The Buffalo Bills improved to 9-3 in 2020 on Monday night with an impressive 34-24 victory over the San Francisco 49ers at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
After hearing all the noise about returning to the venue of the "Hail Murray" loss to the Arizona Cardinals from a few weeks ago, the Bills took care of business against the 49ers, not even putting themselves in a situation to defend a last-second prayer of a pass at the end of the game.
Despite trailing 7-0 after the first quarter, the Bills controlled the game most of the way. The offense finished with points on six consecutive drives, the defense came up with big stops and a pair of turnovers, and wide receiver Cole Beasley turned in another great performance to lead Buffalo to its fifth win in the last six games.
Beasley finished with a career-high 130 receiving yards on nine catches and a touchdown. The veteran receiver set the tone for the offense in the first half, scoring Buffalo's first touchdown of the game and recording seven of his nine grabs in the first two quarters.
Stefon Diggs led the Bills in receptions with 10, while also racking up 92 yards through the air. Tight end Dawson Knox, and wide receivers Gabriel Davis and Isaiah McKenzie finished with four, three and two catches respectively, and each caught a touchdown pass as well.
Bills quarterback Josh Allen had one of his best games of the season, completing 32-of-40 passes for 375 yards, the most passing yards given up by San Francisco in a game this season, and four touchdowns.
Buffalo's opening drive was an absolute roller coaster. Both Beasley and Devin Singletary were evaluated for injuries on the sideline during the series, but fortunately returned to the field minutes later. The Bills managed get to the 49ers' one-yard line, but Allen couldn't connect with tight end Lee Smith in the end zone on 4th-and-goal, turning the ball over to San Francisco.
Beasley's touchdown reception tied the game at 7-7 early in the second quarter. Allen later connected with Knox for a four-yard touchdown, the tight end's second score in as many weeks, to give the Bills a 14-7 lead with 2:41 left until halftime.
The Bills' defense got the 49ers off the field in quick fashion on the ensuing drive, giving Buffalo enough time to tack-on a field goal from Tyler Bass and extend its lead to 17-7 heading into the locker room halftime.
After the 49ers cut it to a one-score game with a field goal on the first series of the second half, the Bills answered with their second double-digit play scoring drive. Allen did a nice job selling a roughing the passer penalty on third down to keep the possession alive, but the quarterback made a beautiful throw to a wide-open McKenzie for a 23-yard touchdown, making the score 24-10 Bills mid-way through the third quarter.
Buffalo had a chance to add another six points on the scoreboard after safety Micah Hyde intercepted a pass from 49ers quarterback Nick Mullens and returned it to the San Francisco five-yard line. However, Buffalo had to settle for a short field goal after a couple of penalties moved Buffalo in the wrong direction.
San Francisco cut the deficit back to 10 points in the final minute of the third quarter with a quick, five-play, 75-yard scoring drive. Mullens found fullback Kyle Juszczyk for a six-yard score to make it 27-17 heading into the fourth.
Buffalo responded with another scoring drive, its sixth-consecutive possession that ended in points. Allen threw his fourth touchdown pass of the game, a 28-yard bomb to Davis, who was left wide-open, to cap a 75-yard drive, Buffalo's fifth drive of 70 yards or more, extending the lead to 34-17 early in the fourth quarter.
The 49ers threatened to cut into the Bills' lead once again, driving all the way to the Buffalo one-yard line. A false start call on Mullens on 3rd-and-goal backed San Francisco up five yards, and on the following play, Mullens was intercepted by cornerback Tre'Davious White with 7:00 go. White's pick was his third in the last four games.
The interceptions by White and Hyde highlighted a solid performance from the Buffalo defense. Surely getting a boost from Matt Milano's return to the lineup, the run defense did a great job controlling the 49ers rushing attack, holding San Francisco to just 86 yards on the ground. Mullens did throw for 316 yards and three touchdowns, but the Bills did intercept him twice, and a lot of those yards came while playing down multiple scores.
49ers tight end Jordan Reed caught a touchdown pass from Mullens in the final minute to make the final score 34-24, but the Bills come out of this game as decisive victors, and should have a lot of momentum heading into their Week 14 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers this upcoming Sunday night in Orchard Park.
The previously undefeated Steelers dropped their first game of 2020 on Monday evening, falling to 11-1 with a 23-17 loss to the Washington Football Team.
GAME SUMMARY
First Quarter:
- 7-0 SAN FRANCISCO – 49ers touchdown (0:44) – Nick Mullens passes to Brandon Aiyuk for a two-yard touchdown (Robbie Gould’s extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 3 plays, 3 yards, 0:40
Second Quarter:
- 7-7 TIE – Bills touchdown (13:02) – Josh Allen passes to Cole Beasley for a five-yard touchdown (Tyler Bass’ extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 5 plays, 77 yards, 2:42
- 14-7 BUFFALO – Bills touchdown (2:41) – Josh Allen passes to Dawson Knox for a four-yard touchdown (Tyler Bass’ extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 14 plays, 69 yards, 7:49
- 17-7 BUFFALO – Bills field goal (0:00) – Tyler Bass’ 37-yard field goal attempt is good
Drive info: 7 plays, 71 yards, 1:05
Third Quarter:
- 17-10 BUFFALO – 49ers field goal (11:14) – Robbie Gould’s 45-yard field goal attempt is good
Drive info: 8 plays, 48 yards, 3:46
- 24-10 BUFFALO – Bills touchdown (5:48) – Josh Allen passes to Isaiah McKenzie for a 23-yard touchdown (Tyler Bass’ extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 11 plays, 75 yards, 5:26
- 27-10 BUFFALO – Bills field goal (3:09) – Tyler Bass’ 28-yard field goal attempt is good
Drive info: 4 plays, -4 yards, 2:19
- 27-17 BUFFALO – 49ers touchdown (0:26) – Nick Mullens passes to Kyle Juszczyk for a six-yard touchdown (Robbie Gould’s extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 5 plays, 75 yards, 2:43
Fourth Quarter:
- 34-17 BUFFALO – Bills touchdown (9:50) – Josh Allen passes to Gabriel Davis for a 28-yard touchdown (Tyler Bass’ extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 10 plays, 75 yards, 5:36
- 34-24 BUFFALO – 49ers touchdown (0:43) – Nick Mullens passes to Jordan Reed for a five-yard touchdown (Robbie Gould’s extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 13 plays, 73 yards, 2:47
SKYWORKS EQUIPMENT RENTAL STATS OF THE GAME:
The Bills will be featured in prime time once again in Week 14, as they're scheduled to clash with the Steelers on Sunday, Dec. 13 at Bills Stadium with kickoff scheduled for 8:20 p.m. EST.
Be sure to hear all the action on WGR with John Murphy, Steve Tasker and Sal Capaccio on the call.