Bills On the Board with FGBuffalo kicker Dave Rayner connected on a 28-yard field goal, cutting the Denver lead to 7-3 just over six minutes to go in the second quarter.
A 55-yard catch and run by Stevie Johnson set up the Bills in the red zone.
But the Denver defense forced an incompletion in the end zone on third down, and the Bills brought on Rayner for the field goal.
Broncos at Bills: Injury UpdatesBills Miss Two FGs in FirstTwo long returns have given the Bills great position, but there are no points to show for it.
The Denver defense has held strong as both Buffalo possessions ended with missed field goals wide left from Bills kicker Dave Rayner (45 and 31-yard attempts).
The Broncos have given up 63 total yards as the first quarter comes to a close. Denver leads 7-0.
Broncos Strike FirstTim Tebow ran into the end zone from one yard out to give the Broncos a 7-0 lead in Buffalo.
The Denver defense forced a three-and-out to start the game, and the offense drove 73 yards down the field to open the scoring.
The Broncos ran for 53 total yards, 39 of which came courtesy of five carries for Willis McGahee, who topped the 1,000-yard rushing mark on the season earlier in the possession.
Tebow completed two passes on the drive, both to wide reciever Demaryius Thomas, to help set up the touchdown.
Click here for the audio highlight of the touchdown courtesy of AM 850 KOA.
Captains and StartersGameday captain Mario Haggan, who played with Buffalo from 2003-07 joined season captains Willis McGahee (who also played for the Bills from 2003-06), Chris Kuper, Brian Dawkins, Champ Bailey and Wesley Woodyard for the opening coin toss today.
Denver called heads and the coin turned up tails. Buffalo chose to receive to start the game.
The Broncos started out in their base defense with linemen – Robert Ayers, Brodrick Bunkley, Marcus Thomas and Elvis Dumervil, linebackers – Joe Mays, Von Miller and D.J. Williams, defensive backs – Champ Bailey, Andre’ Goodman, Brian Dawkins and Quinton Carter.
After one first down, the defense forced Buffalo to punt, bringing out the Broncos offensive starters:
Offensive linemen – Chris Clark, Zane Beadles, J.D. Walton, Chris Kuper, Ryan Clady and Orlando Franklin, tight end – Dante Rosario, running back – Willis McGahee, wide receivers – Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker and quarterback – Tim Tebow.
McGahee Tops 1,000-Yard Mark
With his 24-yard carry in the first quarter, running back Willis McGahee surpassed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season. McGahee became the franchise’s 19th 1,000-yard rusher and the first since Tatum Bell in 2006.
McGahee joins Ricky Watters as the only players in NFL history to rush for 1,000 yards with three different teams. His 1,000 rushing yards so far this season are the most he’s registered since his Pro Bowl season in 2007, when he finished with 1,207 with the Ravens. McGahee also topped the 1,000-yard mark in 2004 and 2005, while playing for the Bills.
His 4.8 rushing average entering today marks the fourth-best among running backs with 200-plus carries in the league this season.
-Stuart Zaas
Broncos Fan Makes Memorable Trip
The Broncos have a strong contingent of fans here in Buffalo for today’s game. One of them, Miles Power, is attending his 131st consecutive regular season Broncos game.
The streak, which began in 2004 at Tampa Bay, has taken Power to every NFL stadium, with the exception of the new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas and the new MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Power said his favorite stadium that he’s visited was Lambeau Field in Green Bay, which was also the home to the hardest ticket to find this year.
His wife, Tricia, just had the couple’s first child this past Wednesday, which they named Bailey, after Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey.
While Bailey isn’t quite ready to join the traveling party, Power hopes that eventually she’ll be able to experience Broncos games on the road with the rest of the family. He hopes that his story encourages more Broncos fans to make the trips to see the team play on the road. Power holds a tailgate before each game and said that is has been enjoyable getting to know other Broncos fans on these trips.
Thanks to Miles and the rest of Broncos Country that made the trip to Buffalo today.
-Stuart Zaas
Broncos at Bills: Pregame PhotosHere are some field-level photos from the Broncos’ warmup session, courtesy of team photographers Eric Bakke and Gabriel Christus.
Click to continue reading “Broncos at Bills: Pregame Photos”
Broncos at Bills: Inactives
Inactives for today’s game have just been released. Above is the official inactives form that Head Coach John Fox turned into the officials:
For Denver, wide receiver Quan Cosby, safety Kyle McCarthy, linebacker Mike Mohamed, guard Manny Ramirez, tackle Tony Hills, tight end Julius Thomas and defensive end Derrick Harvey are inactive for today’s game.
For the Bills, wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt, running back Johnny White, defensive back Josh Nesbitt, right tackle Sam Young, defensive lineman Jarron Gilbert, wide receiver Ruvell Martin and tight end Fendi Onobun will not suit up today.
Broncos Depart for Buffalo
With up to a foot of snow accumulating in the past 24 hours, the Denver Broncos practiced inside Thursday before departing to Buffalo.
The team used the half-field turf surface behind the weight room. However, the close quarters wasn’t an issue as the team was able to run through its practice.
“It wasn’t bad, similar to the place I have used in the past with another team,” Head Coach John Fox said. “I thought we got our work done, and didn’t risk injury going out in the snow covered field. I think we got done what we get done on an in-season type Friday practice.”