Texans in the playoffs last season, another airport celebration may have taken place. If they would’ve won two years ago, when they broke their 17-year playoff drought, the Bills would’ve just been happy to be where they were. But, that isn’t the case this season.
With a regular season record of 13-3, the Bills earned the No. 2 seed in the AFC behind only the Kansas City Chiefs, won their first AFC East title since 1995, and have one of the best offenses in the NFL. With that type of success, the Bills can’t just have the mindset that one playoff win is enough. Although a playoff victory is a colossal achievement for the franchise, they understand they can achieve more.
“I don’t think guys really understand the meaning and impact of winning a playoff game for this franchise,” Bills quarterback Josh Allen said during his post-game video conference call. “But at the same time, I think we’re not in tune to that because we want more. One is not good enough for us and we have to go find a good way to put our best foot forward and try to go execute next week.”
Allen earned the first playoff victory of his career on Saturday after throwing for 324 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 54 yards and added a third touchdown on the ground. It was a big game for the former Wyoming signal-caller, but the Bills aren’t done yet and they are expecting more of themselves.
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Allen Continues To Cement Himself in Bills History
Saturday’s performance was a prototypical Josh Allen performance. A slow start turned into a historical performance that delivered the Bills another key victory. This time around, Allen joined a few former Bills quarterbacks in franchise history.
With his 320-yard performance, Allen became just the fifth Bills quarterback to throw for 300-plus yards in a playoff game. He is the first to do so this millennium too as the last Bills quarterback to throw for 300-plus passing yards in a playoff game was Doug Flutie in 1999.
Allen also became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for 300-plus yards, tally a 70-plus completion percentage and rush for 550 yards or more in a playoff game.
Allen Changed His Mind on Stefon Diggs Touchdown
Allen and Diggs have been connecting all season long. At the end of the regular season, Diggs led the NFL in both yards and receptions and became the first Bill wide receiver in franchise history to earn an AP First-Team All-Pro selection.
But, at the beginning of the fourth quarter, Allen decided to change a play away from Diggs before hitting him with a 35-yard touchdown pass.
“I had been begging for Dabs (offensive coordinator Brian Daboll) to call that play for awhile and he called it in the perfect opportunity, the perfect situation,” Allen said during his post-game video conference call. “Prior to that play I had actually gotten out of it, I switched it to a different play. Then they went back and kind of gave us the right look, so we got back into it.”
Diggs did the rest as he burned the Colts secondary for his ninth touchdown catch of the season.
That Allen to Diggs connection. 👌
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