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Josh Allen Leads Bills to First Overtime Win
Confirmed
In Short: Allen accounted for 331 total yards and two touchdowns, using his legs to make the decisive plays after the Bills’ chances appeared to be slipping away.
Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay expressed frustration following his team's 37-34 overtime loss to the Buffalo Bills on Monday night.
Buffalo improved to 4-1 with a resilient victory, and quarterback Josh Allen won the first overtime game of his career on his eighth try, counting playoffs.
Cook lost a fumble on the first possession of overtime, meaning L.A. had to start from scratch.
In a game with six lead changes, Buffalo emerged victorious behind James Cook's 111-yard game and Allen's 121 rushing yards.
Allen completed only four passes to receivers, but his legs proved most valuable on their final possession of regulation, with scrambles of 15 and 21 yards.
The Bills drained 5:35 off the clock and plodded into the red zone for a go-ahead score with 1:39 left.
The Rams were called for 11 penalties for 84 yards, bringing their total for the season to 42, which is tied for the sixth most in the NFL.
In overtime, after defensive end Greg Rousseau blocked a 48-yard go-ahead field goal attempt by Rams kicker Harrison Mevis, Allen took over.
Tyler Bass booted a 45-yard walk-off field goal with 1:55 left in the extra period, lifting Buffalo to 4–1 while dropping the Rams to 2–3.
The contest featured eight lead changes, 890 yards of total offense, and a wild second-half shootout in which the two teams combined for 35 fourth-quarter points.
Allen's overtime record had become a rather annoying footnote in his otherwise outstanding career.
Before Monday, Allen had produced impressive numbers in overtime without managing to finish with a victory.
Background
The contest highlighted the Bills' resilience and Allen's ability to lead his team to victory in a high-pressure situation.
What's confirmed
- Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay expressed frustration following his team's 37-34 overtime loss to the Buffalo Bills on Monday night.
- Cook lost a fumble on the first possession of overtime, meaning L.A.
- In overtime, after defensive end Greg Rousseau blocked a 48-yard go-ahead field goal attempt by Rams kicker Harrison Mevis, Allen took over.
- Both teams are coming off victories in Week One, with the Bills defeating the Houston Texans 36-31 and the Lions edging out the New Orleans Saints 31-30 in overtime.
- NFL – National Football League – Week 5 Last Night Buffalo Bills 37, Los Angeles Rams 34 – OT Bills 37, Rams 34 – OT – Allen racks up 331 yards and Bills outlast Rams with help from blocked FG for 37-34 win Josh Allen accounted for 331 total yards and two touchdowns, Tyler Bass made a 45-yard field goal with 1:55 left in overtime shortly after Greg Rousseau blocked the Rams’ field goal attempt, and the Buffalo Bills outlasted Los Angeles for a 37-34 victory.
- Allen won an overtime game for the first time in his career by besting Matthew Stafford, who passed for 383 yards and three touchdowns.
What's still developing
- INGLEWOOD, Calif. -- On a day when it seemed like the Buffalo Bills ' defense couldn't make a single play, edge defender Greg Rousseau 's special teams prowess and quarterback Josh Allen 's legs allowed the Bills to sneak out of "Monday Night Football" with a win.
- The special teams woes are nothing new to a Rams team that moved on from its kicker and long-snapper in the middle of last season and later fired its special teams coordinator after a Week 16 loss..
- Of course, that soon became moot as the Rams went down the field in about 90 seconds thanks to more Stafford mastery and forced overtime.
- The unit continued to struggle in Monday's loss, allowing a 70-yard kick return to start the game (the fourth longest in the NFL this season), missing a 50-yard field goal in the first quarter and having the potential 48-yard game-winning field goal attempt blocked in overtime.
- "Those are the things that we can control with focus and concentration."
- During a stretch in the fourth quarter, Buffalo allowed the Rams to score touchdowns on consecutive drives of 83, 61, and 63 yards.
- The Rams surrendered a staggering 234 rushing yards to Buffalo at an average of 7.6 yards per play overall.
- In a game that started both slow and sloppy, the Bills and Rams traded punches, scoring six straight touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters, leading to a 34-34 tie and into overtime.
- Khalil Shakir led the way through the air with three catches for 80 yards, including a 57 yard gain in overtime.
- The fact the Bills played close with this Rams team without a superhuman Allen performance is encouraging, in a sideways type of way.
- To put the Bills' game plan in perspective, the Rams targeted star receiver Puka Nacua more times than Allen threw passes.
- Gardner-Johnson made it even tougher to slow the Rams' passing attack late.