In a nutshell: The Bills, like the Browns, are coming off their first playoff win of the 21st century. The Ravens, though, also ripped a monkey off their back on Wild Card Weekend with their first postseason victory of the Lamar Jackson era. Now, two teams with dynamic quarterbacks from the first round of the 2018 draft go head-to-head with a trip to the final four on the line.
Date/time: Saturday, 8:15 p.m. ET
TV: NBC
Location: Bills Stadium (Orchard Park, New York)
Fans in attendance: Likely at least 6,772
Early line: Buffalo -2.5
Early total: 49.5
Key Matchups
Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs vs. Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters
The sensational third-year quarterback completed all but nine of 35 passes for 324 yards in an interception-free performance Saturday against the Indianapolis Colts, with the NFL regular-season catch and receiving yardage leader accounting for 128 of those yards and a touchdown.
They have become one of the best quarterback-receiver teams in the league, but now they'll have to deal with another top-10 pass defense in DVOA and several steller veteran cornerbacks in Humphrey, Peters and Jimmy Smith. That crew had some trouble with Ryan Tannehill and A.J. Brown early in their wild-card matchup with the Tennessee Titans, but they got it together in a comeback win.
Jackson and J.K. Dobbins vs. Buffalo's run defense
There were times when the Titans had to know a Jackson keeper was coming, but it just didn't matter. The human cheat code rushed for 136 yards on 16 carries, while Dobbins and Gus Edwards added 81 more in more traditional roles against Tennessee.
Buffalo's run defense ranked below the league median in DVOA after allowing seven backs to average more than five yards per carry on double-digit attempts during the regular season. That unit surrendered 153 yards on 27 carries against Jonathan Taylor and Nyheim Hines on Wild Card Weekend, and for what it's worth, they surrendered 61 yards and two touchdowns to Kyler Murray but generally held Cam Newton in check in their matchups with significantly mobile quarterbacks this season.
Other Potential X-Factors
Ravens: Marquise Brown
Brown versus star Bills cornerback Tre'Davious White is also a tantalizing matchup after the second-year wide receiver caught seven passes for 109 yards against Tennessee. He hasn't been overly consistent this year, but he scored three touchdowns in the final two weeks of the season, and it looks like he's gaining steam in January.
He could have his hands full with White and fellow Bills corner Levi Wallace, who was actually the highest-graded defensive player at Pro Football Focus from Saturday's three Wild Card games.
Bills: Jordan Poyer and Micah Hyde
Buffalo's standout safety duo played a huge part when the Bills limited Jackson to just 40 rushing yards on 11 carries when these two met in 2019. They were also two of Buffalo's best players in Saturday's victory over Indianapolis.
Slowing down Jackson is a team effort, but a lot is likely to fall on Poyer and Hyde, and the former has a particular penchant for big plays coming off a campaign with two picks, two sacks, two forced fumbles and 124 tackles.
Injuries to Watch
Ravens: None—Every Raven listed on the team's final wild-card round injury report was active against Tennessee.
Bills: RB Zack Moss—The rookie had been getting more work than backfield-mate Devin Singletary of late, but he suffered what looked to be a serious ankle injury on Saturday.
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