Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) - One down, three to go.
While the final outcome may have ended up being closer than many NFL pundits and fans had originally thought, the Buffalo Bills escape the AFC Wild Card Round on Sunday with a 34-31 win over their AFC East rival Miami Dolphins at Highmark Stadium.
While the Bills got out to a hot start with a dominating 17-0 lead, Buffalo surrendered 17 unanswered points in the second quarter alone to allow the Dolphins to tie the game just before halftime.
After going up 20-17 heading into the third quarter, a costly fumble by quarterback Josh Allen that was recovered for a Dolphins touchdown may have cost the Bills a chance at a win in the end. However, the Buffalo defense came up with some key stops of the Miami offense, and Allen helped carry the offense enough to survive and advance in the NFL Playoffs.
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Following their win on Sunday afternoon, the Bills then needed to wait for the Sunday night playoff matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens to determine which team will travel to Orchard Park for a key AFC Divisional Round matchup.
A Baltimore win on the road would have sent the AFC South champion Jacksonville Jaguars to Highmark Stadium, while a Bengals win at home would officially set the table for a high-powered showdown between two of the best teams in the AFC.
While the Bengals struggled, at times, against a Ravens team without former MVP quarterback Lamar Jackson under center, they got the break they needed early in the fourth quarter with a defensive touchdown to break a 17-17 tie.
As Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley attempted to reach a football over the goal line in the Bengals' red zone, he was stripped of the football by linebacker Logan Wilson. The football then landed in the arms of defensive end Sam Hubbard, who rumbled 98 yards for the game-winning score.
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The Bengals finished the 2022 NFL season as the No. 3 seed in the AFC after an impressive 12-4 finish following a year where they represented the AFC in Super LVI.
This game on Sunday in Orchard Park will feature a matchup that was slated to happen in Week 17 in Cincinnati on "Monday Night Football". However, that game ended up resulting in a "no contest" outcome after Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed to the turf and went into cardiac arrest in the first quarter of action. At the time, the Bengals were leading the Bills by a 7-3 score.
So how confident is Howard Simon feeling about this AFC Divisional Round showdown with a chance to inch closer to returning to the Super Bowl? He is not afraid to admit this matchup makes him quite a bit nervous with Buffalo having to face the ever-cool Joe Burrow and the Bengals.
Despite Cincinnati's ability to fire at will offensively and play a solid defensive game, Howard continues to ride high on the Bills, and picks Buffalo to earn a hard-fought win in front of the hometown faithful.
From there, Howard is picking the Bills to topple the No. 1 seed Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game at the neutral sit confines of Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The win will punch Buffalo's ticket to Glendale, Arizona for Super Bowl LVII as the AFC representative, the team's first Super Bowl appearance since the 1993 season.
Then in the "Big Game" against the San Francisco 49ers, Howard ensures Buffalo's first professional championship with his pick of the Bills to win and hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy at State Farm Stadium!
Be sure to follow along on Twitter for the latest picks from Howard by using the hashtag #HowardPicksTheBills. You can also track all of Howard's picks throughout the season with Brayton Wilson's picks tracker on Twitter: @BraytonJWilson.
You can listen to the latest edition of "Howard Picks the Bills" in the player, or watch the Divisional Round edition below:
