"The only thing that went their way was the weather" - Ex-NFL HC Mike Smith breaks down Bills' nightmare outing in divisional-round loss to Bengals (EXCLUSIVE)
One of the most surprising games of the divisional round of the 2023 NFL playoffs occurred on Sunday as the Cincinnati Bengals defeated the Buffalo Bills 27-10.
The #Bengals defeat the #Bills 27-10 and will now head to Kansas City for their second-straight AFC title game. https://t.co/XoS2lKN5Se
The Bengals dominated on the road to advance to their second-straight AFC championship game, where they will play the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead.
Former NFL coach Mike Smith spoke with Sportskeeda in an exclusive interview on "The Ballfather podcast" and spoke about Cincy's dominant victory.
Smith said that the only thing that went Buffalo's way was the weather and that their defense went MIA.
"I'll tell you this. It was Buffalo weather at the ballgame," Smith said. "But that was about the only thing that went their way. The weather. You know, it was a tough day for the Bills. The Bengals scored on five of their first seven possessions.
"The Bills defense has gone missing at different times of the year during the regular season, and they were MIA again yesterday."
Smith added that the Bengals were able to protect quarterback Joe Burrow well and that the Bills missed Von Miller's prescence.
"The Bengals protected Joe Burrow, and that kept the Bills defense on their heels all day," Smith said. "We've talked about it. This has been an inconsistent defense. The injuries started to really add up in the secondary as the game went on. People are asking how come the Bills weren't able to get pressure?
"Well, they've missed Von Miller – for what? – six or seven games of the season. And that's a tough one. And I remember what had happened. We said, as we get further along down the season, there's potentially going to be some repercussions of not having him on the field. And I think it really showed up in the ballgame yesterday."
The Bengals held the Bills to 325 total yards and only one touchdown. Josh Allen accounted for no touchdowns and forced a turnover, throwing an interception.
Joe Burrow and the Cincinatti Bengals are looking to make it to a second-straight Super Bowl
Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals are looking to punch a ticket to their second-straight Super Bowl.
Last year, they were AFC Champions and made the Super Bowl but fell to the Los Angeles Rams 23-20.
BREAKING: Rams beat Bengals in epic Super Bowl LVI thriller foxnews.com/sports/super-b…
They won the AFC North, defeated the Baltimore Ravens in the first round and then defeated the Bills on Sunday on the road in dominant fashion.
They'll face the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC championship game for a second time this season. Joe Burrow is 3-0 against the Chiefs in his career.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Mike Smith, The Ballfather podcast, and H/T Sportskeeda.