Broncos win third straight, beat miscue-laden Bills

Although they were the underdogs going into their game against the Buffalo Bills on Monday night, the Denver Broncos had a significant opportunity.

With a record of 3-5 but a two-game winning run going into Highmark Stadium, Sean Payton’s club had an opportunity to join a crowded field of contenders in the AFC postseason picture. As of Monday night, 13 teams had three or more defeats.

With a 24–22 victory, the Broncos fulfilled that promise, igniting optimism that Denver’s momentum would last through the second half of the season.

The Broncos won their first “Monday Night Football” road game since October 15, 2012, against the San Diego Chargers, ending a seven-game losing streak.

These are the key takeaways from Monday night for both teams.

Denver Broncos

QB breakdown: Russell Wilson was effective and gave the Broncos a chance to win, but he was by no means outstanding. Wilson used his legs to the tune of nine carries for thirty yards and completed 24 of 29 throws for 192 yards and two scores without committing a turnover.

Wilson performed well against persistent pressure; on Monday, he faced pressure on 53% of his dropbacks, which is a record high for a game since 2018. The Bills also sacked Wilson four times, including one that might have been expensive to stop Denver from scoring on its last drive.

Promising trend: The Broncos have nine takeaways in their last two games, up from seven in their first seven games. On Monday night, they had four key takeaways, including an NFL-leading 30-th pick in the first quarter by Justin Simmons, who intercepted the ball.

Troubling trend: Riley Dixon, the Broncos’ holder, botched a point-after try that should have given Denver nightmares and served as a symbol of the team’s troubles in the kicking game.

Should Buffalo not have been flagged for having 12 men on the field in the final seconds, Wil Lutz would have missed a PAT and possibly lost the game with a failed field goal. However, Dixon may have exhaled the loudest sigh of relief.

Josh Allen drove the Bills down the field for the game-winning touchdown after Dixon made a mistake, and Dixon’s redemption came from Lutz’s second attempt at the winning kick.

Eye-popping Next Gen stat: During the last seven NFL seasons (2017–present), Courtland Sutton’s touchdown catch in the second quarter has the lowest completion chance of any touchdown pass, at 3.2%. In Week 5 of the 2019 season, against the Los Angeles Rams, Russell Wilson and the Seahawks had the lowest completion probability on a passing touchdown, which was 5.3%.

Credits: ESPN

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