The Buffalo Bills offense hit some road blocks in the first half, but Josh Allen came out on fire in the 3rd quarter and led his team to a dominant win on Thanksgiving night. The Bills knocked off the Saints, 31-6 to improve to 7-4 on the season.
Despite a pair of turnovers, Allen was able to generate big plays with his arm and his legs. The first interception was a bad decision. He thought he had Stefon Diggs and didn’t get the ball out quick enough. It looked like he knew it was a mistake but had already committed to the throw. Bradley Roby stepped in front of Diggs and picked it off. The second was a bad breakdown on the offensive line and Allen’s arm was hit by a defender. Allen finished with three touchdown passes and a quarterback rating over 100 for just the second time in his last four games.
GAME RECAP LINKS:
- Buffalo Bills 31, New Orleans Saints 6: Rapid recap and notes (BuffaloRumblings.com)
- Bills win big over Saints: Ed Oliver feasts on Thanksgiving; Dawson Knox is TD machine (7 observations) (Syracuse.com)
- Buffalo Bills 31, New Orleans Saints 6: Rapid recap and notes (BillsWire.com)
- Carucci Take2: Beat-up opponent or not, Bills deserve credit for big rebound (WGRZ.com)
- Bills 31, Saints 6 | Game recap, highlights & photos (BuffaloBills.com)
- Bills TE Dawson Knox breaks franchise record in game vs. Saints (WKBW.com)
MEDIA:
A THANKSGIVING WIN!#BUFvsNO | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/wH7TGTXQoh
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 26, 2021
FINAL: A @BuffaloBills 31-6 Thanksgiving feast! #BillsMafia #BUFvsNO pic.twitter.com/ivnv9l5XCV
— NFL (@NFL) November 26, 2021
BILLS MAFIA!!
Buffalo caps off Thanksgiving with a win in NOLA ? pic.twitter.com/2QZae6Waul
— ESPN (@espn) November 26, 2021
#Shoutout: The Bills held the Saints to 1.8 yards per carry, the lowest by a Bills opponent with 25+ carries since 2003. pic.twitter.com/DlCc37I4pd
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) November 26, 2021
A big win for the @BuffaloBills in the Big Easy! pic.twitter.com/H0uCxW6Qwt
— Sunday Night Football on NBC (@SNFonNBC) November 26, 2021
Statement win by the Buffalo Bills. pic.twitter.com/eqo0hQfrq9
— NFL on CBS ? (@NFLonCBS) November 26, 2021
Thanksgiving dubs taste good. ?#BUFvsNO | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/MPz02Y3gWa
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 26, 2021
Happy Thanksgiving from @stefondiggs! #BUFvsNO | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/QoPWuYkXwu
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 26, 2021
Thankful for you, Bills Mafia. ❤️?#BUFvsNO | #GoBills pic.twitter.com/Zbbslvp5XA
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 26, 2021
Thanks to #BillsMafia in NOLA and back home for sharing your Thanksgiving with us! pic.twitter.com/7WDZlaJeH9
— Kim Pegula (@KimPegula) November 26, 2021
Dawson came hungry. ?
Top #BUFvsNO game photos: https://t.co/TXVLmKhUPa pic.twitter.com/5DEpY5Loyw
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 26, 2021
Route so pretty you need to watch it again.
?: @nbc pic.twitter.com/KRYQI5lMoc
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 26, 2021
.@micah_hyde joined @TaylorBisciotti after the @BuffaloBills BIG win…
And #BillsMafia made their presence known ? pic.twitter.com/AkSBcRAMhG
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) November 26, 2021
Bills Mafia showed UP. I’ve never seen anything like this. pic.twitter.com/ZH7GhRhOWz
— Taylor Bisciotti (@TaylorBisciotti) November 26, 2021
Josh Allen dominated the Saints blitzes, completing all 6 of his passes for 97 yards and 2 TD without being pressured once (+12.2 pass EPA on blitzes, 2nd-most in career).
Allen completed +13.0% of his passes over expected, the 3rd-highest in his career.#BUFvsNO | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/bEZ2iuWTMI
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 26, 2021
The #Bills had nine defensive linemen play on at least 25% of defensive snaps in their 31-6 victory over the #Saints, their fifth game doing so this season.
The rest of the NFL has only had three such games this season.#BUFvsNO | #BillsMafia
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) November 26, 2021
Still hungry. ?@OxfordPennant | https://t.co/LZQzQB6HJz pic.twitter.com/RThtbl0iX9
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 26, 2021
Sean McDermott said he believes the refs missed a clear roughing the passer call on Josh Allen in the third quarter. He said it was a clear as day penalty and he wants to protect his quarterback.
— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) November 26, 2021
Sean McDermott doesn't have an update on Tre'Davious White's status. He left the game with a knee injury and did not return. McDermott says they should know more in the next couple days on White's status.
— Heather Prusak (@haprusak) November 26, 2021
Ed Oliver had to get 40 tickets for friends and family tonight.
He joked he basically played for free because his mom was in a box ?#BillsMafia @WKBW
— Matthew Bové (@Matt_Bove) November 26, 2021
Sean McDermott confirms Isaiah McKenzie was a healthy scratch and was not out because of an injury.
— Heather Prusak (@haprusak) November 26, 2021
Good to see the #Bills back on track but be real the #Saints weren't going to compete with them tonight. Monday Night Football with the #Patriots will be interesting and an actual good competitive game.
— Ashly Holder (@AshNoelleTV) November 26, 2021
Josh Allen is STILL undefeated on Thanksgiving.#BillsMafia https://t.co/IP92mf5hPx pic.twitter.com/ig2D8QWm1W
— Dan Fetes (@danfetes) November 26, 2021
Josh Allen: "We need to start stacking wins" #BillsMafia
— Jenna Cottrell (@JennaCottrell) November 26, 2021
If you follow @ProFootballDoc , you know he is usually right on these things. He joins #Bills fans in hoping he is wrong. https://t.co/hhekZrywP6
— Mike Catalana (@MikeCatalana) November 26, 2021
Josh Allen finds Matt Breida for his fourth passing touchdown tonight.
Allen now has 25 passing TDs this season, tying Jim Kelly (1991) for the most passing TDs by a Bill in the first 11 games of a season.
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) November 26, 2021
On the Bills last drive, Josh Allen surpassed 3,000 passing yards for the third consecutive season.
Allen joins Ryan Fitzpatrick (3 straight) and Jim Kelly (5 straight) as the only Bills QBs to ever record three consecutive 3,000 yard seasons.
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) November 26, 2021
Dawson Knox finds the end zone for the second time tonight and seventh time this season.
That sets a new franchise record for receiving TDs in a season a Bills tight end.
— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) November 26, 2021
Dawson Knox says it starts with the offensive line and they played awesome tonight #Bills
— Maddy Glab (@MadGlab) November 26, 2021
Humble and hungry#GoBills
— Reid Ferguson (@SnapFlow69) November 26, 2021
Isaiah McKenzke and Zack Moss appear to still be in good spirits after tonight’s game despite being healthy scratches. ? pic.twitter.com/X1N7qRQSlb
— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) November 26, 2021
BIG DUBS!!!!!
— Jordan poyer (@J_poyer21) November 26, 2021
Thanks @BuffaloBills we all needed this
— Del Reid ? (@DelReid) November 26, 2021
Certainly feels like Matt Breida is the #Bills RB1 now.
— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) November 26, 2021
https://twitter.com/thadbrown7/status/1464100632328089609?s=20
Here’s a look at just one section of the #BillsMafia who stayed postgame to cheer on Josh Allen and other #Bills players. pic.twitter.com/PKPKeOeFw4
— Ryan Talbot (@RyanTalbotBills) November 26, 2021
At 7-4, the #Bills now take back over first place in the AFC East.
With the same record as NE & no head to head games, the division tiebreaker goes to division record which the Bills have the advantage in (3-0 vs. NE's 2-1.)
— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) November 26, 2021
Jordan Poyer says the turkey leg was a little dry & it could use a little seasoning on it. Says no offense to whoever cooked it… According to NBC, the turkey legs were prepared by world famous chef, Emeril Lagasse ?
— Bradley Gelber (@BradleyGelber) November 26, 2021
GAME PREVIEW:
Buffalo will have a short week of prep before the team heads to New Orleans on Wednesday for a Thanksgiving night matchup against the Saints.
While this game doesn’t necessarily have playoff implications, it is important for both teams if they want to keep their playoff chances alive. The Bills are second in the AFC East (6-4) and the Saints are second in the NFC South (5-5). Both teams have won just two of the last five games and the Saints are currently riding a three-game losing streak. Buffalo and New Orleans also rank seventh in the conference standings, which means if the playoffs started today, they would be the last two teams in.
GAME PREVIEW LINKS:
- Top 5 storylines to follow for Bills at Saints | Week 12 (BuffaloBills.com)
- Saints injuries piling up before game against Buffalo Bills on Thanksgiving (BuffaloRumblings.com)
- Bills at Saints: 7 storylines to follow in Week 12 (BillsWire.com)
- History of Bills Thanksgiving Day games (BuffaloBills.com)
- Edmunds a full go in practice as Bills prep for Saints (WGRZ.com)
- Bills’ Josh Allen: Saints ‘got playmakers all around that defense’ (BillsWire.com)
- Bills’ opponent preview: Cowbird’s eye view of the New Orleans Saints (BuffaloRumblings.com)
- No game status designations listed on Bills’ final injury report in Week 12 (BuffaloBills.com)
- Bills activate wide receiver Marquez Stevenson; Ankou and Bryant elevated for Bills-Saints game (BuffaloBills.com)
- Isaiah McKenzie, Zack Moss headline Bills inactives | Week 12 (BuffaloBills.com)
MEDIA:
#LeadingTheCharge: Week 12 (#BUFvsNO) game release: https://t.co/4zrNjUIDb7
? Caesars Superdome
? 8:20 PM EST
? NBC (Mike Tirico, Drew Brees & Michele Tafoya)
? @WGR550 / @WestwoodOne pic.twitter.com/0axgdVnrGR— Buffalo Bills PR (@BuffaloBillsPR) November 22, 2021
Thanksgiving threads. ?@EnergyMark | #BUFvsNO pic.twitter.com/ccyagPjmfO
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 23, 2021
Hungry for our next opportunity. ?@thebflostore | #BUFvsNO
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 24, 2021
NOLA bound. ?#BUFvsNO | #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/Dk4vjIsYsW
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) November 24, 2021
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].