ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Here are my five takeaways from the Buffalo Bills’ 47-17 wild-card playoff victory Saturday night against the New England Patriots at Highmark Stadium:
1. Now that’s how you start a postseason run.
Yes, I said “run.”
What the Bills did against the Patriots looked a whole lot larger than winning a wild-card game. This was the beginning of something that won’t be ending any time soon. It is hardly too soon to say that all of that offseason/preseason Super Bowl talk has as much merit as ever.
There was understandable concern when the Bills didn’t fulfill expectations of landing the top seed in the AFC, giving them home-field advantage through the playoffs and a two-game path to the Super Bowl.
But the dominance they displayed against the Patriots, doing virtually whatever they pleased from start to finish, makes that mostly irrelevant. Statements don’t come much louder than the one the Bills made to the rest of the NFL by ignoring bitterly cold temperatures and functioning with machine-like precision.
In outgaining the Patriots, 482 yards to 305, the Bills scored touchdowns on all of their possessions, except when they kneeled down at the end of the game.
The likelihood that they’ll have to win twice on the road to get to Los Angeles for Super Bowl LVI doesn’t matter. When you’re playing at the level the Bills displayed Saturday night, road games are simply geography. A contender is a contender regardless of location.
2. Josh Allen showed exceptional command while quickly finding his rhythm and keeping it throughout the game.
Allen was constantly a step ahead of the Patriots’ defense in completing 21 of 25 passes for 308 yards and five touchdowns, without a turnover, for a passer rating of 157.6. He also ran six times for 66 yards, including a 26-yard scramble that helped set up the Bills’ first touchdown.
So much for Bill Belichick’s brilliance in putting together a scheme that would minimize Allen’s impact as a thrower and runner.
Allen and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll never allowed the Pats’ D to feel an ounce of confidence, and it showed in the body language of New England’s defenders. From early on, they looked as if they wanted no part of the fury Bills were bringing with their game plan or execution.
3. The Bills’ defense lived up to every bit of its No. 1 ranking in fewest points and yards allowed, and in pass defense.
They made Mac Jones look every bit like a rookie making his first postseason appearance as a pro. They intercepted him twice, sacked him three times and hurried him repeatedly. His two TD passes came in garbage time.
Leslie Frazier employed a variety of coverages that Jones struggled to decipher. He frequently looked confused and frustrated, finding few open targets.
Even more impressive, though, was the fact the Bills limited the Patriots to 89 rushing yards, burying the memory of the Monday night nightmare when New England trampled them on the ground.
4. Let’s give Sean McDermott major props for having his team ready to deliver as good a showing as it has all season.
Things were looking a bit wobbly the past couple of weeks. It’s fair to say the Bills, at times, played down to the level of the lowly opponents they faced: Atlanta and the New York Jets.
I contend that some of that, especially against the Jets, was a matter of expending just enough to get the job done while saving themselves for the playoffs.
5. I’ll say it again: There isn’t an opponent left in the playoffs that should be viewed as having an edge over the Bills.
As well as the Kansas City Chiefs have been playing, they’re still the team the Bills beat handily at Arrowhead Stadium on Oct. 10. As well as the Tennessee Titans played (particularly after losing their best player, running back Derrick Henry), they’re still the team the Bills arguably fell one slip by Allen short of beating in Nashville. Cincinnati is intriguing, but not in the Bills’ class.
It is not an overstatement to say the Bills are playing championship-caliber football. Now, it’s time for them to take care of some unfinished business.
RELATED VIDEO: