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Jets get the three-and-out they needed, and still have a timeout. Nice job.
The Buffalo Bills got their revenge over the New York Jets, as they earned a 20-12 victory over their rivals in snowy Orchard Park on Sunday. The weather limited the scoring in this matchup, but the Bills reeled off 13 straight points in the second half to move to 10-3.
Star quarterback Josh Allen completed 16 of 27 passes for 147 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 48 yards and a touchdown. Sunday marked Allen's 24th career game with a passing touchdown and rushing touchdown, which ties Hall of Famer Frank Tarkenton for the fourth most in NFL history, per NFL Research.
Mike White completed 27 of 44 passes for 268 yards. He took several huge hits from the Bills' pass rush, and even exited the game for a time in the second half with a ribs injury. However, he later returned and attempted to engineer a comeback, but was clearly hurting. Rookie running back Zonovan Knight had another impressive outing with 71 rushing yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. Rookie wideout Garrett Wilson caught six passes for 78 yards.
The Bills hold on to the No. 1 seed in the AFC, while the Jets' playoff dreams are in danger. Let's take a look at what went down in New York on Sunday.
Why the Bills won
The Bills lost in several statistical categories on Sunday. They had fewer first downs, were worse on third down, had fewer total yards and lost the time-of-possession battle. Still, the Bills were the better team here in Week 14. They put together some long drives, went 1-for-1 in the red zone and played aggressive defense. That defense and how they attacked White ended up being a huge reason why Buffalo emerged from this matchup victorious. This wasn't the flashiest victory, but sometimes playing fundamentally sound ball without style points is what contenders need to do. The Bills are the first AFC team to reach double-digit wins.
Why the Jets lost
It's strange, because the Jets have lost two straight games now, but there are still relatively good things to take away from the past few weeks. For one, White is a tough son of a gun. He took several massive hits, and clearly wasn't doing well toward the end of the matchup. In fact, the quarterback was taken to the hospital via ambulance afterward.
Injuries hurt the Jets in this one, as New York lost Quinnen Williams, Corey Davis and George Fant. Still, they had a chance to put together a game-tying drive at the end. It almost felt like we were robbed of what potentially could have become a fun matchup. White led a 10-play, 72-yard drive that was capped by the Jets' first touchdown of the game on the opening drive of the third quarter, but that momentum was quickly erased after the quarterback took a shot to the ribs on the Jets' next possession. He exited and later returned to the game, but didn't look the same.
Turning point
When White took a huge hit from Bills linebacker Matt Milano and was forced to exit the game, the tide turned. Joe Flacco fumbled away possession on the very next play, and the Bills scored a field goal. Then, New York went three-and-out, and the Bills answered with another three points.
The Jets did have a chance down eight points with 45 seconds remaining to attempt a game-tying drive, but White missed four straight pass attempts.
Play of the game
It looked like we were headed to the halftime break without a single point scored, but Allen put together a seven-play, 70-yard drive which was capped by this 24-yard Dawson Knox touchdown. Full send indeed.
CJ Mosley soars offsides
The veteran linebacker swore he knew the snap count, but ended up gifting the Bills a free first down. It was a humorous moment for viewers, but not for the Jets. The Bills ended up scoring the first points of the game thanks to this penalty.
What's next
The Jets return home next week to play host to the red-hot Detroit Lions. As for the Bills, they are on a short week, as they will play host to the rival Dolphins next Saturday night.
