The eyes of the football world were on Orchard Park last Sunday as the Buffalo Bills hosted the Kansas City Chiefs in a hotly anticipated Week 11 clash, as over 30 million viewers had their televisions tuned to CBS to watch the latest iteration of the NFL’s latest billboard rivalry.
Legendary Buffalo pass-rusher Bruce Smith was among those who tuned in to the bout, remaining glued to the screen as he watched his former club add the first blemish to the previously undefeated Chiefs’ 2024 record. A previous Buffalo stalwart who recorded an NFL record 200 sacks throughout his 19-year professional career, the Hall of Fame defender came away from the Bills’ Week 11 win with a prevailing thought: this Buffalo team is playing complementary football and has the potential to accomplish something special.
“The poise, the calmness exhibited by Josh Allen in his post-game interview, in his demeanor, and the way he’s handling this whole process of being successful has been really refreshing to see,” Smith told TMZ Sports in a recent interview. “I think Sean [McDermott] is doing an outstanding job. I think the defensive line is playing extremely well. The takeaways that this defense has been able to compile over the course of the season thus far have really given us an advantage in terms of allowing Josh to get back out on the field and put points on the board, change field position, and do the things that are necessary to win a number of games.”
Smith was most enamored with the performance of Josh Allen, who played well throughout the victory before taking the contest over late with a game-sealing 26-yard touchdown run to put his team up two scores. Though a heroic effort that understandably received immense national fanfare, it’s the lack of these plays, these instances in which Allen feels it necessary to put his team on his back and make something out of nothing, that, per Smith, is the quarterback’s biggest maturation this season. The former franchise staple believes that Allen is showing more poise and comfort this season, which, when paired with stellar play across the roster, leads to wins.
“I think Josh is playing at an extremely high level,” Smith said. “Currently, as we speak, this is the best that I’ve seen him play. He’s been able to take control and command of the game instead of feeling like he had to force it. I think with the steady play of Cook and the offensive line, and, me obviously being a defensive guy, I love to make sure that, from the defensive line to the linebackers to the secondary, I think they have been playing some outstanding football.”
Smith, who played for the Bills from 1985–1999, was on Buffalo’s roster the last time that one of its players earned NFL MVP honors (Thurman Thomas in 1991). The former first-overall pick feels as though this is set to change, as he believes Allen is in line to win the award this season; that said, he thinks the quarterback would much rather lead his team to the Super Bowl than win an individual award, and he believes the Bills' win over Kansas City will give them the confidence necessary to make a run.
“Josh has my [MVP] vote thus far,” Smith said. “He needs to finish strong, but keep in mind, winning the MVP but not having an opportunity to play and win in a Super Bowl, I just look at that as, obviously a personal statistic is always great to have, but you want to have that opportunity to go to the Super Bowl and become the MVP in the Super Bowl, win the Super Bowl. All of those things that make history, and I think this gives us a great shot.
“What took place [against the Chiefs] showed a lot of character about this team, and I do understand that the Chiefs had a number of players that were injured, but that’s all a part of the game. I’m hoping that this is what gives us that confidence to know that we can go out on any given Sunday and compete and beat anyone that’s on our schedule. [Week 11] just was another stepping stone to making this reality possible, which is hopefully getting home-field advantage. After you get home-field advantage, winning one game at a time as we make our way to the Super Bowl.”
