Allen Sacked Eight Times as Final-Minute Interception Seals Fate of Bills in Loss to Houston

Very little went well for the Bills' quarterback in a disappointing game on Thursday evening versus the Houston Texans.

Yet he nearly managed to willing the Bills to a win before an late pick in the final minute sealed their fate in a 23-19 loss.

Allen endured consecutive tackles for loss on the team's last drive, resulting in a fourth-and-27, but the Bills (7-4) gained significant yardage on a quick throw from Josh Allen to Josh Palmer, who tossed a lateral to another teammate.

After a false-start penalty created a fourth down situation for the Bills, a Texans defender picked off the quarterback's throw at the Houston 9 with under half a minute remaining.

We possessed a opportunity to come out on top there at the end,” Josh Allen said. “Our team performed a solid job of hanging tough and our defensive unit saved us a few instances. We must find a way, and we didn’t.”

It was difficult for the signal-caller to establish rhythm on a night he was brought down a personal-worst on eight occasions and hit four other times. Allen threw for 253 yards with two interceptions and no touchdowns after producing six touchdowns in a victory over the Buccaneers last week.

“When they pressure our QB a dozen times, that's unacceptable,” Bills coach McDermott commented. “I disapprove of that statistic at all. It’s just not a safe way to play and it’s not a good way to preserve our field general healthy for the rest of the season. We’ve got to play better.”

Josh Allen was sluggish to get up after a tackle in the opening two quarters. He indicated he was OK and that his shoulder “went a little numb” after he fell on it awkwardly. He was questioned about being hit so many times during the game.

“It’s not fun,” he remarked. “I encountered a few personally. I’ve got to be better at throwing the ball away. Too many times, I was going backwards.”

The Bills' QB surrendered 70 yards on the eight quarterback takedowns. Will Anderson Jr. had two and a half sacks to lead the Texans. His second one came when he nearly sacked the QB near the line of scrimmage, but he wriggled away and the defender got up and pursued him downfield to tackle him for an 18-yard loss to result in a punt early in the third.

Buffalo competed for a second straight game without wideout Coleman after he was once more a healthy scratch after he was late to a team meeting before their previous contest. He was previously held out for the first series of a loss to New England in the fifth week after additionally being late for a meeting.

“Nothing new. We are taking it one day at a time,” the coach said. “I felt he had a better week, but we’re handling it one day at a time. It was not that it was ignored, but we went with the guys that provide the optimal opportunity.”

Khalil Shakir topped the Bills with eight receptions for 110 receiving yards and James Cook had 116 yards and a score.

Allen was frustrated that the Bills couldn’t make plays in crucial moments.

“Ultimately, we’ve got execute, and we failed to succeed of that this evening,” he said. “Whatever situation and any circumstance, we need to discover a solution, and we didn’t.”
Debbie Garcia
Debbie Garcia

A tech journalist and digital strategist with over a decade of experience covering emerging technologies and their impact on global markets.