The Denver Broncos are facing off against the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card Round. Let's make three bold predictions for the game. For the first time since 2015, the Denver Broncos are in the postseason, and their first test in the playoffs in nearly a decade is going into Buffalo to face the Bills, a team that is going to come out and play desperate.
Denver can win this game - they have the advantage at head coach and along the defensive line. They also have a better kicker than the Bills' do, so this Buffalo team is beatable and is nothing super special. It'll be hard regardless, as the Bills are among the best teams in the NFL.
Let's make three bold predictions for the Broncos in the Wild Card Round.
3 bold predictions for the Broncos in Wild Card Round versus the Bills
Bo Nix throws for 250+ yards and 3 touchdown passes
You can absolutely throw on the Buffalo Bills' defense. They allow a 68.5% opposing completion percentage, which is the fourth-highest in the NFL. They've allowed 28 touchdown passes, which is the sixth-most in the NFL as well. They've also allowed an opposing passer rating of 93.4, which is all good news for Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos' offense.
Bo Nix is going to have himself a strong day through the air, throwing for at least 250 yards and tossing three touchdowns. Heck, Nix and the offense scored 29 touchdowns through the air in 2024, which was the fifth-highest total in the NFL. Sean Payton will know have to expose Buffalo's secondary.
Josh Allen throws multiple interceptions
The one area that Josh Allen has gotten a lot better in is the interceptions. He threw 18 in the regular season in 2023 and threw just six in 2024. However, over 111 regular season games, Josh Allen has thrown 84 interceptions, so he is someone who has put the ball in harm's way before, and the weird thing with Allen and the Bills is that every once in a while, they'll have a 'dud' game.
This is a high-variance football team, and I think that is partly due to their QB, who is sometimes boom or bust, and their head coach in Sean McDermott, who someone who has been out-coached on more than one occasion in the postseason. The Bills are kind of due for one of those sloppier games, so this could be a contest where Josh Allen isn't feeling himself and throws a couple of picks to the Denver Broncos' defense, who may possess the best CB room in the NFL with Patrick Surtain II, Riley Moss, Ja'Quan McMillian, and rookie Kris Abrams-Draine.
Bills need a last-second field goal to win
The Denver Broncos match up well with the Buffalo Bills and will keep it close. While I am predicting a Bills' victory, Buffalo will need a last-second field goal to earn the victory. It'll be similar to how the Broncos went into Buffalo back in 2023 and won on a last-second field goal. Denver is playing with house money in 2024 and really have nothing to lose. They don't know any better.
The Bills definitely have a lot on the line, as they have developed a reputation in recent years of continually falling short in the postseason. Buffalo is going to do just enough to win the game, but it won't be as much of a blowout as some may think it'll be.