One game.
That's all that separates the Buffalo Bills from a fifth trip to the Super Bowl.
One game.
That's all that separates the Bills from a chance to finally hoist the Lombardi Trophy and put to rest 30 years of lamenting what might have been.
The magical ride that began in September made its biggest surge yet with a 17-3 victory against the Baltimore Ravens in Saturday night's AFC divisional-round playoff game at Bills Stadium.
Now, it is down to that single game, when the Bills face the winner of Sunday's Kansas City Chiefs-Cleveland Browns for the next AFC championship at 6:40 p.m. Sunday on CBS.
The enormity of the accomplishment had yet to sink in even after some players emerged from the locker room to speak with the media.
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"We still don't even realize it," offensive tackle Dion Dawkins said in the moments after the game. "The emotions are still flying, the emotions are still flying. I’ve been trying to tell people this is a special group. We’re a bunch of underdogs just trying to do what’s right. … We keep on climbing, climbing, climbing.
"It’s a party here."
It marks the Bills' first appearance in the conference title game since the 1993-94 season. If the Chiefs win, the game is in Kansas City. If it's the Browns, the Bills are home for a third consecutive postseason game.
The Bills had their second playoff crowd of 6,700, as allowed by New York State during the pandemic. The fans, sounding more like 67,000, created enough noise to force the Ravens to draw back-to-back false-start penalties.
"What a great environment," coach Sean McDermott said. "It was loud. ... Just a great experience, great atmosphere. Congratulations to all the Bills fans out there."
Unlike each step of the journey, Saturday night's win would not join the seasonlong hit series known as "The Josh Allen Show." In fact, the biggest play of the night was Taron Johnson's 101-yard touchdown return of an end-zone interception.
The much-hyped battle of first-rounders from the famed NFL quarterback draft class of 2018 offered little of the anticipated fireworks. This came down to a classic, old-school battle of defenses.
It was tough and physical, reminiscent of heavyweight boxers trading haymakers.
Lamar Jackson, the Ravens' QB known for his dynamic running, left the game with a concussion after landing hard on the back of his head late in the third quarter. Even before then, the Bills' defense frustrated him with constant pressure and tight coverage.
Besides the interception, Jackson was limited to only 162 passing yards and ran for only 34 yards on nine carries before undrafted rookie free agent Tyler Huntley took over. Huntley gave a game effort, but the Bills' D stood tall.
"We just trust the process and got better each and every day," safety Micah Hyde said.
It was the first time the Ravens failed to reach double digits in points since scoring nine in Week 5 in 2018. It also was their fewest points since a 20-3 loss against the Indianapolis Colts in the divisional round of the 2009 playoffs, 11 years to the day.
"I can't say enough for words for what that game was for our defense and how they played," Allen said.
The first half ended in a stunning, 3-3 defensive standoff.
Allen, whose big, talented arm did the most to help carry the Bills to their best season since their Super Bowl-making salad days of the '90s, didn't deliver his lone touchdown throw until the third quarter on a 3-yard completion to Stefon Diggs. He wound up throwing for 206 yards after eight 300-plus-yard passing games in the regular season and one last week in the Bills' wild-card triumph against the Colts.
No, this game wasn't about offense at all. The play that broke it open was Johnson's TD return that gave the Bills a 17-3 lead with 41 seconds left in the third quarter.
"Just an unbelievable play," Allen said. "It will be one of those plays that will be remembered for a long time."
Perhaps the most imposing force of the night was the wind, whose heavy gusts made throwing difficult and contributed to a pair of missed field-goal attempts by both kickers. The Ravens' Justin Tucker, the most accurate kicker in NFL history, bounced two tries off of each upright in the first half. After connecting from 28 yards in the first quarter, Bills rookie kicker Tyler Bass sent his next two attempts wide right.
Remarkably, Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll stuck with the pass-oriented game plan and play-calling he has employed for most of the season. Allen threw on all of the Bills' first 19 snaps. Their run didn't come until 1:04 into the second quarter, and that was an Allen scramble on yet another called pass play. It wasn't until there were three minutes left in the first half that a running back, Devin Singletary, touched the ball on a running play. The Bills didn't convert a third down until just under two minutes in the first half.
Ultimately, none of that would matter to the Bills' mission to go the distance with a roster that has a franchise quarterback and Diggs, the NFL's leader in receptions and receiving yards.
Add to that superb coaching from McDermott and staff, a steadily improving defense that's rising to the occasion at the perfect time, and solid special teams and you have the ingredients of a serious championship contender.
The Bills take an eight-game winning streak into the AFC title game. They also take the belief that they have the ability to win in more ways than one.
"I don’t think it adds any more confidence than we have in ourselves," Allen said of the defense picking up the slack. "We’re a team that believes in each other. ... Every game has a lot more riding on it than the last. We’re either playing against Kansas City or playing here against the Browns. We’ll go out and execute the game plan."
Bring on the Chiefs. Bring on the Browns. The Bills look to have the complete team to compete with either one.
“I think it will hit us about in about 30 minutes, when guys are in their cars and realize we are two games away from the big show and we’re in the AFC championship game," Dawkins said. "These are special moments. It’s a great time to be a Buffalo Bill.”
