Buffalo N.Y. (WGR 550) - Following five-straight victories - three of which coming consecutively against AFC East opponents - the Buffalo Bills are, once again, playoff bound for a fourth-straight season. Buffalo punched its ticket to the postseason on Saturday night with a 32-29 win over the Miami Dolphins at Highmark Stadium.
It was a very good start for the Bills, scoring on three of their first four possessions in the first half, including a touchdown to running back James Cook just before halftime to give Buffalo a 21-13 lead going into the locker room.
It was a tough third quarter for the Bills, as they got outscored 13-0 and lost its lead to the Dolphins.
After going down 29-21 late in the fourth quarter, the Bills managed to drive back down the field and tie the game at 29-29, thanks to a Josh Allen-to-Dawson Knox touchdown pass, plus a Superman-like effort from Allen to convert a two-point conversion.
With less than six minutes left in the game and the defense having forced a punt from Miami, Allen and the offense ate up the rest of the game clock and was able to get well into field goal range for kicker Tyler Bass. The third-year kicker helped seal the win for the Bills with a 25-yard field goal as time expired.
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Sitting at 11-3 overall, the Bills still maintain the No. 1 overall seed in the conference standings, but only due to a tie-breaker they hold over the 11-3 Kansas City Chiefs because of their head-to-head matchup back in Week 6.
In addition, the Bills now only need a win or a tie against the Chicago Bears on Saturday, or a Miami loss or tie against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday in order to capture the AFC East crown once again. It would be the third-straight year Buffalo takes ownership of the division.
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As for the Bears, it has been a rough season for the rebuilding squad, having already been eliminated from playoff contention with a 3-11 record. They most recently faced the No. 1 seed in the NFC - Philadelphia Eagles - and played them tough, but in the end, lost 25-20 at Soldier Field.
With a win on Saturday, the Bills finish the 2022 season having gone 4-1 against NFC opponents, having only lost to the Minnesota Vikings back in Week 10 in their thrilling overtime matchup at Highmark Stadium.
While the Bills may be no stranger to playing in some inclement weather conditions, especially this season, the weather could play a huge factor into Saturday's game. Temperatures aren't expected to break the single digits on Saturday, and with winds ranging from 20-to-30 miles-per-hour for the contest, wind chills could be well-below zero degrees.
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Howard Simon has yet to pick a loss for the Bills this season against Chicago, and the potential for inclement weather will not stop him from picking any other way. In the Week 16 edition of “Howard Picks the Bills”, he, once again, picks the Bills beating the Bears, which officially clinches Buffalo another AFC East title.
As for the rest of the season, even though they are holding on to the No. 1 seed in the AFC, Howard still doesn't feel confident in Buffalo being able to pick up a victory in Cincinnati over the Bengals the next week on "Monday Night Football". He finishes his regular season picks with Buffalo losing to the Bengals, and then beating the New England Patriots at home.
With a 13-4 record to finish the 2022 regular season, it results in the Bills being the No. 3 seed in the AFC, according to the ESPN Playoff Machine, behind the Chiefs and Bengals.
Now that the road to the Super Bowl will most likely involve two games on the road, Howard has Buffalo making a run at the Lombardi Trophy.
Howard sees the Bills beating the Dolphins in a rubber match during the AFC Wild Card Round, earning a revenge win in Cincinnati over the Bengals in the AFC Divisional Round, and, yet, another win over the Chiefs, in Kansas City in the AFC Championship Game.
Then in the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 12 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, Howard is picking the Bills to earn their first NFL championship title with a win over the San Francisco 49ers!
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 Week 16 edition below:
