Despite having one of the best defenses in the NFL and home-field advantage in the postseason, the Denver Broncos face a considerable challenge to get their playoff run started: facing off against quarterback Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills.
While last year’s NFL MVP is in the midst of another impressive season, Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain II shared with NFL Network’s Cameron Wolfe how Denver was game planning for the Bills’ dual-threat signal-caller.
Pat Surtain II Reveals Game Plan for Bills QB Josh Allen
The Broncos have put together an incredible defensive season, leading PFSN’s Defense Impact Metric with an impact score of 90.1. That came with divisional games against quarterbacks like the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and the Los Angeles Chargers’ Justin Herbert, as well as matchups against the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Trevor Lawrence and the Green Bay Packers’ Jordan Love.
However, going up against Allen in the postseason is quite the challenge, and the Bills’ franchise quarterback has willed this offense to sustained success throughout his career. While not the best quarterback in the league, Allen still ranked as the third-overall signal-caller in PFSN’s NFL QB Impact Metric with an impact score of 90 behind New England Patriots QB Drake Maye and San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy.
When talking to Wolfe ahead of Denver’s Divisional Round matchup against Buffalo, Surtain explained that Denver’s game plan against Allen is like how NBA teams used to defend Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. When discussing the playoff matchup, he said, “Let Josh Allen score 50, limit everyone else.” However, as this Bills reporter pointed out, Kobe was 18-7 throughout his career when he scored 50 points.
On NFL Network, @CameronWolfe said Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II told him Denver’s game plan against Josh Allen is like how teams used to defend Kobe, Lakers
Something similar to “Let Josh Allen score 50, limit everyone else”
Kobe’s career record when scoring 50 was 18-7
— alex brasky (@alexbrasky) January 17, 2026
The Broncos took that game plan to heart in the first half. Not only did they hold the Bills to ten points, but after the first drive of the second half, they had also forced three Bills fumbles, two from Allen.
However, the Bills’ QB would just need time to regroup, leading Buffalo on their second touchdown drive of the second half and taking a 24-23 lead with 13 minutes and 24 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.
He hasn’t had the best game, as at the time of writing, Allen has completed 16 of 22 passes for 195 yards, three touchdowns, an interception, and two fumbles. He’s also rushed eight times for 45 yards. The Broncos will need the defense to slow him back down and hope quarterback Bo Nix and the offense can look more like they did in the first half.
