Tag: Dionte Johnson

Instant analysis, game recap of Bills’ playoff win over the Steelers

Reflecting on the win that was:

The Buffalo Bills defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Wild Card playoff action, 31-17.

The game, delayed over 24 hours from its original kickoff time due to massive snowstorms that traveled through western New York over the weekend, was a great continuation of the Bills late-season surge. Including the playoffs, Buffalo has won its last six contests.

Buffalo’s offense started blazing hot, moving down the field with little resistance on their first drive. Tight end Dawson Knox scored on a corner route to finish off a 10-play drive.

Buffalo’s defense made the first big play between the two defensive units. Cornerback Taron Johnson forced a fumble from Steelers wide receiver George Pickens. Linebacker Terrel Bernard recovered the fumble in Pittsburgh territory.

On the next play, Allen delivered a perfect pass to tight end  Dalton Kincaid.

Kincaid got depth behind Steelers linebackers for the 29-yard score.

The Bills defense followed this up with another big play.

Pittsburgh’s offense finally started to gain some traction, moving the ball efficiently through the air and on the ground. Steelers quarterback looked to get Pittsburgh on the board with a pass to the edge of the end zone. Cornerback Kaiir Elam turned and snagged the ball to halt the drive.

Buffalo responded with an eight-play scoring drive culminating with a spectacular run by Josh Allen. The Bills QB broke out of the pocket and rumbled 52 yards through defenders to give Buffalo a three-touchdown lead.

Down and out, Pittsburgh gained some life with a big special teams play. The Steelers blocked a Tyler Bass field goal attempt from 49 yards out. The ball rolled back into Buffalo territory, and Pittsburgh took control at the Bills 33-yard line.

The Steelers ran through an efficient five-play series to get on the board. Dionte Johnson found a pocket in the Bills secondary and scored on a 10-yard reception. Buffalo entered halftime up 21-7.

Pittsburgh’s offense moved the ball well on their initial possession of the second half. The Bills defense, however, forced an incompletion on third-and-nine to stop the drive. Kicker Chris Boswell was successful from 40 yards to reduce the deficit to 11 points.

Buffalo committed to the run on the next drive. This time, Bass was good from 45 yards out, giving Buffalo a two-touchdown lead once again. The drive took over seven minutes off the clock.

Pittsburgh hung tight, responding with a 12-play touchdown drive. Once again, the Steelers leaned on a combination of run plays and intermediate passes to move the ball down the field. Wideout Calvin Austin found a spot ahead of cornerback Cam Lewis for the reception. With over 10 minutes remaining in regulation, the Steelers clawed their way back within one score.

Then, the Bills started to pull away once again.

Buffalo tacked on another score, this time with a spectacular run-after-catch by Khalil Shakir. The Bills receiver broke a tackle at the 15-yard-line and then weaved his way through the Steelers defense. The drive featured several runs by Allen and Cook to extend the series.

Buffalo’s defense slammed the door shut from there and the clock was too far gone for Pittsburgh’s hopes.

Here’s the rest of Bills Wire’s recap of the Bills’ win over the Steelers: 

Game balls: 5 stars from Bills-Steelers Week 1 clash

Game balls: 5 stars from #Bills-#Steelers Week 1 clash (via @jdiloro):

It’s not always fun looking at how opponents succeeded against the Buffalo Bills, but that’s how it played out in Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After a solid first half by the Bills, they saw the game flipped on its head in the second half. Pittsburgh scored 20 unanswered points in the second half, including a blocked punt that was returned for a touchdown.

Buffalo’s explosive offense fell flat, only scoring one touchdown on the afternoon.

With that, here’s who earned a game ball from Sunday’s action between Pittsburgh and Buffalo:

Instant Analysis: Bills fail to answer in loss to Steelers

Rough start for the #Bills:

Buffalo’s fans came out in full force to support the Bills in their first home fully attended home game since the 2019 season. Unfortunately, their energy couldn’t carry the Bills to a victory, as Buffalo fell to Pittsburgh 23-16 in 2021 Week 1 action.

The game started off fairly well for the Bills, especially for their defense. Buffalo’s defensive unit only allowed 54 yards to Pittsburgh in the first half. Buffalo limited the Steelers to only seven rushing yards during the first 30 minutes. Mario Addison forced a fumble, sacking Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. The Bills defense kept the Steelers off the scoreboard in the first half.

Buffalo’s offense struggled a little bit in the first half, but they still moved the ball methodically. Gabriel Davis scored the Bills first touchdown of the season, a three-yard reception from quarterback Josh Allen.

However, this would be the high watermark for the day for Buffalo. Pittsburgh ground out a second half that keep them in the game and ultimately, pushed them into victory territory. Buffalo, for all of the talk of their explosive offense and Super Bowl aspirations, could not handle the Steelers in front of the crowd and Highmark Stadium.

Pittsburgh scored 20 unanswered points in a multitude of different ways. Pittsburgh kicker Chris Boswell made two field goals in the third quarter to pull the Steelers within four points.

In the fourth quarter, Pittsburgh wide receiver Dionte Johnson catch a deflected pass in the corner of the end zone to give the Steelers their first lead on the afternoon.

On the subsequent drive, the Steelers won the special teams battle, blocking a punt, scooping it up, and scoring what would be the score that would be the difference in the game.

The game highlighted several concerns for the Bills. Ahead of the game, everything seemed to line up for a wildly exciting opening to a campaign where the Super Bowl is within Buffalo’s reach.

First, the Bills offense, which was nothing short of dynamic and explosive last season, fell quite late. Buffalo could only muster 10 points in the first half. Pittsburgh created the game plan for squaring off against the Bills offense, dropping their secondary deep and daring the Bills to take anything underneath. The Steelers were quick to rally to the ball, so even the intermediate passes were largely mediocre.

Second, self-inflicted mistakes haunted the Bills. The offensive line was overmatched multiple times today. Tackle Dion Dawkins was flagged three times for holding. Mitch Morse and Daryl Williams were also called for holding.

On the defensive side of the ball, Tre’Davious White and Levi Wallace were flagged for pass interference calls, each that helped put Pittsburgh in a better position offensively. It allowed Roethlisberger and the Steelers offense to methodically push down the field.

Third, the coaching decisions of McDermott and company were worrisome. Buffalo’s offense failed on two fourth down conversion attempts. It’s not as much at the Pittsburgh defense stopped the Bills; it’s more of how wildly unsuccessful the play calls turned out. The offense still relied on quarterback-designed rushes, which were largely snuffed out by the Steelers. Devin Singletary had a nice afternoon but was largely ignored until late in the game. In the previous matchups with the Steelers, Sean McDermott clearly outcoached Tomlin. Today, it was a reversal, especially in the second half.

Finally, for all of the attention to detail, the ultimate play that ended up being the difference in the game was a blocked punt by Pittsburgh. While the kick return coverage of the Bills was a positive aspect for the team on the afternoon, the failure to block on the punt attempt was a huge flaw.

The game started with a blast, as Isaiah McKenzie took the opening kick 75 yards into Pittsburgh territory. However, it was three and out on the drive, and the Bills could only manage a field goal, even with stellar field position. Squandering that opportunity only acted as a harbinger of the struggles the Bills offense would have for the remainder of the game.

Buffalo travels to South Beach to take on the Miami Dolphins next Sunday. It’s obvious early to push the panic button, but the Bills will need to return to the drawing board if they think an uninspiring effort like this will get it done next well.