Bills 39, Bengals 34

After yesterday’s wild game in Orchard Park, probably the third-last game to be played at Rich Stadium, Bills cornerback Christian Benford explained that the proper technique – which he obviously did not follow – is not to leave your feet when closing in on a quarterback who is about to throw the ball. But he jumped high enough to easily catch Joe Burrow’s attempted lob pass and scampered to the endzone with his second career touchdown in as many weeks. Along with last week’s scoop-and-score in Pittsburgh, each of Benford’s two touchdowns turned the game in the Bills favour. I’m really looking forward to his next four touchdowns against the Patriots, Browns, Eagles and Jets to close out the season with an even half-dozen touchdowns. They don’t call him Christian for nothing as he attributed his going off-script and leaving his feet to an act of God. Whoever was responsible for it - God, Burrow or Benford – it was a magical (Divine?) moment in this topsy-turvy Bills 2025 season.

As we watched the first half yesterday, I kept saying that the Bengals were just practicing on their first and second down plays from scrimmage. A running play here, an incomplete pass there or maybe a short completion for a few yards to set up a third-and-five – these were done only to set the Bengals up for where they would truly excel yesterday – on third down where they converted each of their first eight. They could have and should have made it nine if Burrow hadn’t overthrown a wide-open Tee Higgins on a scramble on third and 18. It felt like there was no way that the Bills would ever stop them on third down as the Bengals put together three long drives for touchdowns on their first three possessions and looked like they would cruise to an easy win as the Bills could only muster 11 points in the first half. Not until their 10^th third down attempt, on their final possession of the first half when it felt like they were about to go up 28-11, did the Bills pass rush finally cause Burrow to hurry a throw and miss out of bounds to force a punt and hold the lead at ten going into the break.

Once again trailing by ten in the fourth quarter, the magic (Divinity?) began for the Bills who reeled off 21 points in four-and-a-half minutes to take a 39-28 lead. Josh Allen started off the rally with a long touchdown run which was followed shortly afterward by Benford’s pick-six then on the Bengals next play from scrimmage, Jordan Phillips batted a pass which drifted easily into the arms of AJ Epenesa for another interception and the Bills then converted a fourth down attempt on the ensuing drive for another touchdown – this one to tight-end Jackson Hawes whose name makes him sound like a character from a Civil War era novel.

The game felt a lot like the season’s opening game, also at Rich Stadium, when the Bills made an unlikely comeback to stun the Ravens with the aid of a late fumble recovery. This season’s home schedule has now produced two such epic comebacks for the home team with two regular season chances remaining. Had the Bengals been able to hang on to the lead they enjoyed for most of the game, they would still be realistically alive in the AFC wildcard playoff race and the Bills would have finally been shutout of any chance at their sixth division title and the home playoff game(s) which go with it. While the Bengals remain mathematically alive with the best possible scenario having them finish 8-9 if they win out, they are likely done. The Bills still hold a mathematical chance at the division title but the programs which calculate such things put their chances of this at less than 10% as the Patriots will likely have a better division record, the first tie-breaker if they finish with the same win-loss record. But 10% means that there still is a chance, right?

Last week, I speculated that next week’s game in New England against the Patriots might be flexed out of the 1pm time slot to 4.25pm or maybe even to Sunday Night Football. The deadline for so doing came and went last Wednesday with no schedule changes so we are set for another early afternoon game next Sunday. I was quite surprised to see that the Bills have been installed as early 1.5-point favourites against the Patriots who have won ten straight games and will be coming off their bye week. If I were Mike Vrabel, I would be tempted to use this as a motivational tool. If the oddsmakers can’t see their way to favouring the Patriots, who beat the Bills in Buffalo earlier this season and sit at 11-2 with a chance to seal their first division title in six years for their home fans, what then is it going to take? The answer of course is a win over Buffalo at home on Sunday. I guess the Josh Allen factor is a major component in the setting of betting lines which, remember, are done not necessarily as a prediction of the game's outcome but to attract equal money on each team. Vegas likes big names and Josh Allen is one of the biggest in the NFL right now so on that level, the line does make some sense. The so-called “smart money” - bet in large amounts by professional gamblers – could and probably will come in on the Patriots which would move the line down towards a pick'em. Who knows? I just hope that the moment and the pressure will be too much for the Patriots and their young quarterback Drake Maye whose name sound like it comes from The Young and the Restless. I like the Bills in this game, 24-20.