ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — There was plenty of back slapping going around in the immediate aftermath of the Buffalo Bills defense’s dominating performance over Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets.
Three takeaways, four sacks — including one for a safety — and chasing Rodgers to the bench while enjoying a 40-0 lead through the opening minutes of the fourth quarter Sunday was a welcome sight for a patchwork defense that had allowed a combined 107 points, 1,357 yards and 86 first downs in its three previous outings.
Encouraging as it was in a 40-14 win in which Buffalo (13-3) clinched the AFC’s No. 2 seed, questions remain over how the unit holds up against superior competition once the postseason opens in two weeks. And will it be enough for a prolific Josh Allen-led offense to mask Buffalo’s defensive deficiencies by simply outscoring opponents?
“These past couple of weeks we've been doubted,” said A.J. Epenesa, who had the safety. “Just responding. We know what caliber defense we can be.”
And yet, overwhelming a struggling Rodgers and the unraveling Jets, who are headed into another uncertain offseason is one thing. Putting together a similar performance against the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson and Justin Herbert presents a far more daunting test.
As much as Buffalo enters Monday ranking 11th in the NFL averaging 21.6 points against, the team is 5-3 when allowing 21 or more points. This is also a unit that ranks 21st in yards allowed, and relying on having forced 31 takeaways — tied for the NFL lead with Pittsburgh and Minnesota through games Sunday — to get off the field.
“It was good to see our defense balling. We were hitting on all cylinders,” cornerback Taron Johnson said. “We keep that up, we can do something special.”
Perhaps.
What’s also important to weigh are the complementary keys that have added up to the Bills' success.
The common threads in Buffalo’s losses to Baltimore, Houston and the Los Angeles Rams include the defense allowing 400-plus yards and a combined turnover differential of plus-1 for a team that enters Monday with a league-best plus-23. The losses also marked the only times this season in which the Bills trailed by 10 or more at halftime.
By comparison, the Bills are 9-0 when leading at the half, and 7-1 when scoring on their opening possession.
This places an emphasis on Buffalo getting off to fast starts, which was most evident in a 48-42 win at Detroit on Dec. 15. The defense forced punts on the Lions’ first two possessions, while the offense scored touchdowns on its first three.
If any of this sounds familiar, questions over the defense stepping up in the playoffs have been an ongoing theme.
In being eliminated three times by Kansas City and once by Cincinnati over the past four playoffs, the Bills have been outscored by a combined 134-94, allowed an average 441 yards offense and forced two takeaways (both fumbles).
Injuries and youth are the reasons behind Buffalo’s defensive inconsistencies this year. And the bright side is the unit finally approaching its healthiest entering the playoffs.
Better still is coach Sean McDermott having the opportunity to rest many of his starters in what’s essentially a mean-nothing finale at New England on Sunday.
Will it be enough?
Red-zone production. Over the past six games combined, Buffalo has scored 19 touchdowns, two field goals and had a missed field goal on 22 drives inside an opponent’s 20.
Consistency on a defense that still has difficulty getting teams off the field on third down. Buffalo ranks 29th in the NFL in allowing opponents to convert 44.4% of their third-down opportunities.
WR Amari Cooper. Finished with three catches for 56 yards, including a leaping 30-yard touchdown reception, in reminding opposing defenses the depth of a Bills receiving group that will likely finish the season without anyone reaching 1,000 yards.
Hard to knock anyone in an outing in which practice squad callup Tyrell Shavers scored on a 69-yard catch and rookie third-string linebacker Joe Andreessen finished with a team-best eight tackles in 26 snaps, two more than he played in his first 11 games combined.
None reported, though S Damar Hamlin (rib) is approaching his return after missing his third game.
4 — The franchise single-season record number of times Buffalo has scored 40 or more points, and 13th time in seven seasons under Allen. The Bills topped 40 points 13 times from 1997 to 2017.
McDermott cited Allen's 104-game starting streak as the only reason he'll start against New England before getting a quick hook. Without saying who, he said a collection of other starters will sit out.
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) is sacked by Buffalo Bills defensive end AJ Epenesa, right, in the end zone for a safety during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Jordan Phillips (97) celebrates with teammates after making an interception against the New York Jets during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) is pressured and sacked in the end zone by Buffalo Bills defensive end AJ Epenesa (57) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Adrian Kraus)
Buffalo Bills defensive tackle Jordan Phillips (97) celebrates after making an interception against the New York Jets during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The highly decorated Army soldier inside the Tesla Cybertruck that burst into flames outside President-elect Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel shot himself in the head before the explosion and likely planned to cause more damage but the explosive was rudimentary and the steel-sided vehicle absorbed much of the force, officials said Thursday.
Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill said at a news conference that a handgun was found at the feet of the man in the driver's seat, who officials believe is Matthew Livelsberger, 37, of Colorado. The shot appeared to be self-inflicted, officials said.
Damage from the blast was mostly limited to the interior of the truck. The explosion “vented out and up” and didn’t hit the Trump hotel doors just a few feet away, the sheriff said.
“The level of sophistication is not what we would expect from an individual with this type of military experience,” said Kenny Cooper, a special agent in charge for the the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Among other charred items found inside the truck were a second firearm, a number of fireworks, a passport, a military ID, credit cards, an iPhone and a smartwatch, McMahill said. Authorities said both guns were purchased legally.
Investigators have not definitively identified the remains as Livelsberger, but the IDs and tattoos on the body “give a strong indication that it’s him,” the sheriff said.
Livelsberger served in the Green Berets, highly trained special forces who work to counter terrorism abroad and train partners, the Army said in a statement. He had served in the Army since 2006, rising through the ranks with a long career of overseas assignments, deploying twice to Afghanistan and serving in Ukraine, Tajikistan, Georgia and Congo, the Army said.
He was awarded two Bronze Stars, including one with a valor device for courage under fire, a combat infantry badge and an Army Commendation Medal with valor. Livelsberger was on approved leave when he died, according to the statement.
McMahill said Livelsberger rented the Tesla electric vehicle in Denver on Saturday and the sheriff displayed a map showing that it was charged in the Colorado town of Monument near Colorado Springs on Monday. On New Year’s Eve, it was charged in Trinidad, Colorado, and the towns of Las Vegas, Albuquerque and Gallup in New Mexico, along the Interstate 40 corridor.
Then on Wednesday, the day of the explosion, it was charged in the Arizona towns of Holbrook, Flagstaff and Kingman before video showed it on the Las Vegas Strip about 7:30 a.m.
The FBI said Thursday in a post on X that it was “conducting law enforcement activity” at a home in Colorado Springs related to Wednesday's explosion but provided no other details.
The explosion of the truck, packed with firework mortars and camp fuel canisters, came hours after 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar rammed a truck into a crowd in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter early on New Year’s Day, killing at least 15 people before being shot to death by police. That crash was being investigated as a terrorist attack. The FBI said Thursday that they believe Jabbar acted alone, reversing its position from a day earlier that he likely worked with others.
Both Livelsberger and Jabbar spent time at the base formerly known as Fort Bragg, a massive Army base in North Carolina that is home to multiple Army special operations units. However, one of the officials who spoke to the AP said there is no overlap in their assignments at the base, now called Fort Liberty.
Chris Raia, FBI deputy assistant director, said Thursday that officials have found ‘no definitive link’ between the New Orleans attack and the truck explosion in Las Vegas.
Seven people nearby suffered minor injuries when the Tesla truck exploded. Video showed a tumble of charred fireworks mortars, canisters and other explosive devices crowded into the back of the pickup. The truck bed walls were still intact because the blast shot straight up rather than to the sides.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Wednesday afternoon on X that “we have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself."
"All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion,” Musk wrote.
Musk has recently become a member of Trump’s inner circle. Neither Trump nor Musk was in Las Vegas early Wednesday. Both had attended Trump’s New Year’s Eve party at his South Florida estate.
Copp, Richer and Long contributed from Washington. Associated Press writers Rio Yamat and Ken Ritter in Las Vegas and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles contributed.
Investigators enter a townhouse in northeastern Colorado Springs, Colo., Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, as the investigation connected to the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside President-elect Donald Trump's Las Vegas hotel continues. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette via AP)
Investigators stand outside a townhouse complex in northeastern Colorado Springs, Colo., Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, as the investigation connected to the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside President-elect Donald Trump's Las Vegas hotel continues. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette via AP)
Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)
