The Buffalo Bills failed to catch the Kansas City Chiefs for the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC for the playoffs, but their blowout win against the New York Jets on Sunday gave the team a chance to treat the season finale as a mini bye week of sorts.
The team’s 40-14 win on Dec. 29 locked up the No. 2 seed, leaving next week’s game against the New England Patriots largely meaningless. While Bills head coach Sean McDermott did not say whether the team would be resting its starters, quarterback Josh Allen hinted that he might get some extended rest.
Josh Allen Looking Forward to Rest
Allen added to his MVP resume with Sunday’s win, throwing for two touchdowns and running for another before being pulled to start the fourth quarter with the Bills up 33-0.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Allen said the team’s locked-in playoff standing will give them a chance to take it easy against the Patriots.
“Not sure what next week brings, but it gives us an option to get certain guys rest,” Allen said. “And we’ll just kind of go with the flow with whatever (general manager Brandon) Beane or (head coach Sean) McDermott are telling our guys to do. But (we’ve) still got to prepare like we’re trying to go 1-0, and that’s our game plan.”
Allen added that he would take McDermott’s lead, doing whatever the coach wanted for the final week.
“I have no idea,” Allen said. “Again, I’m gonna do whatever’s asked of me. I’ll leave it at that. I don’t know.”
The Bills have not had many chances to relax in the final week during McDermott’s tenure. The Bills have been playing for the division title or playoff seeding into the final week in four of the last five seasons. The only season where they were locked in was 2020, when Allen played just one half during a 56-26 win over the Miami Dolphins.
With the No. 2 seed locked up, the Bills have guaranteed a home game in the wild-card round and another home game in the divisional game should they win.
Bruising Season for Josh Allen
The Bills may take a cautious approach with Allen for the season finale, especially given the quarterback’s accumulating injuries this season. The Bills quarterback confirmed a recent report that he broke his left, non-throwing hand in Week 1, an injury that caused him to wear a protective glove for the rest of the season.
“Yeah. Yeah, it’s the left one, so it doesn’t really matter all that much,” Allen told reporters earlier this week, via SI.com.
Allen was hurt again in the team’s Week 16 win over the Patriots, falling onto his right arm and losing some sensation in his hand for part of the game. Though Allen was listed on the injury report ahead of Sunday’s game against the Jets, he said there was not too much cause for concern.
“Good. Just a little sore from this last game. Probably took too many opportunities for them to lay their hands and pads on me. I just gotta be smarter,” Allen told reporters on Thursday, via SI.com.
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Bills QB Josh Allen Drops Hint on Team’s Plan for Season Finale