ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills’ spread the wealth approach on offense that was so productive in the regular season, proved unstoppable in their playoff opener.

Whether it was Allen completing a 24-yard touchdown pass to sliding running back Ty Johnson on fourth down, or James Cook racking up 120 yards rushing, including a 5-yard touchdown run, the Bills leaned on a balanced attack in a 31-7 win over the Denver Broncos in a wild-card playoff game on Sunday.

“I don’t think there was one certain thing over another. We just wanted to come out and execute well,” Allen said. “At the end of the day, we just wanted to come out and play our best football, and I feel like we did that today.”

With Allen completing 20 of 26 attempts for 272 yards passing and two touchdowns, and the running game combining for 210 yards, Buffalo methodically wore down the Broncos by scoring on six of its first seven drives in a game where the Bills finished with a 23-minute edge in time of possession.

Allen completed passes to eight players, including getting receiver Curtis Samuel involved by essentially sealing the win with a 55-yard touchdown catch on the opening snap of the fourth quarter.

“I’ll speak on behalf of Curtis. He probably didn’t have the season that he wanted to have,” Allen said of the eighth-year player who was limited to 31 catches for 253 yards and a touchdown. “But he just continued to work hard, and that’s kind of the mentality we’ve had all year is everybody eats. And today was his day.”

The five-time defending AFC East champion Bills, who became the NFL’s first team to score 30 touchdowns rushing and passing in a season, advanced to the divisional round for a fifth straight postseason, and will face the third-seeded Baltimore Ravens next weekend.

The Ravens, coming off a 28-14 win over Pittsburgh on Saturday, routed Buffalo 35-10 at Baltimore in Week 4 this season. The outing will mark the second playoff meeting between Allen and Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson after Buffalo defeated the Ravens 17-3 in the 2020 divisional round.

“This is what everyone’s been waiting for, right?” coach Sean McDermott said. “So it’ll be a nice week and everyone will be looking forward to it, and they’re a great football team. I mean they handled us pretty good the first go around and they’re certainly playing well.”

The seventh-seeded Broncos were outclassed in their first playoff appearance since their Super Bowl-winning season in 2015.

Denver’s offense essentially stalled after rookie Bo Nix capped a five-play opening drive with a 43-yard touchdown pass to former college teammate Troy Franklin. Nix finished 13 of 22 for 144 yards in an outing where Denver punted four times and turned the ball over on downs twice.

The game served as a lesson in how much further the first-round pick and the Broncos still have to go after a promising season in which Nix threw 29 touchdown passes — two short of the NFL rookie record.

“I’m really proud of these guys. We’ve overcome a lot and not really been counted in many games,” Nix said. “But to make the playoffs was a special moment for this group. It’s something we can build off of. ... Our goals are changing.”

Meantime, the Broncos attacking defense was kept at bay by an Allen-led attack that was more than content in gaining small chunks of yards on lengthy time-consuming drives. The Broncos, who had an NFL-leading 63 sacks this seasons, sacked Allen just twice in an game where the Bills punted once.

“Who got punched in the mouth?” Bills edge rusher Greg Rousseau asked, dismissively, regarding the Broncos scoring 2:24 into the game.

“It really was just a message to ourselves,” Rousseau said. “We know who we are week after week, and what we’re capable of and what we’re supposed to do out there. That’s what it’s all about.”

Though the Bills didn't force a takeaway, they made impactful plays in limiting the Broncos to convert just two of nine third down opportunities.

And then there was Cam Lewis' diving tackle in shoving running back Jaleel McLaughlin out of bounds for no gain on fourth-and-2 at the Buffalo 14 early in the fourth quarter.

With Buffalo leading 13-7, Allen broke the game open with his touchdown pass to Johnson with 3:06 left in the third quarter. The score held up following a replay review, which showed Johnson’s foot touching out of bounds but after he secured the ball.

“You tell me it’s complete, I’m going to sign up for it every week,” McDermott said in placing his faith in Allen to convert on fourth down. “You guys know that. I trust him and I believe in him.”

Allen's touchdown to Samuel came on Buffalo's next possession.

Cook became Buffalo’s first player to top 100 yards rushing in a playoff game since Hall of Famer Thurman Thomas had 158 yards rushing in a 1995 wild-card playoff win over Miami. Allen increased his playoff total to 23 passing touchdowns, breaking the franchise record of 21 held by Hall of Famer Jim Kelly.

Up next

Broncos: offseason.

Bills: Host the Ravens next weekend in a matchup of two quarterbacks selected in the first round of the 2018 draft.

Broncos rookie QB Bo Nix learns difficult, but valuable lesson in losing playoff debut against Bills

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Bo Nix’s first taste of the NFL playoffs quickly turned bitter after a sweet start.

Denver’s rookie quarterback threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to his former college teammate Troy Franklin on the opening drive of Sunday’s wild-card playoff game. But the Broncos never scored again in a 31-7 loss to the Bills.

“A lot to grow from, a lot to learn from,” Nix said.

If there’s a bright side, the 24-year-old first-round pick now has a reference point to build from after Nix played a major role in leading the Broncos to their first playoff appearance since their 2015 Super Bowl-winning season.

“I haven’t been in the league long enough to know how far off we are,” said Nix, whose 29 touchdown passes were two shy of the NFL rookie regular-season record.

“I just know we competed against some really good teams this year. Next year’s going to be a new year and we just got to go and compete like we did this year,” he added. “To make the playoffs was a special moment for this group. It’s something we can build off of. ... Our goals are changing.”

Nix finished 13 of 22 for 144 yards passing, and led the Broncos with 43 yards rushing while failing to sustain any momentum from the opening drive.

Denver combined for 154 yards on its final seven drives, four ending with punts, two on being stopped on fourth down, and Wil Lutz missing a 50-yard field-goal attempt that would have tied the game at 10 at halftime.

Coach Sean Payton said the next step for the Broncos is to secure home playoff games by winning the AFC West.

“We got beat today. Especially in the postseason, it’s always a bitter pill to swallow,” Payton said. “It’s got to fuel you and light a fire in the direction we need to go. One of the things we learned early on is we got to find a way to play these games at home.”

The Broncos dropped to 2-7 in the wild-card round, with all seven losses coming on the road. And Denver has lost five straight road playoff games.

With the offense sputtering, Denver’s attacking defense was ineffective in sacking Josh Allen just twice. And the Broncos eventually wore down with Buffalo enjoying a 23-minute edge in time of possession.

“We never really had an answer to stop their running game,” Payton said. “And when you’re playing a game like that, you’re not rushing the passer nearly as much as you’ve been accustomed to.”

The Broncos converted just 2 of 9 third downs against a Bills defense that ranked 29th in that category.

One of those third down conversations came on the opening series when Nix found Courtland Sutton for a 19-yard gain on third-and-8, two plays before Nix connected with Franklin 2:24 into the game.

“You go to a new level, you get to the NFL, I expected it to be tough,” Nix said. “But I was pleased how at the end of the day, it’s just football.”

That’s the mindset Nix plans to bring into his next playoff appearance.

“The biggest thing is that we can make all the hype we want about playoff football. But it’s just another game. It’s just another AFC game,” Nix said. “So I think in the future, it’s treat it like just another game, like it’s the next one on your schedule. You go out there and play. There’s nothing different. There’s no special thing because it’s a playoff. It’s just a football game. That’s encouraging to know.”

Westbrook and Jokic help Nuggets erase double-digit deficit in 112-101 win over Mavericks

DALLAS (AP) — Russell Westbrook had 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists and Nikola Jokic added 19 points, 18 rebounds and nine assists as the Denver Nuggets rallied in the fourth quarter to beat the Dallas Mavericks 112-101 on Sunday.

The Nuggets trailed by 19 points late in the third period and by 12 early in the fourth. They outscored the Mavericks in the fourth period 33-12. After hitting only four of 25 3-pointers through three quarters, Denver shot 3 for 7 down the stretch while the Mavs missed all 11 3-point tries in the fourth.

The Nuggets won for the 12th time in 17 games.

Klay Thompson scored 25 points to lead the Mavericks, who are 2-5 playing without All-Star guards Luka Doncic (calf strain) and Kyrie Irving (back sprain). Thompson was scoreless on four shots, all 3-pointers, in the fourth period.

Takeaways

Nuggets: At 23-15, they’re eight games over .500 for the first time this season and 12-3 with Jokic and Westbrook in the starting lineup. Their 21.9% shooting on 3’s (7 of 32) was their poorest this season. Aaron Gordon returned for the first time since Christmas and had 13 points on 6-for-7 shooting from the floor and six rebounds in 18 minutes.

Mavericks: Doncic placed third in last season’s MVP balloting, but is ineligible this season as of Sunday, unable to reach the threshold of playing in at least 65 regular-season games.

Key moment

With Mavericks center Dereck Lively II playing with five fouls, Jokic spun inside against forward P.J. Washington for a finger-roll basket with 4:28 to play. That gave the Nuggets a 99-96 lead, their first lead of more than one point.

Key stat

The Nuggets outscored the Mavericks 68-40 in the paint.

Up next

The teams will meet again in Dallas on Tuesday night in their final regular-season meeting of the season.

Javon Small scores 26 points as No. 21 West Virginia holds off Colorado 78-70

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Javon Small scored 26 points and Joseph Yesufu added 18 as No. 21 West Virginia held off Colorado 78-70 on Sunday in the teams' first meeting as members of the Big 12 Conference.

The Mountaineers (12-3, 3-1 Big 12) overcame foul trouble and used a late 13-4 run to thwart Colorado, which had cut the deficit to two points with 5:28 left. Yesufu had eight points in that spurt.

Julian Hammond III had 23 points and Assane Diop added 13 for Colorado (9-6, 0-4), which lost its fourth straight game.

Colorado trailed by three and West Virginia had just lost two starters to fouls when the Mountaineers beat the press and started a fast break that ended on Yesufu’s layup and free throw for a 71-65 lead with 1:23 left.

Takeaways

West Virginia: Three straight 3-pointers by Small, the Big 12’s leading scorer and reigning player of the week, gave West Virginia its biggest lead, 49-35, with 17:28 remaining.

Colorado: The Buffaloes, who entered the game with the worst turnover margin in the Big 12, had 14 turnovers in the game.

Key moment

Before the contest, Colorado held a moment of silence to honor longtime Buffaloes head football coach Bill McCartney, who died Friday at age 84.

Key Stat

Colorado is now 2-2 against ranked teams this season. West Virginia rebounded from its unexpected home loss to Arizona that snapped a seven-game winning streak.

Up next

Both teams play Wednesday. Colorado hosts Cincinnati and West Virginia is at Houston.

Maggie Flaherty's first goal lifts Frost past Victoire 4-2 as Takeover Tour reaches Denver

DENVER (AP) — Maggie Flaherty scored her first goal of the season to give Minnesota the lead in the third period and the Frost moved into first place in the Professional Women's Hockey League with a 4-2 win over the Montréal Victoire on Sunday at Denver's Ball Arena, home ice of the Colorado Avalanche.

The game, part of the league's Takeover Tour of potential expansion venues, drew 14,018 fans to set a new U.S. attendance record.

Minnesota's Maddie Rooney earned her league-leading fifth win in goal with 21 saves on 23 shots and the Frost saw defender Sophie Jacques finish with a goal and an assist in her return from the injured list after missing five games.

Catherine Dubois scored early to give Montréal the lead in the first period, but Britta Curl-Salemme evened the game with a goal midway through the period and Jaques scored on a Frost power play to take a 2-1 lead in the second. Jennifer Gardiner evened it at 2-2 with a power-play goal that caromed off a Minnesota skate for the Victoire.

As the Victoire tried to clear the puck from its own zone 13 minutes into a scoreless third period Flaherty jumped on an errant pass in the slot and fired a hard wrist shot past Montréal's Elaine Chuli for the game-winner. Michela Cava took a pass from Jaques in the final two minutes and lifted a wrist shot past Chuli's shoulder for the insurance goal.

Chuli, making her first start since December 21, made 25 saves.

Montréal lost one of its leading scorers, Laura Stacey to an apparent injury to her left leg in the second period. She was helped from the bench to the locker room and did not return.