By Nick Wojton / Billswire.usatoday.com
Really no matter which way you slice it, Sunday’s Week 12 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars was the Josh Allen show.
The Buffalo Bills (4-7) rookie quarterback got it done with his feet and his arm.
Overall, Allen was only 8-for-19 passing but took some strides forward. Allen had 160 yards passing with a touchdown and no interceptions. Allen threw receivers open and completed passes while taking hits.
On the ground, Allen flashed once again this season with 13 carries for 99 yards including a touchdown. Allen actually surpassed 100 yards on the day but two kneel-downs to finish things dipped him below the century mark.
Following the energy-packed win which included a brawl, Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott gave some high praise to the rookie, saying he embodies the city of Buffalo with the way he played.
“I love the fire. He personifies Buffalo, right?” McDermott said. “He’s a hard worker, blue-collar kid and loves to compete. He’s still young, so again, let’s manage expectations. It was a good start for him. These next six games, or these next five games now to get him back on the field and grow and see different defenses, see the speed of Jacksonville’s defense, as it was mentioned earlier. That’s a heck of a defense out there.”
Prior to the game, McDermott took some flack from the fan base for not starting Matt Barkley at QB after his strong game against the Jets. No one’s saying anything now.
Following the win, Allen gave plenty of credit to the guys around him, too.
“I just wanted to go out there and complete the ball when it needed
to be completed and make plays when plays needed to be made. I trust the guys around me, and that’s kind of what we did today. Robert Foster made a huge play to start the game. Our defense played outstanding, with the goal-line stop and the missed field goal then three plays later we’re down in the end zone. You just can’t say enough about it and how we kind of pulled together here. It’s an exciting win and it’s definitely, hopefully, going to carry some momentum into next week,” Allen said.
The Bills will hope Allen takes another step forward with a win in Week 13 in their first meeting of the season with the Dolphins in Miami.