For the Bills, a harsh truth sets in – BOFA Sports

There may be no better time than now for Buffalo to win a Super Bowl title

Here are the Buffalo Bills, down 21-0 against the New England Patriots on a cold, snowy Sunday afternoon in Massachusetts. Maybe the gravity of the moment didn’t hit the Bills at that point, but perceptions from the outside say a window is closing and the opportunity to seize a moment is slipping away before our eyes. You see, Buffalo knocked on the door of at least one Super Bowl appearance, only to see the Kansas City Chiefs (among other AFC counterparts) keep them from breaking through. The prevailing thinking says that as long as the Bills have Josh Allen as their quarterback, the window for a title remains open, but over time, Buffalo teams have done better than start to catch up. In other words, opportunities are valuable, and if one is missed, there is no guarantee that another will present itself. As the Bills looked at what was in front of them, perhaps that thought crossed their minds, and they responded like a team that understood what was needed for the present moment.

Before we get into the details of what happened in the game, let’s take a look at the big picture. The Chiefs, who have been to at least the AFC Championship Game every year since 2018, are officially eliminated from this season’s playoffs. The Baltimore Ravens, who arrived here with Buffalo as a major contender to dethrone Kansas City, sit at 7-7, struggling to win the weaker-than-normal AFC North. Yes, teams like the Patriots and Denver Broncos (the Jacksonville Jaguars can be added to the mix) are emerging as new contenders, but questions about their viability may resonate. That brings us back to the Bills, who played their second game against New England (the Patriots won the first game 23-20 in Western New York) at 9-4, needing a win to keep their hopes of ruling the AFC East alive. Due to the many scars from the playoffs, it is logical to think that they are more strained than the aforementioned newcomers, and that their main contenders are in a weakened state. This is pretty much the perfect scenario the Bills can hope for, and it seemed dangerously close to being a little squandered, or at least harder to take advantage of the situation.

But sometimes we forget that there are four quarters in a football game, and there was still plenty of time for Buffalo to get its act together. Did they ever, as they managed to erase that 21-point deficit to take a 28-24 advantage. New England running back TreVeyon Henderson broke off a 65-yard touchdown run to restore the Pats’ lead, but the Bills would respond to deliver the final blow and solidify a 35-31 victory. Suddenly, a season (and perhaps the best title opportunity remaining) that seemed on the verge of collapse is alive and well for Buffalo. After a team wins, it’s normal to hear that it was the team’s last-ditch effort, but that’s especially true in this case. Allen (who had 193 passing yards with three touchdowns) didn’t need to don the Superman cape, because they remembered they had James Cook running the football (107 yards with two touchdowns). A Ray Davis kickoff return set the tone for the comeback, putting the Bills in position to quickly cut a 24-7 deficit for the second half. Eventually, a much-maligned defense stood up and held New England to just seven points after getting hammered in the first half.

As it stands, the Patriots are 11-3, still one game ahead of Buffalo in the AFC East, but with them unable to finish on Sunday, the pressure to maintain the lead could start to intensify. One thing the Bills have in their favor is experience in crucial games, and it was obvious they leaned on that in this contest. Who knows? Buffalo may still be a wild card that would have to win three games on the road to make the Super Bowl, but the return to New England is a reminder of how dangerous they are. They may not have home-field advantage, but it would be hard to find a team excited to host the Bills for a one-off playoff game, especially with the league’s reigning MVP on their side. Add to that the urgency factor, combined with past heartbreak, and you might get a certain intensity unmatched by anyone.

During title races, there is always a turning point where things get stuck. For Buffalo, this would be the moment if they were last in February, and this seems like the best chance to finally bring a championship back to their passionate fans. Understanding that things are working in their favor (mainly the struggles of the Chiefs and Ravens) could have been what woke the Bills up last Sunday. Maybe the team came together to examine a hard truth. Either way, at least for now, Buffalo is aware of the opportunity in front of them, and it’s imperative that they take advantage of it, because nothing is promised for the future.