Bills Get Bad News Before Crucial Week 17 Showdown With Eagles

The Buffalo Bills handled the Cleveland Browns in Sunday’s 23-20 Week 16 win, but the game was much closer than it probably should’ve been.

Quarterback Josh Allen, who left in the first half with a foot injury but didn’t miss a play after X-rays came back negative, attempted only 19 passes (he completed 12 of them).

Allen threw for 130 yards and ran just 7 times for another 17 yards as the Bills relied heavily on running back James Cook.

The two-time Pro Bowler rushed for 117 yards and 2 touchdowns, while fellow RB Taron Johnson scored the another score, marking just the third game this season Allen was held without a touchdown.

Buffalo’s defense was on the field quite a bit against the Browns, who actually outgained the Bills 294 yards to 259, and dominated time of possession 35:23 to 24:37.

While Buffalo may have struggled with Cleveland, fans are hoping that won’t be true in next week’s matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles — one that has big playoff implications for both teams.

Eagles Matchup Just Got Tougher for Bills

Heading into Week 17, the Bills are the hotter team. Winners of four straight—including wins over two playoff teams—Buffalo also has more to fight for in Sunday’s home contest against Philadelphia.

That Week 17 matchup though got a little more difficult after ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Philadelphia is about to get a big boost in the form of two key injury returns.

“Reinforcements on the way: Eagles DT Jalen Carter (shoulders) and OT Lane Johnson (foot), both are expected back next week in time to play against the Buffalo Bills, per sources,” Schefter reported.

Carter, an All-Pro defensive tackle, will make it much more difficult for Cook to break off big chunk runs and keep the team’s defensive line rotation much fresher.

Johnson, a 6-time Pro Bowler and 5-time All-Pro guard, will certainly provide a boost in the run game for Saquon Barkley and help keep quarterback Jalen Hurts upright against a Bills pass-rush that has seen its share of struggles.

Bills Still Have Path to AFC’s No. 1 Seed

Buffalo trails New England by one game in the division, and the latter has a much easier schedule to close out the year with game against the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets.

The Bills (11-4), however, can still win the AFC East — a feat that wouldn’t have been made possible without their key 35-31 Week 15 win over the New England Patriots.

Buffalo needs to win its final two games against the Eagles and Jets, plus it needs the Denver Broncos, Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Los Angeles Chargers to all lose at least one of their final two games.

Currently the Broncos (12-3) occupy the top seed with the Patriots second, but if Buffalo wins out and four of the top five seeds lose at least once over the next two weeks, the Bills would secure a coveted first-round bye

The Eagles (10-5) already have their division sewed up. They still technically have a shot at earning the No. 1 seed in the NFC, but they need the perfect storm of things going their way for it to happen.

Michael Gallagher Michael Gallagher is a sports journalist covering the NFL for Heavy.com. He has more than a decade of experience working for both local and national news outlets covering the NFL, NHL, NBA, WNBA, college football, and MMA. His work has been featured in Newsweek, Yahoo Sports, Fox Sports, Athlon Sports, The Hockey News, the Nashville Scene, SB Nation, and Yardbarker. More about Michael Gallagher