Poll: Buffalo Bills Plays That Defined The 2022 Season Championship

Many plays by the Buffalo Bills vied to get to where we are now. In fact, 88 of them this season. Those crazy 88 competed in 18 games to be crowned the play to represent that “chapter” in the 2022 book. The 18 chapters entered the tournament to represent the entire season. And now we’re left with two.

One Away Champion. One Home Champion. As a last reminder, we’re not necessarily voting for the highlight of the season. Though both plays would hold their own in that regard as well. Imagine 2022 as a book. It needs cover art. Which play best captures the imagination of the casual observer, and tells the tale of what’s inside?

Away Champion

Allen to Diggs on Thanksgiving helps secure the win against the Detroit Lions

The number-one seed in the Away Games Conference steamrolled the competition on its path to the Season Championship game. During the season, the Jordan Poyer interception against the Baltimore Ravens was all the buzz. That hype wasn’t enough to take on Allen-to-Diggs on Thanksgiving, receiving only 20% of the votes. What is it about this play that captured everyone’s attention this past season?

Josh Allen to Stefon Diggs was certainly a consistent connection like we’ve come to expect. When Allen and Diggs made this connection was it even all that shocking? Diving deeper, a drought-era favorite phrase of “snatching defeat from the jaws of victory” stands out in stark contrast to the current Bills. With barely any time, the Bills needed to flip the field to prevent overtime on Turkey Day. This play is a great stand-in for the new “hopeful Bills.”

Versus

Home Champion

Nyheim Hines takes the opening kickoff all the way against the New England Patriots

Our Home Game Championship goes to Nyheim Hines’ first kickoff return touchdown, the second seed in the conference. This play didn’t have as easy a path to victory as Allen-to-Diggs, but still managed a comfortable 61% vote total against the “other” Allen-to-Diggs play (incomplete against the Cincinnati Bengals). What story about the 2022 Buffalo Bills season does this play embody?

While not a routine like its opponent, this play also highlights the electrifying Buffalo Bills and the excitement of knowing that any moment can be our moment. This play also likely resonates as a surrogate for the one I’ll never bring you a GIF of. This was the first time a member of the Buffalo Bills touched a football in live action after an earth-shattering moment on the field. I’ve seen touchdowns before. I’ve seen kickoff return touchdowns before. This might be one that’s remembered for all time.

Season Recap

Before you vote, a quick recap of the book you’re selecting the cover art for. I know I’ve used this analogy a lot, but the Buffalo Bills’ 2022 season saw more calamities than Mr. Burns’ team of softball ringers. Despite that, the Bills went 13-3 in the regular season and took down the Miami Dolphins in the playoffs before falling on their face against the Bengals.

For the most part the Bills did it in style, too, losing their three games by a combined eight points. Let’s pause on that point for a minute, even though we’ve all seen that sentence a few times before. If the Bills were down by eight points in any single game, that’s a one-score game and we all feel like they’re still in it. One touchdown (and a two-point try) was the difference between 13-3 and (perhaps) undefeated.

Despite that, we all know Buffalo wasn’t perfect. Those eight points could have been had if it weren’t for a dropped pass, a player failing to get out of bounds, and one of the weirdest fumbles I’ve ever seen. Even in dominant wins (Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers for example), there were oddities. That’s the story. Now let’s vote.

The Play That Defined the Buffalo Bills 2022 season is...