INGLEWOOD, Calif. — That’s one monkey off Josh Allen‘s back.
Allen led the Buffalo Bills to a 37-34 overtime win against the Los Angeles Rams on “Monday Night Football,” breaking his careerlong winless streak in OT. Before Monday’s game, Allen was 0-7 in overtime, including three season-ending playoff losses despite him averaging 292 passing yards, 75 rushing yards and a couple of touchdowns per game.
Against the Rams, Allen came through with his usual late-game theatrics. Across the fourth quarter and overtime, Allen was 5-for-5 passing with 121 yards and ran six times for 91 yards and a touchdown. He also completed a 2-point conversion attempt.
But none of that would’ve mattered if not for edge defender Greg Rousseau blocking the Rams’ would-be winning field goal attempt and affording the Bills their chance to end Allen’s overtime streak.
“Just didn’t feel like I was in a rhythm [early], wasn’t taking some of the underneath stuff. Fighting mechanically some stuff right now that I’m working on,” Allen said. “But I felt like in that second half I got into a rhythm. Guys made some plays. It’s awesome stuff.”
Allen acknowledged he crossed his fingers and hoped against hope that a defender would make a play to extend the game in overtime. After that happened, coach Joe Brady didn’t take any chances. The Rams had stymied the Bills’ passing game, which was already without receivers DJ Moore and Joshua Palmer. So the Bills ran four times, twice with running back James Cook and twice by calling Allen’s number. On those back-to-back carries, Allen accounted for 19 and 13 yards, pushing his game total to 121, the second-best single-game total of his career.
Ask Allen and Brady and they’ll both say they’d prefer to win games without asking Allen to run wild; winning games in which Allen runs 10 times with 12 completions is hardly sustainable. To Brady, Allen is a victim of his own talent sometimes. The mechanical issues Allen can fixate on are often manifestations of an awareness Allen possesses that most others don’t.
“I want him to just play,” Brady says. “His good is damn good and it’s good enough.”
In a game in which the Bills committed 13 penalties, gave up 40 completions, turned the ball over twice, including once in overtime, stunk on third downs on offense, struggled on third downs on defense and couldn’t get their receivers or tight ends involved in the slightest, having Allen’s good was pretty much all the Bills had.
And as evidenced by his big smile caught on camera as Tyler Bass‘ winning 45-yard kick went through the uprights, Allen’s relief after finally getting that overtime win is more than justified.
