On January 12, the Buffalo Bills play the Denver Broncos in the first round of the playoffs. Buffalo secured the No. 2 seed and home field advantage in the Wild Card round after winning the AFC East for the seventh time in a row. At Highmark Stadium, the Bills concluded the regular season with a perfect record, and they hope to continue that run.
There was significant worry about one of Josh Allen’s prime targets, wide receiver Amari Cooper, even though the Bills quarterback and team have the healthiest roster in years going into the playoffs. Cooper missed the Bills’ last regular-season game against the New England Patriots due to a personal family issue. Prior to the game against the Broncos, Cooper had not returned to the squad and was unsure if he would.
“It’s family-related, and I’ll just leave it at that out of respect for Amari,” said McDermott. But on January 9, the Bills received some fantastic news about Cooper.
The five-time Pro Bowler, who joined the Bills in October as part of a trade with the Cleveland Browns, returned to practice on Wednesday and participated fully on Thursday.
While Allen is already playing at an MVP level this season, the Broncos defense will be tested with Cooper, Khalil Shakir, Keon Coleman, and Mack Hollins all set to go. With the Bills offense’s “everybody eats” philosophy, offensive coordinator Joe Brady is interested to watch what Allen and his teammates do this weekend.
“They know what the challenge is going to be, (what’s) at stake,” Brady informed the crowd. “And they understand that they must perform to the best of their abilities. I’m excited to see them play.”
McDermott is also expecting the Broncos’ head coach, Sean Payton, to bring his best. “I think he’s one of the best coaches in our league,” he told me. “I actually do. He has won at the greatest level, including a Super Bowl. I believe he is one of the best offensive play callers and designers out there. So it’s no surprise to me that they’ve achieved such success.”
