Orchard Park, N.Y. (WGR 550) - The Buffalo Bills squared off against the New England Patriots on Sunday in the NFL's regular season finale at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park.
While the No. 1 seed in the AFC was no longer in play for the game at-hand, the Bills were playing with the hopes of winning and officially claiming the No. 2 seed in the AFC Playoffs.
In the end, it was a victorious effort for the Bills, 35-23, that helped Buffalo finish off the 2022 season with an overall record of 13-3. In addition, this win eliminated the Patriots from playoff contention, while helping the Miami Dolphins clinch a playoff berth for the first time since the 2016 season.
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Bills quarterback Josh Allen had an efficient day through the air, completing 19-of-31 pass attempts for 254 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Allen also rushed for 16 yards on nine attempts on the ground.
The entire country and sports world rallied around Bills safety Damar Hamlin following his cardiac arrest during Buffalo's Week 17 matchup with the Bengals in Cincinnati. While Hamlin remains in critical condition at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Hamlin's condition continues to drastically improve, where he was able to speak with is teammates via FaceTime on Friday.
Allen and his teammates were uplifted hearing from their beloved teammate this week. He was impressed with how well the team handled the task at-hand on Sunday, given all the emotions in-and-around the locker room.
"Sitting there during the national anthem, some guys had some tears rolling down. Just a feeling of uncertainty of what it was going to feel like going back out there. But Nyheim [Hines] kind of put that to rest, and our special teams helped out a lot with that," said Allen during his postgame comments. "I think it was a pretty good complementary football game. I know we threw three touchdowns and had three interceptions as well. It's crazy."
Looking forward, the playoffs begin this next weekend, as the Bills will get set to host the Miami Dolphins at Highmark Stadium in the AFC Wild Card Round. Heading into the coming weeks, the Bills have a re-focused energy, according to Allen. He highlighted how the team has to change their mentality as the season moves forward.
"We're just trying to get into the groove of things," Allen said. "It don't matter how we win now, it's if we win. The main goal from here-on-out is score more points than they do, no matter what it takes."
Hear more from Allen's postgame commentary with the media available in the player below:
