Scouting the Enemy: Buffalo Bills

The Denver Broncos head on the road to take on the Buffalo Bills in the AFC’s Wildcard Playoff round. Here is a deeper look at Denver’s postseason opponent.

The Denver Broncos bucked the media predictions and proved their doubters wrong in 2024. Under the tutelage of Head Coach Sean Payton and Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph, they improved demonstrably on both sides of the ball and performed much better than expected.

The result? Securing a 10-7 finish and earning their first playoff berth since 2015. In the AFC’s Wildcard Round, the Broncos head on the road to square off against the Buffalo Bills. It’s a game where nobody is giving them much of a shot to win, but the team has embraced the underdog mentality all season long and are hoping to silence the critics once more.

Let’s take a deeper look at the Broncos’ playoff opponent.

2024 Buffalo Bills Regular Season Review

The Bills finished 13-4 during the regular season and earned their fifth-straight AFC East title. Their offense finished second in points scored and tenth in yards. Their defense was eleventh in points allowed and seventeenth in yards allowed.

The Bills Offensive X-Factor: Josh Allen — Quarterback

The Broncos had a shot at drafting Josh Allen all those years ago but wound up taking Bradley Chubb to pair with Von Miller hoping they would become a premier edge rushing duo for years to come. Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned and for years many across Broncos Country had wondered how the Broncos’ football fortunes might have been different had they done the opposite.

In his seventh-year in the National Football League, there is certainly no doubt that Allen is one of the game’s elite quarterbacks. This year he put together another Pro-Bowl caliber campaign and is certainly in the running for MVP honors. He threw for 3,731 yards, 28 touchdowns, and just 6 interceptions. Allen also demonstrated his dual threat prowess once again and gained 531 yards on the ground rushing to go with 12 rushing touchdowns.

Keep in mind, Allen did all of this while virtually sitting for 11 quarters—almost three whole games—due to the Bills routinely dominating their opponents. On top of that, the decrease in turnovers is a big improvement compared to seasons prior. But in my opinion, what is even more remarkable is the job the Bills’ offensive line did in pass protection.

Allen was only sacked 14 times this season. That’s the lowest mark of his career and the least of any starting quarterback in the league in 2024. Allen’s size, physicality, and ability to evade pressure are top-notch. He’s incredibly tough to bring down. If the Broncos want to find a way to win on the road, they are going to have to unleash Nik Bonitto, Jonathon Cooper, and their defensive front seven players to put pressure on the golden-armed quarterback.

That is not going to be an easy task. However, the Broncos won on the road in Buffalo last year and limited Allen’s impact on the game. I’m excited to see how Vance Joseph approaches his game planning for this week’s matchup.

The Bills Defensive X-Factor: Von Miller — Edge Rusher

It’s a bit serendipitous to know that the Broncos will go up against Von Miller in their first playoff game since defeating the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50. After all these years removed from donning the orange and blue, Miller’s love for the franchise that drafted him all those years ago has never wavered.

But this Sunday, Miller will most certainly put those good feelings aside and do what it takes to keep a shot at winning his third Super Bowl with a third different franchise alive. Miller was suspended four games in ‘24 for a violation of the league’s personal conduct policy and registered six sacks and 17 tackles as a reserve player. Those might not seem like impressive numbers, but that’s only playing 25-percent of the Bills’ defensive snaps this past year.

At 35 years old, Miller certainly isn’t the dominant player he once was but I’m not going to underestimate his ability to be a game wrecker going up against Denver on Sunday. It’s the playoffs so the game inherently means more, but all things considered, this one might be a little bit more special to Von.

How the Broncos can secure a victory over the Bills

It’s hard to imagine a scenario where the Broncos can topple of one the league’s premier teams, but anything is possible. Any given Sunday, I suppose. If the Broncos want to secure victory, they are going to have to control the pace of the game and dictate its terms.

That means being efficient moving the chains on offense, getting their run game going, and keeping Allen off the field as much as possible. They can’t afford to turn the ball over and it would be nice for the defense to get after Allen and force some turnovers. If they can win the turnover battle, that would bode well for their victory aspirations.

The Bills’ pass defense was one of the worst in the league this past season. Maybe airing it out with Bo Nix is a part of Payton’s plan, but the interior of their defensive line has struggled recently and there should be an opportunity for the Broncos to run the ball efficiently with that in mind.

I think this game will be a lot closer than a lot of analysts think. I don’t envision a blowout, though I do believe the Bills will come out with the win. A loss would be heartbreaking for Broncos Country, but fans should still be proud of the team’s efforts in ‘24 even if that is the outcome. The future for the franchise looks incredibly bright.

Hart’s Prediction: Bills, 27. Broncos, 20.