The Bills have earned the national spotlight
Despite an 8-3 start to the 2019 season, the Buffalo Bills have earned little recognition nationally for their winning ways. With little star power and a schedule that doesn’t put them in primetime once, the team has struggled to get attention from national pundits, other than those who have raised questions about the Bills’ overall body of work and the quality of their opponents.
The Bills lone chance on the schedule to bask in the national spotlight was their trip to Dallas for Thanksgiving. The game offered the Bills a chance to prove themselves in front of a national audience and pick up arguably their most impressive win of the season.
Buffalo would be battling not just the Cowboys, but a history of disappointing results in games in front of a national TV audience. The Bills of the 21st Century have a win-loss record in night games that is lopsided against their favor. While Thursday’s game was not a night game, it offered the Bills the chance to be seen as the only game on TV to a national audience.
The Bills did not disappoint in their chance to grab the spotlight.
Sean McDermott’s team proved it deserves accolades and attention with a convincing victory over a Dallas team that is in first place in it’s division. Of course, with any Dallas game comes the extra attention garnered for “America’s Team.” That’s especially true for the annual Thanksgiving game. The Bills stole the show with a dominant victory that answers plenty of questions both Bills fans and a national audience had for them.
While so many primetime Bills’ games of the past have gone horribly wrong, this one was just right for the Bills and their fans. Buffalo weathered a slow start that saw them fall behind 7-0 and stormed back with 26-straight points. It was a coming out party for Josh Allen in front of a national audience. He posted a 79.2 percent completion percentage and found the end zone twice, once through the air and once on the ground. While he wasn’t eye-popping, his performance is one that is sure to earn praise from fans and media around the country.
The Bills also thrilled the Thanksgiving audience with a trick play that went for a touchdown as Andre Roberts grabbed an end around before lateralling to John Brown, who lofted a 28-yard touchdown pass down the right sideline to a wide open Devin Singletary.
The Bills have been asking for respect and they can expect to get it now from more than just people in Western New York. The whole country saw the Bills throttle the Cowboys in Dallas. Buffalo showed it can handle the pressure and spotlight of a big game, something it hadn’t had this season outside of the Week 4 New England matchup. With bigger matchups coming down the line, the Bills have shown they won’t crack under the spotlight.