The Denver Broncos are hosting the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, and much of the talk leading up to the game has been, 'can Josh Allen lead this Bills team to victory?' Allen has been a regular in the playoffs for years now, and with how QB-centric the NFL is, the quarterbacks are the ones who are getting most of the conversation.
However, we have seen Allen and the Bills continually fall short in the playoffs. They've been to the postseason each year since 2019 and won the AFC East five years in a row. By all accounts, Buffalo has been dominant. They've had Pro Bowlers, All-Pros, double-digit winning seasons, division titles, and an MVP.
They've also stacked a ton of playoff wins, but we're typically having the same conversation in mid-late January about Josh Allen and the Bills again falling short. For the most part, it's been thanks to the Kansas City Chiefs, but with no Chiefs to speak of in the playoffs, will the NFL world be forced to have some very uncomfortable Josh Allen conversations if the Bills fall short against the Denver Broncos?
What kind of QB will people view Josh Allen as if another playoff run falls short?
Since 2019, here are how the Buffalo Bills have been bounced out of the playoffs:
2019: L, Wild Card against Houston
2020: L, AFC Champ Game against Kansas City
2021: L, Divisional Round against Kansas City
2022: L, Divisional Round Cincinnati
2023: L, Divisional against Kansas City
2024: L, AFC Champ Game against Kansas City
Four of the Bills' six playoff losses in the Josh Allen era were thanks to the Chiefs. One was thanks to the Joe Burrow-led Cincinnati Bengals, and the 2019 season, when Allen was not close to the QB he is now, was thanks to the Deshaun Watson-led Houston Texans.
It's been a loss in the Divisional Round or AFC Championship Game five years in a row now. At some point, Josh Allen has to take over a game and will his team to victory, right? Well, what if that simply can't happen?
What if Josh Allen just won't get over the hump? Sure, he's still young by QB standards and is still among the most dominant players in the NFL, but there were many dominant quarterbacks who never got over the hump, and if the Buffalo Bills can't do this in 2025, some tough conversations would have to be had.