Olean Times Herald

‘And, one thing’s certain, if the Bills hope to get past the AFC Championship Game, they had best find a running game and fast … it’s not fair that Allen has to do both.’

‘Bills rookie kicker Tyler Bass hit two 51-yard field goals, the longest in Arrowhead Stadium’s playoff history. That broke the record of 50 yards by current Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker set a week earlier. Oddly, Bass missed his first extra point attempt, hitting the upright, his third miss in 65 tries this season.’

‘The forecast has been all over the place, but as we get closer to game time, the most persistent prognostication is temperatures in the mid 30s with light winds and a 50 percent chance of rain.’

‘His wins – 237 including playoffs and counting – are easily Hall of Fame-worthy. And Reid’s eight-year record with Kansas City, the defending Super Bowl champion, is glittering with five straight AFC West titles and three consecutive conference championship game appearances.’

‘“I felt like he threw it right to me,” Johnson recalled of his historic play. “At first I was going to kneel down, then I saw all of that open grass and I figured, ‘OK, there’s only one guy I gotta beat … No. 8 (Jackson). But to have (cornerback Tre’Davious White) running with me helped out a lot, he got in (Jackson’s) way and let me go all the way.”’

‘The TD was the first interception for a score for Buffalo in the postseason since cornerback Jeff Burris did it against Jacksonville (38 yards) in 1996.’

‘Those ground stats have to be concerning to Buffalo, which ranks in the bottom third of the league (122 yards per game) defending the run. Indeed, the Bills gave up over 200 rushing yards in two of their three losses: Kansas City (245, which did not rely on Patrick Mahomes’ passing) and Arizona (217, Murray rushed for two TDs). In addition, New England ran for 188 yards while controlling the clock at Bills Stadium and might have won had Cam Newton not fumbled deep in Buffalo territory in the final two minutes.’

‘Over the season, the Ravens are second in the NFL in fewest points surrendered (19 per game), have 23 takeaways (11 interceptions, 12 fumble recoveries), 40 sacks, 121 quarterback hits, 75 tackles for loss, three defensive touchdowns and two safeties.’

‘The opening line favored Buffalo over Baltimore by three points, but it’s now 2½ and will likely fall to two by game time as this matchup is fascinating, pitting two of the NFL’s hottest teams.’

‘Indeed, it could be argued that if Saturday afternoon’s game against the Colts had not been played at Bills Stadium, Buffalo’s season might already be over.’

‘Buffalo won the most important statistic – final score – but Indianapolis prevailed in first downs (27-22), total yards (472-397), rushing yards (163-96) and time of possession (34:17-25:43). The Bills had a slight edge in passing yards as quarterback Josh Allen threw for 324 to the Colts’ Philip Rivers’ 309.’

‘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.’