Josh Allen on Sunday scored two touchdowns as the Buffalo Bills punished a slew of mistakes to defeat the Baltimore Ravens 27-25 and set up a blockbuster NFL playoff clash with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Bills quarterback Allen barged over for two first-half rushing touchdowns at a snowy Highmark Stadium in New York as Ravens opposite number Lamar Jackson and the Bills were left ruing a string of costly errors.
The Ravens had a golden chance to tie the game with less than two minutes remaining, but tight end Mark Andrews fluffed a simple catch attempting a two-point conversion to effectively seal the Bills win.
Photo: AP
“How about that Buffalo Bills defense?” Allen said. “All year we heard this team has no talent, we’re too small, we can’t stop the run? We’re not good enough to compete. We just put our head down and worked hard — I’m so proud of our defense.”
The American Football Conference divisional battle had been hyped as a duel between two of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the NFL, pitting this season’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) front-runner Allen against the Ravens’ reigning MVP Jackson, but the quarterback shoot-out largely failed to materialize in a gritty contest that ultimately pivoted on the Ravens’ mistakes at key times.
A Jackson fumble following a sack by Damar Hamlin led to Allen’s opening touchdown in the second quarter that put the Bills 14-7 ahead.
Allen then scored his second rushing touchdown in the closing moments of the first half to help put the Bills 21-10 up.
The Ravens threatened a comeback with a field goal and a Derrick Henry touchdown in the third quarter that cut the Bills lead to three points, but another Ravens turnover in the fourth quarter, Andrews fumbling under pressure, led to a Bills field goal that stretched the hosts lead to 27-19.
Baltimore hit back with a superb Isaiah Likely touchdown from Jackson’s 24-yard bullet pass, but with overtime looming, Andrews botched the two-point conversion attempt.
The Bills meet Patrick Mahomes and Kansas City in the American Football Conference Championship game with the winner advancing to the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Feb. 9.
It will be the latest installment of a fierce rivalry between the two teams, who have met three times in the playoffs since 2021 — the Chiefs winning them all.
However, the Bills were one of only two teams to beat the Chiefs in the regular season.
“We’re going to enjoy this tonight and then turn our attention to the Chiefs tomorrow,” Allen said. “They’re the perennial of what you want to be in the NFL. You’ve got to beat them to get past them.”
In Sunday’s other playoff game, running back sensation Saquon Barkley rushed for two long-range solo touchdowns as the Philadelphia Eagles beat the Los Angeles Rams 28-22 to reach the National Football Conference Championship game.
The Eagles are to host East Division rivals the Washington Commanders for a place in the Super Bowl.
The Eagles’ power in the running game proved decisive in a game played in heavy snow with Barkley, a candidate for the league’s Most Valuable Player, putting up 205 yards on 26 carries.
Even before the snow began to fall late in the first quarter, the Eagles exposed the Rams’ run defense, opening the scoring on the opening drive of the game when quarterback Jalen Hurts broke out and sprinted 44 yards for the touchdown.
The Rams fought back quickly though with quarterback Matthew Stafford leading a 13-play, 67-yard drive which ended with a four-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tyler Higbee.
The Rams would have spent all week preparing for the threat of Barkley, but they were still unable to stop him when he found a gap and sprinted 62 yards to put the Eagles up 13-7 at the end of the first quarter.
The Eagles extended their lead with two field goals in the fourth, before Barkley turned on the turbo chargers again with 4 minutes, 36 seconds left, the snow no obstacle to his power and speed as he burst 78 yards for his second touchdown.
The Rams threatened a remarkable comeback with a quick Colby Parkinson touchdown, but a last gasp drive for a go-ahead touchdown faltered.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
RSS