49ers carved up by QB Josh Allen, Bills offense in 34-24 loss

Eight days after putting on an impressive performance that led the 49ers to a 23-20 upset win over the Los Angeles Rams, the tables were turned on the San Francisco 49ers defense Monday night in a decisive 34-24 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

Playing at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona after local COVID-19 restrictions moved the game out of Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, the 49ers were torched by Bills quarterback Josh Allen, who finished with 375 yards and four touchdowns on 32-of-40 passing. Wide receiver Cole Beasley had nine receptions for a career-high 130 yards and one touchdown for the Bills, while wide receiver Stefon Diggs chipped in 92 yards on ten receptions.

As It Happened

The first quarter was an unusual one that saw each team put together long drives that fell short on the one-yard line. The Bills opened the game with possession and quickly moved into 49ers territory, largely with the help of a 32-yard completion on the third play of the drive from Allen to Beasley to set up the ball at the 49ers' 37-yard line. But after eventually advancing to a first-and-goal from the 10, the Bills came up empty when Allen threw an incomplete pass into the end zone on a fourth-and-goal from the one.

The 49ers responded by marching the length of the field to eventually face a fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line of their own, but they fell short when running back Jeff Wilson was stopped for no gain on a fourth-down carry. The 49ers got the ball right back, however, after a botched handoff was recovered by linebacker Fred Warner on the three-yard line, then took the lead when Mullens found wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk for a two-yard touchdown on third down with 44 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

The Bills responded in a hurry, moving 77 yards in five plays to tie the game at seven when Allen found Beasley for a touchdown on a first-and-goal pass from the five-yard line. Allen and Beasley connected for a 35-yard completion earlier in the drive, while the touchdown put Beasley at four catches for 74 yards with 13:02 remaining in the second quarter.

The Bills took over again after holding the 49ers to a punt, then put together another scoring drive that saw them take a 14-7 lead on a four-yard touchdown pass from Allen to tight end Dawson Knox. The drive took 7:49 off the clock and spanned 69 yards in 14 plays, with the penultimate play of the drive being a one-yard, fourth-down run by Devin Singletary from the five-yard line that set up Allen's second touchdown pass of the night with 2:41 left in the half.

The 49ers were forced to punt after five plays on the next possession, setting up the Bills at their own 19-yard line with 1:05 left on the clock. The Bills moved 71 yards in seven plays to set up a 37-yard field goal from kicker Tyler Bass, which extended the lead to 17-7 at the half. Allen finished the half with 236 yards and two touchdowns on 19-of-23 passing, while Beasley hauled in seven of Allen's passes for 113 yards and one touchdown. The Bills outgained the 49ers 277-122 in the first half while holding a 20-9 advantage in first downs.

The second half opened with a seven-play, 48-yard drive for the 49ers that culminated with a 45-yard field goal from Robbie Gould to cut the Bills' lead to 17-10. The Bills' offense responded by picking up where it left off at halftime, driving 75 yards in 11 plays to take a 24-10 lead on a 23-yard touchdown pass from Allen to wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie. The Bills got a break earlier in the drive when 49ers defensive lineman Kentavius Street was flagged for roughing the passer on a second-and-18 play, then Allen found a wide-open McKenzie two plays later to put the 49ers in a 14-point hole.

That hole got bigger on the next drive when a deflected Mullens pass landed in the hands of Bills safety Micah Hyde, who returned the interception to the 49ers' five-yard line. The Bills settled for a 28-yard field goal on the possession to extend their lead to 27-10.

Mullens and the offense were able to keep the 49ers in the game on the next drive by putting together a five-play, 75-yard drive that was capped by a six-yard touchdown pass to fullback Kyle Juszczyk to cut the lead to 27-17. The score was set up by a 49-yard bomb from Mullens to Aiyuk to set the 49ers up with a first-and-goal at the six-yard line.

The Bills responded as they did through much of the evening -- with a long drive that finished with a touchdown pass from Josh Allen. This time Allen found rookie receiver Gabriel Davis for a wide-open 28-yard score, capping a 10-play, 75-yard drive to give the Bills a 34-17 lead. The touchdown followed a fourth-and-two run from Moss to give the Bills their second fourth-down conversion of the night.

The 49ers saw their hopes for a comeback fade on the following possession when Mullens was intercepted by cornerback Tre'Davious White at the Bills' two-yard line to stop an eight-play, 70-yard drive. They were able to add one more score late in the game when Mullens connected with tight end Jordan Reed for a five-yard touchdown with 43 seconds to play, but it was too little too late as the Bills were able to recover the ensuing onsides kick and run out the clock from there.

The Bills finished with 449 total yards and 31 first downs on the night, while the 49ers put up 402 yards and 24 first downs. The 49ers outgained the Bills on the ground 86-81, while Mullens completed 26-of-39 passes for 316 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Aiyuk led the 49ers with five catches for 95 yards and one touchdown, while Deebo Samuel chipped in six catches for 73 yards.

The loss dropped the 49ers to 5-7 on the season and puts them in fourth place in the NFC West, one game behind the Arizona Cardinals (6-6). The Bills moved to 9-3 with the win, which keeps them at one game ahead of the Miami Dolphins (8-4) in the AFC East.

Up Next

The Bills and 49ers will both be back in action in six days when they host the Pittsburgh Steelers (11-1) and the Washington Football Team (5-7), respectively. Those two teams faced off earlier Monday in a game that saw Washington unexpectedly hand the Steelers their first loss of the season. The 49ers will play Washington in Glendale, Arizona at 4:25 p.m. EST/1:25 p.m. PST on Sunday (FOX), while the Bills and Steelers will be next Sunday's primetime matchup on NBC at Bills Stadium in Orchard Park, New York (8:25 p.m. EST/5:25 p.m. PST).

Notes

The 49ers entered the night needing a win to keep pace with the Minnesota Vikings and Arizona Cardinals for the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoffs. Both the Vikings and Cardinals stood at 6-6 after Sunday's games, with the Vikings holding the edge for the No. 7 seed... The Bills currently hold the No. 3 seed in the AFC playoffs behind the Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs (11-1)... Tonight's matchup was the 13th meeting in history between the 49ers and Bills. The teams were tied at six wins apiece coming into the night, with the last meeting being a 45-16 Bills win in 2016... 49ers rookie tight end and sixth-round draft pick Charlie Woerner made the first catch of his NFL career on a 15-yard completion in the fourth quarter... The game's telecast declared the Bills as not having won on Monday Night Football since 1999, but they did win a game that was rescheduled to a Monday night in 2014, according to Mike Sando of The Athletic. Sando also pointed out that tonight's game was only the eighth Monday night game of the current century for the Bills, which is the fewest of any NFL team... Allen surpassed 291 completions on the season Monday night, which according to Bills PR set a team record for most completions in a season through 12 games (Drew Bledsoe, 2002).

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