Buffalo keeps winning late, but January defenses won\u2019t be forgiving if the Bills fall behind early.<\/p>\n
ORCHARD PARK \u2014 One thing the Buffalo Bills<\/a> have done rather effectively in 2025 is play from behind, though that\u2019s not an attribute they want to continue to test once the postseason begins, especially since they\u2019re probably going to be on the road for as long as they\u2019re alive.<\/p>\n The Bills have not scored first in their past five games, yet they wound up winning the first four of those against the Steelers, Bengals<\/a>, Patriots and Browns<\/a>, and had Josh Allen not thrown a terrible pass at the worst possible moment on what would have been a game-winning two-point conversion last Sunday, they would have beaten the Eagles<\/a>, too.<\/p>\n In the other games where they did not score first \u2014 both Dolphins<\/a> games, Falcons, the first Patriots game, and Buccaneers \u2014 they rallied to win twice against Miami and Tampa Bay.<\/p>\n Add that up and the Bills are an admirable 6-4 when they don\u2019t score first. Further, they have shown ability to rally late to win games, too, as they have won five games that they trailed in the fourth quarter.<\/p>\n \u201cI just don\u2019t think there\u2019s any quit on this team,\u201d edge rusher Joey Bosa said. \u201cWe\u2019ve proved that a few games this year, that you just have to keep fighting. And when you have Josh back there with the ball in his hands, anything is possible.\u201d<\/p>\n Bills have had to dig themselves out of a hole too often<\/p>\n It began in Week 1 when they were 15 points behind Baltimore before pulling off an incredible comeback in the final four minutes to win 41-40. They entered the Week 3 Miami game trailing 21-14 going into the fourth quarter before winning 31-21.<\/p>\n In the 44-32 Week 11 shootout victory over Tampa Bay there were nine lead changes, the last coming when the Bills trailed 32-31 before going ahead for good with 9:06 left to play. They were down 28-18 in Week 14 to Cincinnati with 8:44 remaining before rallying to win 39-34. And at New England in Week 15 they were down 21-0 in the second quarter and 31-28 in the fourth before pulling out a 35-31 triumph.<\/p>\n The Bills have even had to dig themselves out of a hole in three of the six games where they scored first. They got up early against the Ravens<\/a>, Jets<\/a>, Saints<\/a>, Panthers<\/a>, Chiefs, and Texans<\/a>, and the lone loss in that group was to Houston, but in only three of those wins \u2014 Jets, Saints, Panthers \u2014 did the Bills lead wire-to-wire.<\/p>\n That\u2019s right, just three times all season, and none since Week 8 at Carolina, have the Bills not found themselves trailing at some point.<\/p>\n In its last eight games, Buffalo has managed just 23 first-quarter points, and across the first 16 games it has been outscored 82-78 in the first quarter. Extending through the first half, the Bills have been outscored 221-189.<\/p>\n McDermott and Allen push for faster starts and cleaner execution<\/p>\n A couple weeks ago, following Buffalo\u2019s spectacular comeback in Foxborough, coach Sean McDermott was asked about his team\u2019s penchant for falling behind and he said, \u201cThat\u2019s something we have to work on. Something we have to \u2026 get into a rhythm sooner. But there\u2019s also an ability to adjust during a game. Anybody can come up with a game plan, but it\u2019s also what happens when they take certain things away. Are you able to pivot and adjust? I think that\u2019s the sign of a great staff.\u201d<\/p>\n