If the Buffalo Bills are going to beat the Jacksonville Jaguars and go on a run in the AFC playoffs, they are going to have to ignore a key football truism.
Football is a team game and that the play of a superstar is not enough to help a team win any game — let alone a playoff game.
There have been players who have been good enough to challenge this canon. Start with Patrick Mahomes.
The Chiefs quarterback has seen his team play in 5 Super Bowls and win 3 of them. He is surrounded by great teammates, but he was close to a one-man team in his first full season under center was 2018. He completed 383 of 580 passes for 5,097 yards with 50 TD passes and a 9.58 yards per pass average. The Chiefs went 12-4 that season. They beat the Indianapolis Colts in the divisional playoffs before losing to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots in the AFC title game.
Mahomes carried his team as if he was Hercules that season.
Another player that comes to mind is perhaps the greatest defensive player in the history of the NFL. Lawrence Taylor is always one of the candidates for this honor and he was an intimidating opponent to anyone who played against the New York Giants.
The Hall of Famer was basically impossible to stop throughout the decade of the 1980s, and he was at his best in the Giants’ Super Bowl season of 1986. He had a league-leading 20.5 sacks that season and New York garnered its first Super Bowl title by beating John Elway and the Denver Broncos. The Giants had a decent supporting cast and QB Phil Simms had the best game of his career in Super Bowl XXI, but it was Taylor and his powerful presence that carried the Giants to the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
Allen carries the Bills on his shoulders
The Bills are in a similar position. They have their own Superman in Josh Allen, and they need their quarterback to play the best football of his career in the postseason. That has to start in Sunday’s game against the Jaguars and continue throughout the games that follow.
It will not be easy, as Allen is not 100 percent healthy. He had a right foot injury that he sustained in the Bills’ Week 16 game against the Cleveland Browns and he was clearly not at his best the following week against the Philadelphia Eagles. Allen played just one snap against the Jets in Week 18, but he was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice session. He appeared fully healthy, and that’s outstanding news for head coach Sean McDermott and Allen’s teammates.
Allen’s ability as a passer and a runner makes him a unicorn of sorts. He completed 319 of 460 passes for 3,668 yards with 25 TDs and 10 interceptions. He completed an impressive 69.3 percent of his passes. Allen also ran for 579 yards with an incredible 14 rushing touchdowns.
Superman, indeed.
James Cook leads the supporting cast
Superman had Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen, while Allen has running back James Cook and tight end Dalton Kincaid. Cook had a brilliant season running the ball for the Bills and he will have to produce at a high level in the postseason to take some of the heat off of Allen.
Cook was a major work horse for the Bills, playing in all 17 games at a position with tremendous wear and tear. He had 309 carries for a league-leading 1,621 yards. Cook had 12 rushing touchdowns and 9 rushing plays of 20 yards or more. He also caught 33 passes for 291 yards and 2 TDs. The only negative for Cook was his 6 fumbles this season and 3 of them were recovered by opponents.
Kincaid is the most clutch receiver that Allen has at his disposal. Wideout Khalil Shakir was productive with 72-719-4, but he is not a star. Kincaid was limited to 12 games because of a knee injury and he probably will not be 100 percent against the Jaguars, but he needs to make key plays for his quarterback. Kincaid caught 39-571-5 this season and he is capable of dominating on 3rd-down plays and in the red zone when he is at his best.
McDermott’s decision making cannot cost the Bills
Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images
The Bills need their coach to put the team in an excellent position with his decision making. He did not do that in Week 17 when Buffalo scored what appeared to be the tying touchdown against the Eagles in the final seconds when Allen scored on a 1-yard run. However, instead of kicking the extra point, he had the hobbling Allen attempt to win the game with a 2-point conversion.
Allen was playing on an injured foot and the Bills were at home. They had shut down the Eagles throughout the second half, yet McDermott went for the win-or-go-home play.
When a team appears to be at a decided disadvantage to its opponent and is on the road, it may be the right decision to go for the win. But the Bills were not weaker than the Eagles and they were at home. The Bills failed to convert and McDermott doubled down on his decision by defiantly saying he would make the same decision again.
Bills fans are hoping the can rethink his philosophy if the team faces the same issue in the postseason.
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