Here's a quarter by quarter look at the Buffalo Bills' 44-34 victory over the Seattle Seahawks at Bills Stadium on Sunday.
First quarter
Theme: Josh Allen on fire.
Setting the tone: Andre Roberts returned the opening kickoff 7 yards deep in the end zone and went 60 yards to the Seattle 45.
One if by air: The Bills called 12 passes and one run on their first two possessions and scored touchdowns on drives of 45 and 72 yards. Allen was 13 of 15 for 154 yards and two TDs.
Key stop: Credit defensive end Jerry Hughes with an assist on the end-zone interception late in the quarter. It was a fourth-and-1 play, and Hughes hurried Russell Wilson to force the throw.
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After four games of subpar and ordinary performances, Josh Allen returned to the form he showed as the Bills roared to a 4-0 start.
Balmy: With a temperature of 70, it was the warmest November home game in Bills history, surpassing a 62-degree day in 2013 vs. the Jets.
Matchup watch: With starting CB Shaquill Griffin and slot corner Ugo Imadi out due to injuries, that pushed third-year veteran D.J. Reed onto the field in passing situations. Reed, a former undrafted free agent, is Seattle’s third option at slot corner and was a liabilty.
Fast starters: The Bills have outscored foes 66-27 in the first quarter. Seattle has a 56-50 first-quarter edge.
Second quarter
Theme: Bills defense gets a stop.
End zone breakup: Levi Wallace broke up a 28-yard pass down the right sideline into the end zone for Freddie Swain to force Seattle to settle for a 45-yard field goal late in the quarter. It pulled Seattle within 24-10.
Huge 30 minutes: Josh Allen was 24 for 28 for 281 yards and three touchdowns.
Blitz beater: Allen hung in the pocket, despite pressure from blitzing Jamal Adams and threw a 4-yard TD pass to Gabriel Davis to give the Bills a 24-7 lead. Adams came up the middle and got to Allen’s legs, but not before the pass was released.
Matchup watch: The Bills matched up Tre’Davious White with D.K. Metcalf on numerous third downs, but mostly had White and Wallace stick to their sides. Metcalf beat White for a 41-yard deep ball thanks to pure speed, and also got a 25-yard pass interference call against White.
The interceptions by Jordan Poyer and Tre'Davious White were two of the four turnovers of Wilson forced by the Buffalo defense.
Rare road flop: The Seahawks had won nine of their last 11 games on the road. Seattle had won 10 straight 1 p.m. Eastern kickoffs and was 18-6 in its last 24 1 p.m. Eastern games.
Third quarter
Theme: Seattle creeps closer.
Defense hangs on: It’s odd to say, but the Bills’ defense did its job, despite giving up a 75-yard TD drive and a 48-yard field goal drive. The defense forced a turnover at the Seattle 22 to start the half.
No challenge: Gabriel Davis may well have stayed in bounds and stretched the ball over the pylon for a TD on his 38-yard catch to the 1. The Bills did not challenge the stop. FOX analyst Mike Pereira thought it was a TD. Still, the Bills were stopped on three downs and settled for a field goal.
Magic man: Siran Neal had Russell Wilson dead in his sights and then in his grasp on a blitz. Somehow, Wilson eluded Neal to heave a third-down incompletion.
Zebra report: Jerry Hughes was called for roughing the passer on an incompletion. It was a dubious call because Hughes held up a big. But it’s a call NFL officials often make. It didn’t matter, because the Bills’ defense held Seattle to a field goal.
Out of the half: Seattle has outscored foes 80-39 in the third quarter. The Bills have been outscored 59-23.
Fourth quarter
Theme: Turnovers seal the deal.
Bills D steps up: Tre’Davious White intercepted a Russell Wilson third-and-25 pass and returned it 28 yards to the Seattle 3. Later in the quarter, A.J. Klein made a strip-sack of Wilson and took the ball away to give the Bills the ball at Seattle’s 19.
Key play: John Brown took a screen pass for 33 yards to the Seattle 1 on a third-and-16 play. It set up the TD that put the Bills ahead, 34-20.
Big offense: The 44 points were the most for the Bills in four years, since a 45-16 win over San Francisco in 2016.
Fantasy stud: Josh Allen scored his fifth rushing TD of the season with a 3-yard run. It was the 22nd of his career.
Nine-game sprint: Allen’s 2,587 yards is the second most through nine games in team history (to Drew Bledsoe in 2002), and his 19 TD passes are second most (to Joe Ferguson in 1981).
Twenty and nine: The Bills hit the 20 first-down mark in all nine games. It’s the second-longest streak in team history.
Rolling: It’s the first time the Bills are 7-2 since 1993.
