Josh Allen threw four touchdown passes in the first half and the Buffalo Bills scored on each of their first five drives in a 47-10 win over a slumping Trevor Lawrence and the struggling Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday night.
Allen went 22 of 28 for 247 yards in the first 30 minutes alone, with completions to nine receivers. He attempted just two passes after halftime, finishing 23 of 30 for 263 yards before Mitchell Trubisky replaced him.
And Allen spread the wealth, completing touchdown passes to Dalton Kincaid, Keon Coleman, Khalil Shakir and Ty Johnson. James Cook opened the scoring with a six-yard run.
Meanwhile, Buffalo’s defense limited the Jaguars to 70 yards, five first downs and a field goal in five first-half possessions. The game was effectively over when Allen completed a 16-yard TD pass to Johnson with 19 seconds left before halftime.
Safety Damar Hamlin contributed to the loss with his first career interception, easily intercepting Lawrence’s off-the-ball pass intended for rookie Brian Thomas Jr. Five plays later, Allen completed a 27-yard TD pass to Shakir, who caught the ball at the 22 and broke two tackles as he raced down the right sideline for the score.
Hamlin’s interception came about 21 months after he suffered a cardiac arrest and had to be resuscitated on the field during a game in Cincinnati, which was also played on a Monday night.
“We all know my last [Monday night] “That game and how that game went,” said Hamlin, now a starter after playing in a reserve role last season. “So to be able to come all the way back from that game and have a special moment, that’s all God.”
The four-time reigning AFC East champions are off to their first 3-0 start since 2020 and third since coach Sean McDermott took over in 2017. They have scored 30-plus points in every game this season.
Meanwhile, the Jaguars are in free fall. The last time they opened 0-3 was in 2021 under coach Urban Meyer, who was fired before the end of the season. Jacksonville’s latest loss comes a week after Lawrence vented his frustrations by saying “We suck right now” after an 18-13 loss to Cleveland.
Washington Commanders 38-33 Cincinnati Bengals
Rookie Jayden Daniels threw two touchdowns and ran for a score in a remarkably efficient performance, and the Washington Commanders stunned Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals 38-33.
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Daniels completed 21 of 23 for 254 yards, with the No. 2 overall draft pick setting an NFL rookie record for single-game completion percentage at 91.3%. The Commanders (2-1) have scored on every possession except for kneel downs at the end of each half and have not punted or lost the ball in their last two games.
Neither Washington nor Cincinnati threw the ball away or gave it away, the first time in the Super Bowl era that has happened.
Burrow threw for 324 yards and three scores, but the Bengals (0-3) just couldn’t keep up. Cincinnati is off to their worst start since losing their first 11 games en route to a 2-14 finish in 2019.
Daniels’ first career touchdown pass was a one-yard toss to eligible tackle Trent Scott to start the second half, the second straight game in which the Bengals have allowed a TD to a lineman. And Daniels stayed in the pocket, got a hit and made a brilliant connection with Terry McLaurin from 27 yards out with 2:10 left for the go-ahead score.
In the first half, Washington got rushing touchdowns from Brian Robinson Jr., Austin Ekeler and Daniels. McLaurin had four receptions for 100 yards.