6 key moments that altered the 2021 season for the Buffalo Bills

Failed 4th and 1 against Titans

After their win over the Chiefs, the Buffalo Bills were once again on the road as they faced the Tennessee Titans. This was a game that went back and forth almost the entire game with the biggest lead either team held was seven points, which the Bills had going into the fourth quarter.

However, the Titans would score 10 points in the final quarter and took a 34-31 lead with just over three minutes remaining. Josh Allen and the Bills would put themselves in a position to send the game into overtime with the ball inside the 10 yard line late. Instead of playing for overtime, Sean McDermott and the Bills elected to go for it on 4th and 1 to try and pick up the first down and eventually the touchdown to win the game.

The Bills wouldn’t convert as Josh Allen appeared to slip as he dove for the first down and the Titans would win. This play was a key moment for two reasons.

The first was that it showed an aggressiveness from McDermott that he hadn’t shown in the past and would be a precursor for things to come, especially in the second half of the season. One of the biggest criticism as head coach was settling for field goals in the AFC Championship Game from the previous season and he certainly wasn’t going to let that happen again.

The other reason was that this really decided who would claim the top seed in the AFC, which went to the Tennessee Titans. If the outcomes of the other games remained the same, the Bills would have won the first seed, secured a first round bye, and home field advantage through out. This means avoiding the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisonal Round and playing them at home in the AFC Championship Game.