Olean Times Herald

‘Hanging over Buffalo is the fact that it has lost its last six postseason games.’

‘As for tomorrow’s game, Reich admitted, “I’d rather be the No. 1 seed, but I do feel good about our team. The pressure is not on us. We should be loose. We should be aggressive. We should be freed up to play our best game of the year against a really good football team. In reality, no one’s going to give us a chance (Buffalo is favored by 6½ points). It’s that us-against- the-world mentality, and that’s all you need. I don’t care what seed we are. We’re the No. 7 seed, big deal. We’ve got to seize the opportunity. This is the first year for a seventh seed (due to the Covid-19-expanded playoffs). Well, let us be the first No. 7 seed to win a world championship.”’

‘It started with my September prediction that Buffalo, though it figured to be a better team than 2019’s 10-6 wild-card playoff squad, seemed destined to finish 9-7 due to a decidedly more difficult schedule.’

‘Buffalo’s 56 points scored are the most since it beat Miami, 58-24, at War Memorial Stadium in 1966. The victory also marked the first time the Bills have gone unbeaten in the division (6-0) in franchise history and their 13-win season is only the third time they have reached that total as the 1990 and ‘91 squads also went 13-3.’

‘The Dolphins (10-5) would own a playoff berth if the season ended today, but they’re one of five teams with the same record vying for four spots. Thus, with a loss, Miami must hope for a defeat by Indianapolis (home versus Jacksonville, 1-14), Cleveland (home against Pittsburgh, 12-3), Baltimore at Cincinnati (4-10-1) or Tennessee at Houston (4-11).’

‘Meanwhile, the Bills and Steelers, both division champs (East and North, respectively), are guaranteed home games to start the postseason, but it’s the next round where the No. 2 seed is critical. The team in that spot, if it wins the opener, is at home again for the divisional round. Should Pittsburgh occupy that position, if both those teams prevail in the first round, the Bills would find themselves playing at Heinz Field.’

‘In the short term, as nice as Buffalo sweeping the Pats for the first time in nearly 20 years might have been, the immediate impact was bigger. It kept the Bills (12-3) as the No. 2 AFC seed over Pittsburgh (also 12-3) thanks to their head-to-head win over the Steelers two weeks ago.’

‘The point is, this game isn’t meaningless to Belichick — whose team hasn’t scored a touchdown in the past two games — or the vast number of marginal players populating his roster. A lot of them are playing for their jobs as their coach contemplates major changes in 2021 and that makes for major inspiration.’

‘But other than the two Brady-asterisk games, the Bills haven’t won in Massachusetts since ‘99 at Foxboro Stadium, three years before its successor, Gillette, opened. And in those 17 games, the Patriots have outscored Buffalo by an average of 29-16.’

‘Clearly, Buffalo’s ‘D’ has picked it up down the stretch, but it’s the performance of third-year quarterback Josh Allen which is most responsible for the team’s first division crown in a quarter century.’

‘“I’m just so happy for the fans,” he said. “It’s such a cool place to be a part of because of the work ethic and character of the people in Buffalo … Western New York. I love seeing Bills flags wave out in people’s yards. I’m hoping there’s a lot more people buying those flags to give them as Christmas gifts … I’m humbled just to be one part of it.”’

‘Though he didn’t score, Bills wide receiver Stefon Diggs had a monster game with 11 catches for 147 yards. He was also part of the game’s longest play, a 55-yard connection from quarterback Josh Allen. It was Diggs’ third-straight game with double-figure receptions and fourth in the last five. He’s also had seven 100-yard receiving games this season.’

‘The Bills, who beat Denver 20-3 in Orchard Park last season, are 6½-point favorites against a struggling team, which has been inundated with major injuries and dealt so poorly with the coronavirus it was forced to play a home game (31-3 loss to New Orleans) using a practice squad wide receiver at quarterback when all four of its QBs were forced to quarantine.’

‘In assessing Allen’s skills in scoring territory, Fangio noted, “They do a good job schematically in the red zone (inside the 20-yard line). They take advantage of his abilities to run … they’ll run plays where he’s actually running the ball. His scrambling has a big effect for their success in the red zone. People fear his running, scrambling and quarterback runs and sometimes that causes teams to be in favorable coverages for the offense when they do decide to throw it. A big part of (the Bills’ success) is a balanced ability to do everything that he does.”’

‘Allen’s struggles seemed an indictment of Beane and McDermott, who traded up twice to take a non-Power 5 conference QB at No. 7 overall in 2018. But both stuck with their quarterback even as “experts” suggested the selection could be “career suicide.” And this year, they were vindicated.’