The Buffalo Bills boat competed against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Monday Night Footballwho took control of the game from the start and pulled out a clear victory. The final score of 47-10 was not even a clear indication of how dominant the Bills were, as they let off some steam late in the third quarter and had reserves on the field for all phases of the game at the start of the fourth quarter.
Quarterback Josh Allen was in top form from the start. The Bills had five possessions in the first half and scored touchdowns on all five. Allen was 22 of 28 for 247 yards and four touchdowns in the first half, and finished 23 of 30 for 263 yards and those four touchdowns on the day. It didn’t take seven years for the Bills to score tonight; it took just 10 plays and 70 yards when the Bills opened the scoring with a seven-yard run by James Cook on their first possession. Although Tyler Bass’ PAT was blocked, Buffalo still led 6-0.
After forcing Jacksonville into a quick three-and-out, the Bills went back to work. This time, Allen led the team 65 yards over 11 plays to a score, finishing the drive with a nifty six-yard touchdown to Dalton Kincaid. Allen bought time, ran right and fired a dart to extend Buffalo’s lead to 13-0.
After Jacksonville cut the lead to 13-3 with a field goal, the Bills exploded for the rest of the first half. Allen threw a touchdown pass to Keon Coleman, the rookie’s first career touchdown, to make it 20-3. Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence threw a terrible high throw that was intercepted by Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin, which was one of the cooler moments of the night. The crowd cheered for Hamlin’s first career pick, and for good reason: Given what he’s been through in the last two years of his life, no one expected such a moment.
That interception put the Bills in plus territory and Allen connected with KHalil Shakir for his third passing touchdown, giving Buffalo a 27-3 lead. After forcing the Jaguars into a turnover on downs, Heda coach Sean McDermott stayed aggressive and called a timeout to give his team a chance. Punt returner Brandon Codrington returned the ensuing punt 36 yards and Buffalo scored again. This time it was Allen who hit running back Ty Johnson, who scored a point and took a 34-3 lead into halftime.
Jacksonville showed some life on the opening drive of the second half, scoring on a pass from Lawrence to tight end Brandon Strange to cut the lead to 34-10. Buffalo countered with a field goal, a 27-yard kick by Tyler Bass, to make it 37-10. After Buffalo forced a turnover on downs thanks to a sack by Von Miller on Jacksonville’s next possession, the game was all but over.
The Bills, however, added a little more and kicker Tyler Bass made a 43-yard field goal to make it 40-10. Rookie Javon Solomon forced backup quarterback Mac Jones to fumble on Jacksonville’s next possession. Defensive end Casey Toohill recovered the ball, allowing the Bills another touchdown drive. Rookie running back Ray Davis scored the touchdown from three yards out to make it 47-10.
It was a big night for Buffalo’s rookies, as Coleman and Davis each scored their first professional touchdowns and Solomon recorded his first career sack. Joe Andreessen also played defense in the fourth quarter and totaled two tackles. The Bills pressured Jacksonville’s quarterbacks, recording five sacks (one each for Von Miller, Casey Toohill, Javon Solomon, AJ Epenesa and Ja’Marcus Ingram). Khalil Shakir led the way in pass receptions tonight (six catches, 72 receiving yards, one touchdown), while Allen was the team’s leading runner (six carries, 44 yards).
The night couldn’t have gone any better. Buffalo came, saw and beat an AFC opponent to improve its record to a convincing 3-0. Josh Allen looked like the MVP candidate we expected him to be, the defense confused a talented offense, and the Bills had ten different players catch passes.
