The Buffalo Bills visit the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, to cap of an eventful Week 13. With positive results from other AFC teams on Thanksgiving Thursday, Buffalo can feel much more secure in their positioning with a win this weekend. Still, they have to actually win first. The Steelers are a different beast, in the thick of the AFC playoff race with Buffalo.
One of these two must fall. Buffalo likely steps out of a playoff spot with a loss, and Pittsburgh steps both out of the playoffs and their loosely-held NFC North lead. Everything is on the line for both teams, but what happens now? Let's make some predictions.
Prediction #1 - Josh Allen scrambles
The Buffalo Bills are without both starting tackles on Sunday, according to the latest injury report. The Pittsburgh Steelers may not have the elite defense of old, but they're scary off the edge. It's a worrisome combo: lost protection and fierce opposition. Against the Houston Texans, Josh Allen was eaten alive, taking a career-worst 8 sacks.
This time, he will be ready. If Allen is willing to bail out at the first sign of pressure, and create with his legs, Buffalo can blow this game wide open. It's not a perfect choice, but Allen has earned the right to dictate the offense in the moment. Be it laterally or horizontally, trusting in him to find a way against pressure is the only decision worth making by the coaching staff this week.
Prediction #2 - Buffalo opens up passing game
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a legitimate threat in the AFC. In a year where the competition is wide open, and no team is running away with it, the Steelers have few blatant weaknesses that you can guarantee will cost them.
One soft spot that Buffalo can attack is the passing defense. No team allows more yards through the air than the Steelers this season. The trade sending S Minkah Fitzpatrick back to the Dolphins seems a serious loss.
Pittsburgh is allowing a league-most 258.7ypg through the air. Though they allow just 6.6 yards per pass attempt, the league average, they aren't versatile enough to adjust. A team that can pass well against them doesn't have to change things up. That's good news for a Bills offense that averages 8.3 yards per pass, third-most in the NFL. Passing against the Steelers consistently will only lead to victory.
Inversely, no team has allowed less yards through the air in 2025 than the Buffalo Bills. They still have problems against the run, but pass defense is still a strength for the boys of Orchard Park.
Prediction #3 - Final score
The Buffalo Bills have all the reasons in the world to be confident against the Steelers defense, despite their injuries. The question quickly becomes this: What does an injured Aaron Rodgers do to overcome a tough but wounded Bills defense? The answer is simple: Not enough.