Call him Superman. Call him Captain America. Call him the Winter Soldier. Whatever Marvel or DC character you want to use as a comparison, the bottom line is that Josh Allen is a superhero. He continues to find new ways to break the box score and shatter the record books, and Sunday night against the San Francisco 49ers was no different.
Slippery Start
The snowy conditions definitely played a factor in this game, especially early on. Both teams struggled to find their footing, with players in motion constantly slipping, and receivers unable to cut efficiently and create separation. Buffalo’s first drive was a three-and-out, while San Fran was able to get into field goal range for Jake Moody on their opening possession. Christian McCaffrey’s 19 yard run moved the 49ers across midfield, but Buffalo’s redzone defense locked down to force the field goal.
The Bills found success rushing the football, rotating between James Cook, Ray Davis, and Ty Johnson throughout the night. All three backs got carries on Buffalo’s next drive. Allen sprinkled in short completions to Quintin Morris and Khalil Shakir. Davis dove into the endzone for a five yard rushing touchdown, capping off the 14 play drive that took almost eight minutes off the clock.
Cooking in the Snow
Moody was good from 33 on the opening drive, but missed from 45 on San Fran’s next drive, after a tackle for loss by Greg Rousseau and a delay of game penalty stalled the offense. Buffalo took over at their own 35 yard line, with Cook taking the first carry of the drive 65 yards down the sideline for a touchdown.
A 28 yard carry from Jordan Mason quickly moved the 49ers to midfield, but Buffalo’s defensive line continued to make plays. AJ Epenesa stuffed running back Isaac Guerendo for no gain and Rousseau sacked Purdy on 3rd and 9 to force a punt.
Punter Pat O’Donnell pinned the Bills back to their own three yard line, but Allen found an open Dawson Knox downfield for a 39 yard completion to quickly move away from their own endzone. Cook tallied runs of 18 and 10, and caught a pass for 13 yards to move inside the 10 yard line. On 3rd and Goal, Allen gave Mack Hollins a chance to make a play along the side of the endzone, and the receiver plucked the ball out of the air and kept both feet in-bounds for an impressive seven yard touchdown.
Moody would miss his second field goal of the half, as the 49ers attempted a 55-yarder with four seconds remaining in the first half. Buffalo would go into halftime with a 21–3 lead.
Timely Turnover
San Francisco opened the second half with a 62 yard return from Deebo Samuel. A 14 yard completion from Brock Purdy to Jauan Jennings moved the 49ers into the redzone. At the four yard line, a handoff to fullback Kyle Juszczyk looked as if it would result in a touchdown, but Taylor Rapp punched the ball loose just before he could cross the goal line. Christian Benford scooped up the fumble and ran it back to midfield.
Buffalo couldn’t capitalize on the turnover, going three-and-out after opting to punt on 4th and 2 from San Fran’s 44. The 49ers matched this with a three-and-out of their own.
“MVP! MVP!”
Starting at midfield after a short punt, Shakir was left wide open on a shallow drag on 4th and 2, picking up 18 to keep the drive alive. The next play, Allen threw a slant to Amari Cooper, with the ball placed behind the receiver. Cooper was able to stick his hand out and corral the pass, but was stood up immediately by two Niners defenders. Cooper saw Allen running toward him, and lateraled the ball back to the QB, who ran to the goal line and dove for the pile-on. The play officially goes down as a Josh Allen touchdown pass *and* a Josh Allen touchdown reception! A packed Highmark Stadium was filled with “MVP!” chants after another iconic play from #17.
San Francisco answered quickly with a six play touchdown drive, but the game was already out of hand by that point. Guerendo broke several tackles as he ran for a 15 yard score, cutting the lead to 18. Buffalo went three-and-out again, but regained possession quickly. The ball slipped out of Purdy’s hands on the third play of their drive, with Rousseau pouncing on the loose ball for a fumble recovery.
A great catch by Knox over the middle resulted in a 17 yard gain, setting up 1st and Goal. On second down, Allen ran up the middle, dodged All Pro linebacker Fred Warner, and rumbled into the endzone for an eight yard touchdown. On the ensuing kickoff, Cole Bishop forced a fumble, recovered by Jalen Virgil for the third turnover of the game.
Mitch Trubisky came in at QB for the rest of the 4th quarter. Tyler Bass missed a 49-yard field goal, but the 49ers punted right back on 4th and 14. Strong running from Johnson and Davis sealed the game with three first downs.
Afterthoughts
This was a dominant performance on both sides of the football for the Bills. The rushing attack was extremely successful in a game where you needed to be able to run the ball, totaling 220 rushing yards. Cook recorded 107 yards on 14 carries, while Davis added 63 yards on 11 carries. Ty Johnson was the only running back not to find the endzone, but added five carries for 28 yards.
The offensive line played extremely well, giving Allen time in the pocket and paving the way for Cook, Davis, and Johnson. Despite not having Keon Coleman or Dalton Kincaid, receivers stepped up when they needed to, especially guys like Knox and Hollins that aren’t normally asked to make big plays.
This was one of the best games Buffalo’s defense has played all season. The weather certainly played a factor in Purdy’s lack of stats, but he finished with just 94 passing yards. Deebo Samuel was limited to 20 yards, and George Kittle’s only catch was for seven yards on the opening drive. McCaffrey and Mason produced some explosive runs, but the Buffalo was able to slow down the ground game when it mattered most. Since Buffalo’s offense kept scoring, the 49ers simply didn’t have the time to run the ball like they probably wanted to. Sometimes the best run defense is having a two possession lead.
Game Awards
Offensive Player of the Game: Josh Allen
The QB only completed 13 passes for 148 yards, but gets credited with four total touchdowns on the day, becoming the first QB in NFL history to record a passing, rushing, and receiving TD in the same game. Allen now is the franchise leader in total touchdowns, surpassing Jim Kelly. The betting favorite for league MVP, Allen added another impressive performance to his 2024 slate.
Defensive Player of the Game: Greg Rousseau
Groot registered a sack, QB hit, three tackles for loss, and a fumble recovery in this dominant defensive performance. He’s been Buffalo’s most consistent pass rusher, and his ability to also defend the run makes him extremely valuable for weather games like SNF.
MVP: Sean McDermott
Coach McDermott has led the Bills to their fifth straight AFC East title. Not only is it impressive to have the division clinched by Week 13, the Bills did it in a season where many national pundits picked the Bills to miss the playoffs entirely, due to the mass departure of big names over the offseason. Now, the Bills have a legitimate shot at the #1 seed in the AFC, and are getting healthier each week. I’m not sure if he’ll get the national recognition he deserves, but Sean McDermott has been arguably the best coach in the NFL this season.
What’s Next: Bills @ Rams 12/8
Buffalo travels to the west coast to take on the 6–6 LA Rams, coming off a narrow victory over the New Orleans Saints. Now with a fully healthy offense, Matthew Stafford, Kyren Williams, Puka Nacua, and Cooper Kupp will be quite the challenge for Buffalo’s defense.
Editor’s babble: Many thanks to Colin Richey for his contributions to our blog. You can also find Colin on Xwitter @whatthef00tball.
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