Bills will have to be much better to continue playoff run

Orchard Park, N.Y. -- Midway through the third quarter, the once jubilant atmosphere at Highmark Stadium had become subdued as the possibility of an unforeseen season-ending loss began to dawn upon the home crowd.

The Buffalo Bills, pre-season Super Bowl favourites and winners of seven in a row entering their wild-card playoff game against the Miami Dolphins, were supposed to roll against a team starting third-string rookie quarterback Skylar Thompson and nursing key injuries all over its roster.

Things went very much according to script for the first quarter. The Bills began the game throwing the ball more aggressively than usual, taking advantage of the ideal weather conditions as Josh Allen moved his team to a 17-0 lead before the Dolphins had produced a single first down.

His synchronicity with receiver Stefon Diggs made their combination impossible to stop early, while Buffalo complimented Allen’s throwing by efficiently moving the ball on the ground.

The Dolphins didn’t appear to have a chance.

Conventional wisdom says a team starting an inexperienced rookie quarterback in a road playoff game is going to have to run the ball effectively to have any chance.

When the Dolphins couldn’t do that and had no choice but to put the game on the inexperienced Thompson, it should have made the outcome assured.

But the Bills have had an Achilles heel all season when it comes to turnovers, having given the ball away more than any team besides the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans during the regular season.

So, when Allen fired a pair of interceptions during the game’s second quarter, one of which they used to produce a field goal and another to add a touchdown and a two-point convert, the game was suddenly tied 17-17. The Bills added a field goal prior to halftime to take a 20-17 lead to the locker room.

The Bills have a habit of letting teams back into games and then having to rally by placing the game on the exceptionally broad shoulders of their superstore quarterback. It’s a place they know well.

Miami’s strip-sack fumble deep in Bills territory early in the third went for a score and a 24-20 Dolphins lead. That was followed by two consecutive Buffalo punts, bringing the Bills back to a familiar place.

Miami’s decision to bring pressure via the blitz kept the Bills’ offence off-balance after the first quarter, racking up seven sacks while confining Allen to just 20 yards rushing.

Although Allen finished the day with 352 yards passing, his aggressiveness with the ball worked against the Bills at times, extending the game with short possessions and giving Miami repeated opportunities to take momentum.

But when Buffalo rookie corner Kaiir Elam picked off Thompson midway through the third quarter it was the kind of break the Bills needed, allowing Allen to do what he does in such circumstances – throwing a go-ahead touchdown to Cole Beasley, followed by another on their next possession to take a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter.

The Bills had a dominant regular season at 13-3 but rarely were dominant in games past the first month of the season.

There’s a sense that when pushed, the Bills can always find another gear. It’s just that it sometimes takes a little drama to bring that out of them. Sunday was no exception.

The Bills also got some help from the visitors.

Thompson missed his share of open receivers with 27 incompletions, and didn’t get much help from receiver Jaylen Waddle, who had three deep passes bounce off his hands.

And had Miami not burned all three of its second-half timeouts avoiding delay-of-game penalties, they might have mounted one more attempt at comeback.

When it comes to playoff football, there are no points for style, and winning ugly is as good as a blowout victory.

But the fact the Bills managed to turn a game where they had both personnel and statistical advantages into such a close affair should serve as a wake-up call to a team with Super Bowl aspirations.