After taking down the Jaguars in Duval County on Sunday, the Bills are headed to Denver to face the Broncos in the divisional round.
This game marks the Bills’ sixth straight trip to the divisional round of the playoffs while the Broncos are hosting a postseason game for the first time since 2015. Saturday’s game will be the first at Mile High Stadium for the Bills since 2020, when Josh Allen threw for 359 yards and two touchdowns in a 48–19 win. Of course, much has changed since then.
This matchup also serves as a rematch of last year’s wild-card round game which saw the Bills beat the Broncos 31–7 in Bo Nix’s postseason debut. This time around, the Broncos are hosting the game and will be well-rested coming off their first-round bye. Meanwhile, the Bills will be playing on a short week.
Before the game begins on Saturday, here are three bold predictions for how Bills vs. Broncos will turn out:
James Cook rushes for 120+ yards
The Broncos have not allowed a 100-yard rusher since Week 2, when Jonathan Taylor rushed for 165 yards in a 29–28 Colts victory. Denver ranks No. 2 in rushing yards allowed per game, giving up just 91.1 yards on the ground each game.
Though the Jaguars defense—which ranks No. 1 in rushing yards allowed per game—successfully held Cook to 46 yards on 15 carries last week, look for Cook to break out for a big performance against Denver. Cook rushed for 120 yards in the playoff win over Denver last year, and though this is not the exact same Broncos defense, Cook will have his chances since the Bills have been staying patient with the run.
Bo Nix tosses two interceptions
The Bills’ No. 1 ranked passing defense came through in the team’s win over the Jaguars last weekend. While Trevor Lawrence threw three touchdowns in the games, the Bills also picked him off twice, including Cole Bishop’s game-ending interception.
Buffalo’s success against a previously red-hot Lawrence came in part because of their disguised coverages, which helped confuse him and keep him from operating at his prior efficiency. Look for McDermott and the experienced Bills to use scheme to their advantage against Nix, and come away with a couple of picks in the process. Nix does not have the weapons at his disposal that Lawrence does, which should give the Bills another edge in their pass defense efforts.
Josh Allen scores two rushing touchdowns in Bills’ victory
Not only will the Bills pick off two passes for the second straight week, but Allen will rush for two touchdowns for the second game in a row. Allen’s legs are the best weapon the team has in goal line situations, and the Bills will naturally take advantage of that again. With the Bills receiving core even thinner after season-ending injuries to Joshua Palmer, Gabe Davis and Tyrell Shavers, and a matchup with a strong Broncos secondary, Allen’s ability as a runner will be even more important for the team when they reach the red zone.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Bills vs. Broncos: Three Bold Predictions for Saturday’s AFC Playoff Matchup.
