Denver headed to AFC Championship after wild overtime win over Buffalo
Bradley Davis
In a wild back-and-forth game with six total turnovers, Will Lutz knocked through a 23-yard field goal in overtime to lift the Broncos to their first AFC Championship birth since 2016.
Trailing 27-23 in the fourth quarter, Bo Nix led a 73-yard touchdown drive ending in a 26-yard strike to Marvin Mims with less than a minute left in the game.
Despite four turnovers in regulation, Josh Allen and the Bills kept bouncing back. In what’s becoming a Buffalo staple, Allen hit Khalil Shakir in the middle of the field, who threw a lateral back to Ray Davis for a 27-yard gain with 32 seconds left in regulation. That led to a Buffalo field goal, tying the game at 30 and sending it to overtime.
Their final turnover would be the dagger for the Bills. After Denver failed to score in overtime, Allen went deep to Brandon Cooks. Cooks looked to come up with the catch, but cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian ripped it away before hitting the ground, coming up with the incredible interception.
With the game on the line, Nix once again went back to Mims, who drew the 30-yard pass interference penalty. The play set up Lutz for the game-winning field goal.
The pace in this game really picked up in the final seconds of the first half. With just 22 seconds left near the Bills’ 30-yard line and the score tied at 10, Nix was not ready to settle for the last-second field goal. Instead, he hit Lil’Jordan Humphrey deep down the seam for the 29-yard touchdown.
On the next drive, Denver linebacker Nic Bonitto popped Allen on a scramble, forcing a fumble. Denver recovered, setting up Lutz for a 50-yard field goal as time expired, capping off a 10-point scoring burst in the final 22 seconds of the half.
The second half started with a little déjà vu. Allen fumbled, setting up another Lutz field goal.
That’s when the momentum started to turn. The Bills would go on to score 17 unanswered points and take the lead 27-23 midway through the fourth quarter.
As has been the case 11 other times this season, Nix and Denver were up to the challenge. The response with Mims late in the fourth and again in overtime was enough to finish a wild 33-30 divisional round victory. It’s the Broncos’ 12th one-score win this season.
For the Bills, it was a game plagued by mistakes. Buffalo committed five turnovers at Mile High. Allen is now 0-7 in overtime games in his career, and 0-3 in overtime playoff games. It ties Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning for most overtime losses without a win for a starting QB in NFL history.
Denver will host the AFC championship game next Sunday at 1 p.m. Their opponent depends on the result of tomorrow’s AFC divisional tilt between Houston and New England.