The Buffalo Bills might not have earned the coveted 1 seed in the AFC, but they did secure the 3rd overall seed with a 27-10 victory over the New York Jets on Sunday. The New England Patriots lost to the Miami Dolphins on the road and are now the 6th seed in the AFC playoffs. The Bills and Patriots will now face each other for the third time this season at 8:15 P.M. on Saturday night.
Previous matchups
In the first matchup between these two teams, Mac Jones threw the ball just three times and the Patriots walked away with a 14-10 victory in Buffalo.
In that game, the snow and wind were a major factor and the Bills could manage just 10 points as Josh Allen struggled in the elements. It was a different story in New England, as the Bills offense roared back to life and scored 33 points in an eleven point road win. The key difference in the two matchups was the weather, as Josh dominated on a clear day. Thankfully, it looks like it will be pretty clear on Saturday Night.
Orchard Park Weather on Saturday January 10th, 2022
According to Weather.com, Orchard Park will not be receiving any snow on Saturday, which is good news for a Bills offense that likes to pass. Thankfully, the wind is expected to be just 10 MPH, which Josh Allen is used to. Mac Jones, on the other hand, seems to struggle with downfield throws when it is windy and in general.
He struggled against the Dolphins and threw a pick 6 early. Mac will likely have a tough time against a defense which has held opponents to less than 20 points in 5 of their last 7 games.
Stopping the run game
If the Buffalo Bills are going to beat the Patriots, they'll need to stop Rhamondre Stevenson, Damien Harris, and Brandon Bolden.
Those three ran for a whopping 217 rushing yards in Buffalo and accounted for almost all the yards in their previous win. Defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier should have a plan in place that forces Mac Jones to beat the top defense in the league with his arm, which he was unable to do in New England.
Josh Allen has to be better
The Bills may have won their last few games, but Josh Allen has not been overly impressive in those wins. Against Atlanta, Josh threw three interceptions and brought Atlanta back into a game they had almost no chance in. Against the Jets, he struggled, but the defense played so well that it didn't even matter. In the playoffs, interceptions are drive killers and can lose games. Allen can't turn the ball over against New England and he needs to make smart decisions in the playoffs Otherwise, Buffalo's Super Bowl hopes will end early ion Saturday night.
Thankfully, it doesn't look like there will be snow or high winds on Saturday night, so Josh can operate without limitations. If the Bills win, they will likely play on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs, a team they already beat once this year.
