Josh Allen has taken major strides this season and his placed himself firmly in the MVP discussion (Courtesy of Creative Commons).
When the Buffalo Bills and the Los Angeles Rams kicked off shortly after 1 p.m. Sunday, not many would have been surprised by a three-point Bills win. The Bills won 35-32, but what happened over the course of the game is something that won’t be forgotten.
The Bills once again raced to an early first half lead, going into halftime with a 21-3 lead. Quarterback Josh Allen threw two touchdown passes, one to tight end Lee Smith and the other to tight end Tyler Kroft. Allen also rushed for a touchdown in the second quarter.
The Bills came out in the third quarter and scored another touchdown on an Allen touchdown pass to wide receiver Stefon Diggs to make the score 28-3. This lead is a memorable one for anyone who watched Super Bowl LI between the Atlanta Falcons and the New England Patriots.
The Falcons took a 28-3 lead in the third quarter as well before blowing the lead and ultimately losing the Super Bowl. The Bills also blew their 28-3 lead; the difference, however, was the Bills would regain the lead by the time the clock hit triple zeros.
The game turned when Allen threw a pass to Kroft that was intercepted by Rams’ safety John Johnson. The pass was initially caught by Kroft, but Johnson fought for possession of the ball on the ground and it was ruled an interception on the field.
The play was reviewed and the call on the field remarkably stood, to the amazement of Fox’s broadcasting crew and NFL and College Rules expert for Fox Mike Pereira. In a case of simultaneous possession, the play is ruled a catch for the offensive player.
Trailing 28-10, the Rams would go on to score three straight touchdowns, taking a 32-28 lead. The Bills got the ball back down four, needing a touchdown to win the game.
Facing a third-and-22, Allen found receiver Cole Beasley in the middle of the Rams zone defense for a gain of 22 yards and a first down. The Bills would find themselves in another third and long a few plays later, after a facemask penalty on Allen, forcing a third-and-25.
On third down, Allen found Diggs in the middle of the field for 16 yards, setting up a fourth-and-9. The pass on fourth down fell incomplete, but the Rams were flagged for pass interference, giving the Bills new life.
The next play Allen threw a touchdown pass to Kroft and the Bills were ahead to stay, winning the game 35-32. The win moves the Bills to 3-0 on the season, with a showdown against the Las Vegas Raiders next week.
The Bills run defense will face a tough test against Raiders running back Josh Jacobs. The health of linebackers Matt Milano and Tremaine Edmunds will be key as the Bills run defense struggled against the Rams while Milano and Edmunds were playing at less than 100 percent.
The game is going to be a shootout with both teams in the top ten in points per game. Allen will look to keep his MVP candidate form. He has combined for 10 total touchdowns and 1,038 yards through three games, a Bills franchise record.
Raiders coach Jon Gruden has high praise for the Bills quarterback. “He’s got a lot of John Elway playing style. He can scramble, he’s strong, he’s tough. He’s a big-time player,” he said.
The Bills will need to get a sufficient pass rush to slow down the Raiders offense. This will be quite a challenge as the Raiders have one of the best offensive lines in the NFL. The Bills struggled to get a pass rush against the Rams, which allowed Goff to pass for 321 yards.
I think the Bills will be in for another high-scoring close game, but they will ultimately pull out the victory 31-24.