Buffalo Bills stampede over Denver Broncos, in a 31-14 win in the wild-card round

The 7th-seeded Broncos couldn't overcome Josh Allen and James Cook, as the Bills move to the divisional round against the Baltimore Ravens.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) before the Buffalo Bills wild card game against the Denver Broncos at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park on Jan. 12, 2025. / Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

One game down, three more to go. The Buffalo Bills had a tough task in front of them against a tough, stingy Broncos team, but managed to find a way to take care of the AFC's 7th seed, and secure another home game against the Baltimore Ravens in the divisional round.

Below we'll take a look at the most inspired performance of the game, the part of the game that left us inquiring, the part of the game that requires a better performance, and the most irksome part of the game.

Inspire-A complete game:

Jan 12, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills running back James Cook (4) dives for a touchdown as Denver Broncos linebacker Cody Barton (55) tackles during the second quarter in an AFC wild card game at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images / Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

After a tough opening possession, the Bills went out and scored 31 unanswered points, and never looked back. A little bit of luck along the way, as a doinked field goal from Denver to end the half kept it from being a tie game, regardless though, the Bills took a tough opening shot, and came right back and did exactly what they were supposed to do. They controlled the ball offensively, bullying Denver's tough defense, rushing for 100 yards in the first half, and dominating the time of possession overall with 41:43. James Cook finished the day with an impressive 120 yards rushing on 23 carries, with Allen, Ty Johnson, and Ray Davis contributing as well. Coming out of the half, the Broncos adjusted, attacking the rushing game, but Josh Allen and the passing game began to heat up, as big plays to Dawson Knox and Khalil Shakir made big plays to move the chains, and a gutsy 4th and long 1 decision from Sean McDermott put the ball in his QB's hands, and Allen made a crazy throw to Ty Johnson who made an even crazier catch in the back of the end zone. The finishing blow was the deep crossing route to Curtis Samuel, a player that has stuggled all year, but who made a huge play in this game to ultimately take it out of reach for Denver.

Defensively, a few things broke the BIlls' way, but they played strong coverage for most of the game, and played a dominant, road-grading offensive line extremely well against the run. Several tipped passes that could have been picks fell harmlessly to the turf, and once the Bills had a two score lead, it became very difficult for the Broncos to find space in the passing game without the benefit of play action in the run game. Bo Nix struggled to make plays on his own, but when he did, fellow rookie wide receiver Troy Franklin made several big mistakes that cost them yards, and first downs. Overall, a solid performance from the Bills' defense as a whole, particularly against the run, where they limited Denver to a total of 79 yards on 17 attempts, 43 of which came on Bo Nix scrambles.

Inquire-Run Defense:

Jan 12, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills linebacker Matt Milano (58) and defensive end Greg Rousseau (50) celebrate a sack during the fourth quarter against the Denver Broncos in an AFC wild card game at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Easily one of the best performances from this Bills' run defense this year, as the Broncos' offensive line was a beast of a unit to go against. All-pro Quinn Meinerz, and others such as Garrett Bolles, Ben Powers, and Mike McGlinchey have controlled the line of scrimmage for Denver all year. Today though, the Bills take a shot early, but came back and made some great plays against the run. Will that continue next week against the Ravens? The Ravens may not have the same offensive line that Denver has, but it matters a lot less when you have Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson. The Bills will need to bring everything they have to bear against an almost unstoppable Ravens rushing attack, and still find a way to stay disciplined in the passing game. It is no small task, and that's what is asked of all teams when they're in the playoffs.

Require-Pass Rush:

Jan 12, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau (50) sacks Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) during the fourth quarter in an AFC wild card game at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

As has been the case for most of the season, the Bills were sorely lacking in the pass rush department in this game. The protection held up for Bo Nix, and while some late game pressures from Greg Rousseau and Von Miller helped mitigate a comeback effort from the Broncos, it ultimately wasn't consistent enough throughout the whole game. Next week against the Ravens, the Bills will need to do anything they can to get Lamar Jackson off schedule and out of rhythm, something they weren't really able to do against Bo Nix today.

Irk-Special Teams:

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Khalil Shakir (10) and Buffalo Bills wide receiver Mack Hollins (13) celebrate yards gained on a pass during first half action at the Bills home game against the New York Jets at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park on Dec. 29, 2024. / Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

However the season ends for the Buffalo Bills, one of the things the Bills need to do is find a replacement for special teams coordinator Matthew Smiley. Smiley's unit has been under a lot of scrutiny the last two seasons, and it's been well-earned as this unit has been taken advantage of far too often in 2024. While the return game was strong today, the coverage unit, once again, gave up a fake punt for a first down. While it didn't amount for any points as Sean Payton was unwilling to go for a 4th & 7 in enemy territory, it's still a clear, well-defined weakness for this team and going against a former special teams coordinator next week in John Harbaugh means they will be looking for any error they can take advantage of in this regard. When you're in the playoffs your weaknesses became amplified to a greater degree, and the Bills' special teams issues have defeinitely been a major issue for them throughout this season, and it showed up again in the playoffs. Hopefully the Bills wil be able to mitigate these issues as best they can, and find a way to simply not be a problem in the divisional round against the Baltimore Ravens.

What's Next for the Buffalo Bills?

Buffalo will be at home again in the divisional round, facing off agains the Ravens. These teams played earlier this year, with Baltimore running away with the game early, and cruising to a 35-10 win. The Bills will certainly have their work cut out for them in this rematch, but it seems extremely unlikely that the score will be quite so lopsided as it was in Week 4.

A win in the divisional round means going back to the AFC Championship for the first time since 2020, and it won't be an easy path, but it's not something the Bills can't overcome either. With Josh Allen and Sean McDermott, anything is on the table for this Bills team.

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