Jacksonville, Fla. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Bills advance to the AFC Divisional Round of the playoffs thanks to a 27-24 win over the Jaguars in Jacksonville on Sunday at EverBank Stadium.
Here are my Arrows Up and Down from the contest, starting Up after the road playoff win:
ARROW UP:
CB - Tre'Davious White
White continued his solid play with one of his best performances of the season, collecting three huge pass breakups, including the one that led to the game-sealing interception by Cole Bishop.
QB - Josh Allen
Allen was already dealing with the foot injury, then suffered a knee injury, was evaluated for a head injury, and was in pain after hitting his throwing hand on a helmet.
It didn't matter, though.
The reigning NFL MVP, once again, came through for Buffalo with incredible throws, finishing the game a terrific 28-of-35 (80%) for 273 yards and a touchdown. He also ran 11 times for 33 yards and a pair of scores, ending the day with 306 yards of offense and three total touchdowns.
WR - Khalil Shakir
Shakir was targeted 12 times and made 12 catches! The wideout totaled 82 yards, and made some key runs after catch to keep the offense on schedule.
Pass protection
The Bills' offensive line, running backs, and tight ends did a great job of protecting a banged-up Allen, who was sacked just one time. The Jaguars also only registered three quarterback hits.
DE - Greg Rousseau
The Bills did not get to Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence much, but when they did, it was mostly Rousseau.
He collected the only sack of the day for the defense, and two of the three quarterback hits they were credited with.
Rousseau finished the day with six total tackles, including two for loss.
Sean McDermott
The Bills head coach did a great job of managing the game with saving timeouts, and also winning a really big challenge on a fourth down run by Lawrence that was originally called a first down for Jacksonville inside the Bills' 10-yard line.
Next man up
Once again, the Bills had several injuries during the game and were forced to bring backups in to play key roles.
Wide receiver Gabe Davis left the game with a knee injury, safety Jordan Poyer left with a hamstring injury, and wide receiver Tyrell Shavers left with a knee injury, but came back later.
Buffalo was already without running back Ty Johnson and cornerback Max Hairston.
Reserve players and the collective units stepped up in their absences.
P - Mitch Wishnowsky
Wishnowsky stepped in for kickoff duties for Matt Prater once again, and did a nice job to put the ball where he needed to give his coverage unit a chance.
He also had a terrific 47-yard punt that went out of bounds at the Jaguars' 3-yard line right before halftime.
K - Matt Prater
Despite dealing with a knee injury that put him in question for the game, Prater made two huge field goals from 50 and 47 yards, plus nailed all three of his extra points attempts.
Every kick turned out to be really important for the Bills.
Pass defense
The No. 1 pass defense in the NFL played like it Sunday, allowing just 207 yards through the air, picking off two passes, and holding Lawrence to just a 60% completion rate (18-for-30).
Third-down and red zone offense
The Bills were 7-for-14 (50%) on third downs and scored a touchdown all three times they were in the Jaguars' red zone.
Fourth-down offense and defense
The Bills went for it on fourth down twice and converted both times. Jacksonville went for it on fourth down once and the Bills stopped them.
ARROW DOWN:
Brandin Cooks' drop
With 1:24 remaining before halftime and the Bills up 10-7, the veteran wideout dropped a pass that would have put Buffalo at the Jaguars' 27 yard line.
Instead, they punted two plays later.
RB/KR - Ray Davis
Davis fumbled the Bills' kick return just after the Jaguars took a 7-3 lead.
He did not carry or catch the ball on offense.
DE - Joey Bosa
Bosa continually did not set the edge well enough on running plays, and was not credited with a single tackle.
He did have one quarterback hit, though.
S - Jordan Hancock
Hancock stepped in for an injured Poyer and after that, the Jaguars picked on the deeper middle of the field more than they had. This included 34- and 31-yard completions to wide receiver Parker Washington.
He seemed a little too slow to get to where he needed to be.
Not scoring a touchdown after interception
With no score in the game, Bills linebacker Shaq Thompson intercepted Lawrence and set the Bills offense up with great field position at the Jaguars' 33-yard line.
But Buffalo only came away with three points.
Run defense
The Jaguars ran the ball 23 times for 154 yards, averaging 6.7 yards per-carry. Far too much given up.
Third-down defense
Jacksonville converted 55.6% (5-of-9) of their third-down chances.
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