Josh Allen took a pounding, doled out punishment and delivered Buffalo their first road playoff victory in more than three decades, a 27-24 win over Jacksonville in the AFC’s wildcard opener on Sunday.
With linebacker Devin Lloyd bearing down, Allen found Brandin Cooks for 36 yards just before the two-minute warning and then capped the go-ahead drive with a one-yard touchdown run. On the play before his score, Allen gained 10 yards on a sneak, refusing to go down while being pushed and pulled to the goalline.
“Just trusting everybody on the field,” Allen said. “Great win, great team win. All we’ve got to do is play our game, find a way to win a football game. We’re on to the next.”
Next week, Buffalo have a chance to build a road winning streak after a decades-long skid.
“We got to go do it again. We got to go do it again,” Allen said.
Focused on getting rid of the ball quickly and negating Jacksonville’s pass rush most of the game, Allen completed 28 of 35 passes for 273 yards and a touchdown. He ran for two scores, was sacked just once and played turnover-free football.
It was necessary considering this season’s NFL rushing leader, James Cook, was mostly bottled up, finishing with 46 yards on 15 carries.
Buffalo intercepted a deflected pass on Jacksonville’s final drive to seal the victory. The Jaguars took the lead with 4:03 to play but couldn’t hold on against the league’s reigning MVP.
Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence completed 18 of 30 passes for 207 yards, with TD throws to Brian Thomas Jr, Parker Washington and Travis Etienne. Washington finished with seven catches for 107 yards. Jags head coach Liam Coen will face questions for not running the ball more against one of the league’s most porous run defenses. Etienne and rookie Bhayshul Tuten combined for 118 yards on just 14 carries.
Allen, meanwhile, showed his toughness. He twice ended up in the medical tent in the first half but didn’t miss a snap. He was hammered in the head twice during one play, with Josh Hines-Allen landing on the side of his helmet right after teammate Travon Walker tackled him to the ground. Allen’s left ear appeared to be bleeding, but he got checked out and returned to the field.
Allen later slammed his right hand into the helmet of right guard O’Cyrus Torrence after releasing the ball. And he completed the injury trifecta when his left leg was bent awkwardly on his two-yard TD run. Allen stayed on the ground following that last hit and gingerly walked to the sideline and back into the tent. But, as usual, he powered through and was back on the field making plays.
The Bills had been 0-5 on the road in the playoffs under coach Sean McDermott, starting with a 10-3 loss at Jacksonville in the 2017 wildcard round. The Bills had dropped eight consecutive postseason games on the road since winning at Miami in the 1992 AFC championship game. It had been the NFL’s second-longest, active road playoff skid.
The Jaguars had a chance to tie the game at the end of the first half, but Cam Little was wide left on a 54-yarder. The miss ended a streak of 20 consecutive field goals made for the second-year pro from Arkansas. Little kicked the two longest field goals in NFL history this season – a 68-yarder at Las Vegas and a 67-yarder last week against Tennessee.
