By Joe Buscaglia, Tim Graham, James Boyd and Jelani Scott
The Buffalo Bills defense kept applying pressure and never let up Sunday as the unit forced four turnovers in a 30-20 win over the Indianapolis Colts (4-6) on the road.
A huge 23-yard pick six from Bills cornerback Taron Johnson for his first interception of the year on Colts quarterback Joe Flacco’s first pass of the game set the tone early and gave the Bills a quick lead. Buffalo followed the first interception with another from defensive lineman Austin Johnson on Indy’s second drive following a botched screen to star running back Jonathan Taylor to help set-up a field goal. A touchdown and a pair of field goals over the next three Colts drives to end the first half alluded to a tight affair, but the Bills went on to stall the Flacco-led offense until a TD in the closing seconds.
With the Bills (8-2) up 20-13 at halftime, a Flacco fumble recovered by safety Damar Hamlin and forced by a strip-sack from pass rusher Greg Rousseau ended the Colts’ second drive, while a turnover on downs and third Flacco pick on the subsequent drives all but secured the victory.
While Buffalo’s defense stepped up, the offense still managed a decent day despite quarterback Josh Allen failing to throw a touchdown and tossing an interception (two) in his third straight game. Allen and running back James Cook (19 carries for 80 yards and a touchdown) turned in the Bills’ only scores, on runs of 13 and 2 yards, respectively.
Big win sets up major Week 11 showdown with Chiefs
Sometime around 3:30 p.m., with almost a quarter still to play, Bills fans stopped thinking about the Colts and started wondering about next week’s blockbuster showdown with the undefeated Kansas City Chiefs (9-0) in Highmark Stadium.
It’s the annual matchup we all circle the moment the NFL releases its schedule and three of the past four years has offered a juicy postseason preview. The Bills avoided the trap scenario against inferior opponents and enter Week 11 on a five-game win streak. The Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes, meanwhile, have looked vulnerable but keep winning, somehow surviving the Denver Broncos on Sunday with a blocked 35-yard field goal as time expired.
Allen looked shabby at times Sunday, as the MVP candidate threw a couple bad interceptions and misfired a few other times. Kansas City defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo will be even trickier to beat, but Buffalo’s offense overall has been varied and effective.
Even with tight end Dalton Kincaid sidelined by a knee injury for much of the game, Buffalo mounted six drives of at least eight plays and two that lasted 13 plays in the fourth quarter to ice the victory. The Bills have 19 possessions of at least 10 plays this year and have scored on all of them. — Tim Graham, Bills senior writer
Bad start leads to worse results
Flacco threw a pick six on Indianapolis’ first offensive play Sunday, putting Indy in an early 7-0 hole, and he threw another interception just seven plays later that gave the Bills an early jumpstart in their eventual victory. Indianapolis’ fans, many of whom are begging for rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson to be reinserted into the starting lineup, shared their displeasure with Flacco and the Colts offense by booing throughout several moments of the game.
Flacco eventually settled in, even throwing a game-tying 2-yard TD pass to running back Tyler Goodson early in the second quarter, but Indianapolis’ offense was still unable to find much rhythm through the air. Flacco finished 26-of-35 passing for 272 yards and two touchdowns against three interceptions. The 39-year-old was also strip-sacked in the third quarter, and Buffalo recovered the fumble.
Flacco’s four turnovers marked just the fourth time in his 17-year NFL career he’s had four turnovers in a single game and the first time since 2022. Indianapolis is now 1-3 on the year with Flacco as its starter. — James Boyd, Colts beat writer
Standout day underlines lingering issues for Bills D
On the surface, the Bills forced Flacco into four turnovers, indicating a somewhat dominant day for the defense. All those turnovers were excellent individual plays, and the defense deserves full credit for making them spin the outcome in their favor. However, those turnovers masked a continuation of the same issue the Bills have dealt with for most of their season: allowing explosive plays — both on the ground and through the air.
Ahead of garbage time, the Bills defense had allowed 11 plays of 10 yards or more, four of which went for 20 yards or more. One rushing play from the Colts’ Taylor went for 59 yards. While they did well to get themselves off the field, a more efficient offense with better quarterbacking could take advantage of the Bills’ defense in the future if they continue to play this way. — Joe Buscaglia, Bills beat writer
Jonathan Taylor’s big day
Taylor entered Sunday’s contest with 19 100-yard rushing games. He only needed one half to push that mark to 20.
The 2021 league rushing champ exploded with 16 carries for 107 yards, highlighted by a 58-yard run late in the first quarter that led to a 27-yard field goal by Matt Gay. However, Taylor wasn’t as productive in the second half and ended the day with 21 carries for 114 yards as the Colts tried to rally with their passing game.
Rookie wide receiver AD Mitchell was another rare bright spot for Indianapolis’ offense. The second-round pick, who received more playing time in the absence of Indy’s top wideout Michael Pittman Jr. (back), racked up six catches on six targets for a career-high 71 yards. — Boyd
Indy defense finally breaks
The Colts’ defense made life tough on Allen, who was picked off twice. Colts linebacker E.J. Speed intercepted Allen in the second quarter, leading to another Gay field goal. Indianapolis cornerback Kenny Moore II followed suit in the third quarter with his own pick, but the Colts’ offense ultimately turned it over on downs and was unable to get any points off that turnover.
After Flacco and the offense failed to take advantage of the Colts’ takeaways, the defense finally caved down the stretch. Indianapolis has had tackling issues all season, and those issues reemerged the longer the defense had to stay out there.
The Bills eventually finished with 415 yards of total offense, marking the fifth time this year the Colts’ defense has surrendered at least 400 yards. Cook put the nail in Indy’s coffin with a 2-yard TD catch with just over three minutes left in the game. — Boyd
Required reading
- The Buffalo Bills’ undrafted hometown hero who asked Panini for a rookie card and got it
- Bills predictions at NFL midseason: Josh Allen MVP, a return to AFC Championship Game
- Colts predictions at NFL midseason: Anthony Richardson won’t start again this year
- Colts ‘never’ considered moving on from Anthony Richardson at NFL trade deadline
(Photo: Marc Lebryk / Imagn Images)
