ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Josh Allen, game manager?
Not long ago, Buffalo Bills fans laughed at how Allen was just a big ol’ golden retriever of a quarterback — big, rambunctious and eager to please. With that, of course, were those moments when he’d roll around in his own filth or knock over the living room lamp.
Allen generated a load of touchdowns, but could made mistakes like nobody’s business. Frustrations brought risky behavior. Heroball temptations proved calamitous.
For the past month, the Bills’ offense has struggled to find itself. Even in Monday night’s victory over the New York Jets, sloppiness and disregard were rampant.
So there the Bills were Sunday afternoon, getting booed at home.
They deserved it. A Temu football team, the Tennessee Titans, was dominating them. Although the Bills scored a touchdown on one of their first-half possessions, they totaled 17 plays for 24 yards on their other five drives and trailed 10-7 at halftime.
But Allen and the disjointed offense didn’t panic. For the second straight week, the Bills won through patience. After they fell behind by two scores early, they didn’t flinch, scoring all their points uninterrupted for a 34-10 victory in Highmark Stadium.
Buffalo seamlessly incorporated new receiver Amari Cooper, dealt with receiver Curtis Samuel’s game-ending shoulder injury on the opening drive and still pummeled Tennessee into submission.
Allen made his 100th NFL start with a striking performance compared to the University of Wyoming gunslinger who arrived here six years ago.
“Seems like he’s had 100 amazing performances,” Cooper said of his first game with Allen. “I guess this was no different. He went out there; he did his thing like he usually does.”
Well, not exactly like Allen has done over his entire career, Amari, but that’s the way it has been this season.
For the ninth straight game, including the playoffs, Allen didn’t throw an interception. He hasn’t since last year’s regular-season finale against the Miami Dolphins, a span of 373 attempts. He became the third quarterback in NFL history to begin a season with double-digit touchdown passes and no interceptions through seven games, joining Milt Plum in 1960 and Alex Smith in 2017.
“It controls the momentum,” Bills left tackle Dion Dawkins said. “When interceptions occur, it changes a game’s dynamic quick. Three-and-out is better than an interception any day.”
Allen has been lucky. The Jets and Baltimore Ravens defenders dropped a few Allen passes that hit them in their hands. Analytics site For The Numbers tracks “interception-worthy throws,” those that are considered likely but weren’t for whatever reason, and had Allen down for five such passes entering Sunday. Pro Football Focus’ “turnover-worthy plays” metric, which includes fumbles, had Allen at 5.0 percent, the highest since the 5.1 percent his rookie season and second only to Jalen Hurts among quarterbacks with at least 100 dropbacks.
That said, before last postseason, Allen hadn’t gone consecutive games without an interception since December 2022. Last year, he was picked off in all but three regular-season games.
“We just found a way,” Allen said. “It didn’t look like it was going to be pretty in the first half, but to win the way we did speaks a lot to the guys in that locker room.”
Cooper dropped the first pass Allen threw to him. A catch would have converted a third-and-1, but instead led to one of four three-and-out punts. Buffalo’s longest drive before halftime lasted five plays, netted 2 yards and took 2:53 off the clock.
At the break, Tennessee led in first downs 13-3, in yards 218-90, in plays 38-20 and had the ball 9:38 longer.
“We hear the fans,” Dawkins said of the boos. “We’re living it. We’re frustrated, too. But just give it a second.
“We’ll get on our beat. Once we do, as you see, it’s a scary thing.”
As team identities around the NFL emerge, the Bills will be a calm bunch as long as Allen remains composed. Yes, they flirted with disaster against the Jets, but the Bills played with a relentlessness that underscored the road to the AFC East title still goes through them.
Buffalo scored on every possession in the second half, and Cooper was instrumental.
His second target was a 12-yard touchdown to put Buffalo ahead less than five minutes into the third quarter. His third target, a 19-yard contested grab along the left sideline on the next drive, set up a 28-yard Tyler Bass field goal. Cooper’s fourth target, a 27-yard catch-and-run, came four plays before Allen spotted tailback Ty Johnson for a 4-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter. Cooper’s fifth target was an 8-yard catch for a first down four plays before Bass kicked a 30-yard field goal to make it 27-10 with 9:26 to play.
Not a coincidence, then, that when Cooper got hot, so did the offense.
Amari Cooper’s first catch AND first touchdown as a Buffalo Bill!
📺: @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/CaTcKnflc9
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) October 20, 2024
“It’s true,” Allen said. “Any time you have a player of his caliber, he demands extra attention. If you don’t (pay extra attention), we’re probably going to throw him the ball.”
Cooper’s four receptions totaled 66 yards. Rookie receiver Keon Coleman had four catches for 125 yards and came a toenail away from adding a 12-yard touchdown catch. Khalil Shakir, still dealing with right ankle discomfort, caught all seven of his targets for 65 yards. Tight end Dalton Kincaid converted a pair of long third downs in the second half and finished with three receptions for 52 yards.
Cooper didn’t see the ball on the last drive, ending with rookie Ray Davis’ 16-yard touchdown run to give all three Bills running backs a score. James Cook scored the Bills’ lone TD in the first half.
Allen, meanwhile, ran three times. That’s probably about the way Bills coach Sean McDermott prefers within an effective offense, having three tailbacks share the bruises accumulated through tough yardage and letting Allen manage the rest.
“It goes back to the trust the players have in the coaches and the trust that the coaches have in the players,” said McDermott, “making key adjustments, knowing our players and what they do best. Usually, when you’re giving them what they do best they’re able to execute and show who they really are.
“We continue to learn.”
(Top photo: Timothy T Ludwig / Getty Images)
