The Denver Broncos will be up against the Buffalo Bills in Sunday’s postseason game. After two games on Saturday to kick off Wild Card Weekend, the scene will shift to frigid Orchard Park—snow flurries are expected, with temperatures dipping down to 20 degrees.
This fixture marks the first postseason appearance for the Broncos since Super Bowl 50 in 2016. Denver clinched the Wild Card with a crushing 38-0 win over the Kansas City Chiefs’ backups in Week 18. Meanwhile, Buffalo is entering the playoffs as comfortable AFC East champions.
Whose voices can you expect to hear during the Broncos vs. Bills game?
Announcers for Denver Broncos vs. Buffalo Bills
- Lead Play-by-Play Announcer: Jim Nantz
- Color Commentators: Tony Romo
- Sideline Reporters: Tracy Wolfson, Jay Feely
The Denver vs. Buffalo clash will feature Jim Nantz as the lead play-by-play announcer. Nantz joined CBS back in 1985 and has been with the media powerhouse for nearly four decades. He called in his seventh Super Bowl last year when Patrick Mahomes and Co. took home the trophy.
Nantz is one of the most iconic voices in sports. The 65-year-old held the microphone for the Final Four until last season and has called the Masters each April since 1989. Tony Romo will join him as the color analyst for the game.
The Dallas Cowboys legend is a four-time Pro Bowler. After being their quarterback for 14 years, Romo swapped the helmet with the mic. He has earned praise from critics and fans for his predictions and analysis from the studio.
Nantz and Romo have the second-longest tenure of any broadcast duo, as it is their eighth season together. Romo garners the most attention and fanfare, as he has shown a unique enthusiasm for the game and an ability to predict plays in real time before they happen.
The top NFL team at CBS has broadcasted three Super Bowls together, including last year’s overtime thriller between the Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers.
Tracy Wolfson is one of the most respected names in broadcasting, too. She worked at a variety of other stations for several years before joining CBS Sports in 1997 as a researcher. Wolfson was assigned to major sporting events, including U.S. Open Tennis, the 1997 NCAA Final Four, and the 1998 Winter Olympic Games.
Wolfson has been the sideline reporter for the main CBS broadcast team since the 2014 season. Before taking on the role, Wolfson was on the sidelines for the CBS SEC Game of the Week for 10 years.
Wolfson has been the lead sideline reporter for the Final Four since the 2008 season. She has also worked in several NFL postseason contests, with the most prominent being Super Bowl 47, Super Bowl 50, Super Bowl 53, Super Bowl 55, and Super Bowl 58.
Jay Feely started providing kicking analysis for CBS playoff games in 2015 and became a game analyst the following regular season. He was a kicker for 14 seasons with six teams in the NFL, from 2001 to 2014.
Broncos vs. Bills Game Preview
- Location: Highmark Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
- Time: 1 p.m. ET
- Channel: CBS/Paramount+
The Broncos lead the league in Defense+, with blitzing serving as a cornerstone of their identity. Vance Joseph’s unit has blitzed at the third-highest rate of any defense this season.
For the Broncos to pull off the upset, playing from ahead will be essential. Bo Nix has been an above-average quarterback this season when playing with a lead but significantly less effective when attempting to lead a comeback.
The challenge for them is that their blitzing hasn’t been particularly effective, despite its frequency. Denver ranks 16th in pressure rate (41%) and 25th in success rate (50%) when sending extra pass rushers. In contrast, when the Broncos refrain from blitzing, they rank second in pressure rate (39%) and first in success rate (64%).
However, that could play into Josh Allen’s strengths. Allen thrives under pressure, ranking second in EPA per dropback when blitzed (0.30), trailing only Lamar Jackson. By traditional stats, Allen has thrown 15 touchdowns to just two interceptions when facing the blitz this season.
This is the sixth straight season in which Josh Allen is playing on Wild Card Weekend – he’s completed at least 70% of his passes in three of his past four, with multiple touchdown tosses in each of those contests (one touchdown pass for every 13.5 attempts across those four games).
Josh Allen has experienced some incredible playoff highs but also some recent lows. According to PFN’s QB+ metric, which dates back to 2019, Allen delivered the single best postseason performance on record. He achieved a perfect 100 A+ score in 2021, throwing nine touchdowns and zero interceptions in just two games.
However, in every other postseason of Allen’s career, his performance has been graded at a C-level or lower. Apart from 2021, he has never ranked higher than eighth in a single postseason by PFN’s QB+ metric.
Despite some recent playoff struggles, Allen has still thrown 21 touchdowns to just four interceptions in his postseason career. Among the 51 quarterbacks to throw 10 or more playoff touchdowns, his TD-to-INT ratio is the second-best in history, trailing only Alex Smith.
Allen and this unit have as high of a ceiling as any offense in the playoffs.
Allen has a chance to win 2024 MVP honors and seemingly made history every week. Buffalo’s offense is operating at such a high level that the bar to clear for the defense is lower than it would be on nearly any other team.
The Bills have met that threshold against lesser competition but will be challenged in the playoffs to help the Allen-Sean McDermott combination reach its first Super Bowl.