Location: New Era Field, Orchard Park, NY
Result: Buffalo 20, Denver 3
Regular season records: Buffalo (8-3), Denver (3-8)
What it means:
Buffalo is 8-3 to start a season for the first time since 1996 and is 8-3 or better for the 12th time in franchise history. The team has made the playoffs in every previous season they have an 8-3 or better record. Currently the Bills lead the AFC wild card race with a two game lead.
In a nutshell:
The Bills dominated Denver in every facet of the game on Sunday. Josh Allen showed he was the better of the two Allens but the Bills didn't need to rely on their quarterback to win.
The Bills pounded the ball on the ground as two different running backs recorded career-highlighting accomplishments. Rookie running back Devin Singletary recorded his first 100-yard rushing day while 15 year NFL veteran Frank Gore surpassed Barry Sanders for the third-most rushing yards in NFL history. Buffalo combined for more rushing yards (244) than Denver had net yards (134).
Through the air, Allen put together another two-touchdown performance hitting his favorite targets Cole Beasley and John Brown for the scores. Beasley led the team with 76 yards on six receptions.
Defensively, the Bills were as good as they've ever been. The Broncos lone score was a 45-yard field goal by Brandon McManus and their only red zone opportunity was thwarted by a Tre'Davious White interception. Top receiver Courtland Sutton was non-existent after being shadowed by White the whole game.
Buffalo put Brandon Allen on the ground a plethora of times. They had four sacks, including two from Shaq Lawson and one from Ed Oliver that nearly resulted in a safety. Matt Milano and Tremaine Edmunds dominated the middle of the field while the Denver duo of Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman could only gain 77 yards.
Andre Roberts showed his value on kick returns averaging 32 yards on kickoffs and 8.2 yards on punts. Stephen Hauschka was perfect for the second straight week making two field goals and two extra points.
How it went down:
Singletary ran for 28 yards while Allen completed all four of his passes for 36 yards. Stephen Hauschka made a 39-yard field goal. 3-0
Robert Foster had a 22-yard run and Beasley a 30-yard completion on the drive. Hauschka made a 23-yard field goal. 6-0
Foster had a 24-yard catch and run, Allen to Beasley for the touchdown from 18 yards out. Hauschka made the extra point. 13-0
McManus made a 45-yard field goal. 13-3
Allen to Brown for a 34-yard touchdown pass. Hauschka's extra point was good. 20-3.
Subplots:
Bills inactives: RB T.J. Yeldon, S Siran Neal, OG Ike Boettger, T Ty Nsekhe, WR Duke Williams, TE Tommy Sweeney, DT Vincent Taylor
Broncos inactives: WR Juwann Winfree, CB Cyrus Jones, LB Justin Hollins, DE Demarcus Walker, T Ja'Wuan James, T Calvin Anderson, DL Jonathan Harris
Shaq Lawson recorded his fourth and fifth sacks of the season and second week in a row with a quarterback take down.
Stephen Hauschka opens the game on a 39-yard field goal. The Bills tallied six first downs en route to the Bills longest drive of the year (8:49).
The Bills are up to four sacks today, giving them 11 sacks in the past two games. That marks the most over a two game span by the Bills defense since 2014 when the Bills had 12 sacks in a two-game span.
Frank Gore surpassed Barry Sanders (15,269) for the third-most rushing yards in NFL history
Tickets distributed 67,338
Up next: The Bills play a Thanksgiving Day matchup at 4:30 p.m. in Dallas
