Bills 24, Bucs 18 Game summary, key moments, and numbers to know
After leading the Buffalo Bills to a 24–18 victory over the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday Night Football, Josh Allen continues to remain
unblemished.
In route to 324 passing yards and two touchdowns, Allen completed 78 percent of his throws.
Shortly after the release, he threw an interception after his pass was tipped.
In addition to his work in the air, Allen finished with seven carries for 41 rushing yards and a
touchdown. When it came to avoiding contact, Allen was not slow to use his
feet, slipping when needed.
young tight end Due
to injuries sustained by Quintin Morris and Dawson Knox, Dalton Kincaid was the
only tight end listed on the gameday roster. Kincaid finished with a
career-high five receptions for 65 yards and a touchdown.
In the latter stages of the second quarter, Allen received the snap at the Tampa Bay 22-yard
line. He rolled right and found Kincaid, who quickly outran his defender and
reached the end zone. Reaching out and holding onto the ball that will probably
end up on Kincaid's mantle, the 24-year-old celebrated his first professional
score by jumping into the stands.
The first half of the three games prior to Thursday night saw a total of 10 points scored by the
Bills offense. Their score on Thursday was 17. Tyler Bass gave Buffalo the lead
following their opening drive with a 37-yard field goal, one week after he had
missed two attempts. Buffalo never trailed following the touchdown.Baker
Mayfield and the Buccaneers offense were well contained by the Bills defense
and special teams units throughout the first half. Defensive end Shaq Lawson
blocked Chase McLauglin's field goal attempt to keep the Bucs off the
scoreboard after they drove into Buffalo territory on their second possession
of the game. In the second quarter, the Bills offense picked up steam after failing to find the end zone in the first. From the Tampa Bay 13-yard line, Allen had a large opening for a
touchdown run in the red zone. The quarterback chose to hold onto the pass. It
was his fifth-year rushing touchdown.
Tampa Bay's first points of the game came when McLaughlin knocked the 57-yard field goal past the posts after Mayfield connected with receiver Chris Godwin for a long gain as
the Bucs' offense got going. The score was 10-3.
Following Allen's interception, Mayfield needed just two plays to complete a touchdown pass to Godwin, who tied the score with a spectacular catch. Kincaid's touchdown at the
half gave Buffalo the lead once more.
On the opening play of the third quarter, Allen went straight back to Kincaid, finding him for an
eighteen-yard gain. Allen oversaw a productive nine-play drive that resulted in
their final touchdown of the day, a short toss to Gabe Davis.Following six
straight punts, neither team was able to muster a touchdown drive. Three of the
four punts made by Bills punter Sam Martin fell inside the 10-yard line, and
two of them were downed inside the 5-yard line.
His last punt went up, and Cam Lewis attempted a wonderful play to bring the ball down, but it
rolled into the end zone and was recovered by Cam Lewis.
After a lengthy drive that resulted in a touchdown reception from Mike Evans and a successful
two-point conversion, Tampa Bay put Buffalo's lead in jeopardy late in the
game. Mayfield got the Bucs to their own 45-yard line, forcing Buffalo to punt.
From there, they tried a Hail Mary.
When the ball landed on the blue turf of the Bills end zone, surrounded by a horde of Bucs
receivers and Bills defenders, the game was finished.
The Bills now have a 5-3 record for the year. They will play the Bengals at 8:20 p.m. on Sunday in Cincinnati.Josh Allen equaled quarterback Dan Marino's second-most touchdowns
in a player's first six seasons with 199 after scoring three touchdowns overall
in Thursday's victory. With twenty-four, only Patrick Mahomes has more.
With his 43rd career rushing touchdown, Allen equaled Steve Young for the second-most by an NFL quarterback. Cam Newton has the most yards of any quarterback at 75.
In his career, Allen is currently 6-0 while playing on Thursdays. Prior to the Bucs' setback
tonight, Mayfield had a perfect record on Thursday night football.
Dalton Kincaid, who gained 65 yards, was a key component of the Bills' passing attack. With 30 of 34 targets caught so far this season, Kincaid has the best catch percentage of
any rookie and ranks sixth overall in the NFL. Ed Oliver tied his
own season-high sack total from 2019 in the second quarter. After missing last week's
game due to a toe injury, the Bills defensive tackle recorded a total of two
tackles. Since 2020, Allen has completed the most passing touchdown passes in NFL history, with eighteen (including his toss to Kincaid) on scrambles outside the tackle box to the
right side of the formation.