Fans, coaches, and players said their goodbyes to the current iteration of Highmark Stadium for likely the final time last weekend, sending the building off with a warm farewell victory over the New York Jets in the regular-season finale in Orchard Park, New York.
And while it’s hard not to continue to reminisce about the good and bad times shared over the years, there’s too much still left in front of the 2025 Buffalo Bills for anyone to look back now.
Faced with the task of going on the road to take on the Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4 OVR, 5-1 AFCS) for the Wild Card round of the playoffs, however, the Bills (12-5 OVR, 4-2 AFCE) will be going back in a sense this Sunday — back to EverBank Stadium where Sean McDermott stood on the sidelines in his first ever playoff game as a head coach in 2018.
The game marked the end of a 17-year long drought for Buffalo and the start of a run for the McDermott era in Western New York that has landed the Bills in the postseason eight of the last nine seasons.
That last playoff meeting didn’t go according to plan, though, as the team fell to the Jaguars 10-3, effectively ending Buffalo’s season in the Sunshine State.
It was a learning experience for everyone involved to say the least. But, is there anything that the team can take away from previous matchups against Jacksonville, even one so long ago?
“You always try and learn from those situations . . . (but) at the end of the day, it’s a new game. It’s a different team this year and, you know, we’ve got to play and perform up to a certain level or we won’t have a chance to win, but that’s the key to our process,” Bills’ head coach Sean McDermott said when speaking to the media earlier in the week.
“This is X amount of years later. I think I said to somebody the other day, you know, you make it in ‘17 and you’re like (it’s the) first time (in the playoffs) in 17 years and you’re like, okay, (you) don’t know what the future brings, what the future holds . . . you know, you’d sign up for (what we’ve accomplished since that day) back then because you never know if you ever get back again because there’s — you name it — there’s tons of coaches, tons of players who have never even experienced the playoffs at all and had long careers. So, you don’t take it for granted, but you understand the opportunity that’s in front of us.”
As McDermott said, times have certainly changed since that day.
There’s no longer a near two-decade long playoff drought being discussed, and the Bills have captured seven postseason victories with McDermott at the helm since 2020, not to mention two AFC championship appearances under his belt, as well.
Still, one commonality from that postseason game eight years ago remains — the number 17.
This time, however, it’s the reigning MVP quarterback hitched to Buffalo’s wagon being referenced as the team stampedes down South for wildcard weekend and not the postseason drought that haunted Bills Mafia and that still loomed closely in the rearview mirror shortly after McDermott’s arrival.
The Bills are 0-2 all time against Jacksonville in the postseason, however, with the other loss coming in 1996 in Orchard Park.
Even more surprising, despite the Jaguars’ struggles in recent seasons, McDermott and the Bills are just 2-3 against them including that last playoff matchup.
So, will quarterback Josh Allen’s playoff heroics be enough to lift Buffalo to victory on Sunday and right the wrongs of the past against Jacksonville in January?
That story won’t be told until the gameclock hits zero.
But, if Allen can manage to sprinkle in some of his playoff magic here and there throughout the game, Buffalo’s chances of winning will certainly be favorable.
Despite that notion, Allen, who has nearly the same amount of career playoff starts (13) since entering the league in 2018 as the rest of the AFC playoff field has combined (14) in that same time span, knows he won’t be able to do it alone, especially considering how stout the Jaguars are on defense.
Still, he was adamant during his media availability on Wednesday that he can also be better for his teammates on a down-to-down basis after doing some self-scouting prior to Week 18.
Having already posted the best touchdown-to-interception ratio (25-4), the most offensive scores per game (2.54), and most total yards per game (311.0) of any player in the playoffs in a minimum of 10 starts since 2000 according to NFL.com, Allen will undoubtedly be hoping to substantially add to those numbers on Sunday, while helping carry his team to victory in the process.
“I think that maybe there’s more of an emphasis on each drive a little more and just knowing that every single drive matters in the playoffs, especially when you’re going against good teams and good quarterbacks like we’re going against this week. Points are at a premium, you know, (and it’s fine) being okay with . . . taking some easy ones,” Allen said.
“There’s so much out there that I’ve missed (this season), right? Whether it’s getting a little lazy with my feet and not taking a checkdown, and maybe instead trying to force something downfield or throwing the ball away (and) not taking sacks and allowing us to be in field goal range. You know, there’s still so much room to improve. And, I just think I have this extra emphasis, like I said, on points are at a premium in the playoffs and just trying to do everything I can to give us points . . . just trusting reads, trusting feet, trusting eyes, (and) trusting my teammates. I think that’s what it kind of comes down to.”
All will be easier said than done, though, as the Jaguars are no slouch — not in the slightest.
Jacksonville rookie head coach Liam Coen has turned the franchise around in his first season on the sidelines, leading the Jaguars to a division title for just the fifth time in team history, thanks in large part to an eight-game winning streak that started back before Thanksgiving.
Both sides of the ball are playing well under the first-year head coach, with Coen’s offense seemingly humming behind fifth-year quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who has thrown for 4,007 passing yards and 29 touchdowns on top of rushing for 359 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground.
For the season, Jacksonville ranks 11th in total offense (337.4 yards/game), 12th in passing offense (222.3 yards/game), 20th in rushing offense (115.1 yards/game), and sixth in scoring offense (27.9 points/game, 55 total touchdowns) with a red zone touchdown rate of 61.8%, which ranks 10th in the league according to FOX Sports.
As far as more advanced statistics go, the Jaguars’ offense ranks 11th in EPA per play (.06), 10th in offensive success rate (46.1%), 10th in dropback EPA (.108), 10th in dropback success rate (48.3%), 10th in rushing EPA (-.022), and 12th in rushing success rate (42.2%) according to RBSDM.com.
Lawrence’s top targets include wide receiver Parker Washington (58 receptions, 847 receiving yards, five touchdowns), wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. (48 receptions, 707 receiving yards, two touchdowns), tight end Brenton Strange (46 receptions, 540 receiving yards, three touchdowns), and wide receiver Jakobi Meyers (42 receptions, 483 receiving yards, three touchdowns), whom the Jaguars traded for from the Las Vegas Raiders at the deadline in early November.
On the ground, running back Travis Etienne Jr. has led the way for Coen’s offense this season, totaling 1,107 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 260 carries. He has also added 36 receptions for 292 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns in the passing game.
Needless to say, Jacksonville has plenty of weapons to choose from on that side of the ball, and it will take a strong effort from Buffalo’s defense in order for the Bills to come away victorious on the road for the first time in the postseason under McDermott.
Defensive end Gregory Rousseau, who has turned his play up a notch as of late, believes he and his teammates will be ready for the challenge.
“We know we got to show up there (at) 1:00 and just play good ball. No matter if people are saying we’re going to win, lose, tie — like, we just got to go out there and just play good ball and whoever plays better is going to win,” Rousseau, who has tallied four of his seven sacks this season in just the last three games, said.
“It’s fun going on the road. I like it a lot, actually. Being able to just have that mentality of you and your guys versus everybody else. We embrace that and, I mean, we’re excited. We could play anywhere.”
As for the defense on the opposing sideline, the Jaguars have been much improved compared to just one season ago, ranking 11th in total defense (303.6 yards/game, 40 total touchdowns allowed), 21st in pass defense (218.1 yards/game), 8th in points allowed (19.8 points/game), and 1st in rush defense (85.6 yards/game).
Jacksonville is also 2nd in the league in takeaways, averaging 1.8 per game, and 8th in EPA per play against (-.056), 12th in success rate against (43.6%), 9th in dropback EPA against (-.017), 18th in dropback success rate against (47.2%), as well as 2nd in both rushing EPA against (-.138) and rushing success rate against (36.1%).
Even with those numbers, the Bills will still likely try and challenge the league’s top run defense seeing as how they too possess the top rushing attack in terms of yards per game (159.6 yards/game) behind the NFL’s leading rusher James Cook, who has tallied 1,621 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns in what has been a historic fourth season for the former 2022 second-round pick out of the University of Georgia.
“I mean, (the) job (is) not finished,” Cook said when speaking to reporters on Wednesday. “You just got to go out there and play, you know? You (possibly) only got one game left, so every game you just got to play like it’s your last . . . we’re a playoff contender so, you know, we’re going to come out there and play football.”
The Jaguars have allowed opposing teams to rush for over 100 yards just five times this season, however, so if Cook and the rest of the backfield are unable to generate much success on the ground it will be up to the tight ends and wide receivers to pick up the slack for Buffalo’s offense.
The Bills may be down a receiver, though, as wideout Joshua Palmer was held out of practice this week with the ankle injury he has been dealing with since earlier in the season. Palmer is listed as questionable despite failing to practice in any capacity all week.
As for other injuries for Buffalo, linebacker Terrel Bernard (calf), cornerback Maxwell Hairston (ankle), and Damar Hamilin (Pectoral/IR) were all ruled out for the game, while running back Ty Johnson (ankle), kicker Matt Prater (quad), and linebacker Shaq Thompson (neck) were all limited in practice this week and are listed as questionable for Sunday.
Should Prater be unable to go, the Bills will have the option to elevate their newly-signed kicker, Matthew Wright, from the practice squad.
The Jaguars, meanwhile, have just one player listed with a game designation as starting left tackle Cole Van Lanen, who did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday, is listed as questionable with a knee injury.
With that said, regardless of who is on the field, it’ll take a total team effort from the Bills to steal a playoff victory on the road, something the franchise has failed to do since January 17, 1993.
Despite that fact, Bills’ wide receiver Gabe Davis, who was with the Jaguars just one season ago, likes Buffalo’s chances — especially with “17” leading the way.
“Just, when you’ve played in so many playoff games, it’s way more simple. (It’s) just like any other game, especially with this team, you know? The expectations are always there to be in the position we’re in now. So, you know, when it comes to experienced guys and non-experienced (guys) — I think it’s just, again, the game is way more simplified,” Davis said this week.
“Josh just wants to win. He’s a huge competitor, and I feel like when it comes to these moments — this is when he really shines. So, you know, we’ll see . . . there’s no other team I’d want to be in the playoffs with but here, you know? So, (I’m) happy to be back with the guys and wanting to get a huge win with them is always special.”
Kickoff for the Wildcard matchup between the Jaguars and Bills is slated for 1 p.m. ET Sunday at EverBank Stadium.
The winner will advance to the AFC Divisional round next weekend.
Editor’s babble: We are grateful for John Green’s contributions to our blog. You can also find John on X @JGreen_PRsports.
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