The Bills are back at home after two straight road tests. Week 14 brings about chilly temperatures and a Cincinnati Bengals team who has their quarterback back in the lineup.
Here are five things to get you ready for Sunday's home game.
1. Why the Bills and December football are the perfect match
The Buffalo Bills and December football just go together. Since 2020, the Bills are 18-3 in December.
Buffalo has averaged more than 30 points a game and allowed less than 20 points a game in the final month of the year since 2020. Quarterback Josh Allen has also been dominant on that stage. He's averaged 2.9 touchdowns per game, less than half an interception per game and one sack per game in the last 21 games in December.
In terms of how the Bills are making this happen, head coach Sean McDermott thinks it's been a group effort.
"I feel like at the staff level, coaches are really honing in at this point in the season with what we do best, and who does it best as well, personnel-wise," McDermott explained. "And then the players are really taking ownership led by Josh (Allen) of course of how important these games are late in the year and what you have to do to win 'em."
Diving into the December details more, Buffalo's defense has forced 1.4 takeaways per game and allowed a 61% completion percentage since 2020. Offensively, they've averaged 145 rushing yards per game and 382 total yards of offense during that time span.
Offensive coordinator Joe Brady believes there's a style to December football and a big part of that is determined by the weather.
"There's an element to playing football, and especially in Buffalo," Brady said of December football. "When the leaves have all fallen, we hope we're playing our best ball. And it's never easy this time of the year. Everybody is banged up, everybody's hurting, everyone's feeling some type of way and how can I get my mind and my body ready to get out there?
"And we know that everybody's playing playoff football now. Throw records out the window. You got to be playing your best football, hope to get an opportunity in the playoffs. And so, in the past have played well, but we're going to have to earn it this week."
Defensive coordinator Bobby Babich believes McDermott's consistency in his approach is what has made December full of wins.
"The number one thing is to make sure your guys are fresh in December and January as best you can," Babich said. "You try to be as fresh as possible, and our guys know the importance of December football…It's the consistency in what we do…We've got some veteran guys that understand and can help back the message of the December football."
2. Bills face an enhanced Bengals offense with Joe Burrow
Quarterback Joe Burrow had his "Welcome Back" game against Baltimore in Week 13, beating the Ravens 32-14. Burrow threw for 261 yards and two touchdowns in his first game back.
During his absence due to turf toe in Weeks 3 through 12, the Bengals averaged 227.4 pass yards per game and 320.8 total yards per game over nine contests. They also averaged 22.2 points per game. Cincinnati won just once over this stretch. With Burrow under center, the offense averaged 217 pass yards and 291 total yards per game over three games, coming out with a win each of those weeks and averaging 26.7 points per game.
The Bengals also averaged a 36.5 score percentage without Burrow, bumping that up to 48.5 percent with their starting quarterback.
While Cincinnati has its starter back and ready to go, Burrow won't have the easiest time establishing the pass game.
Heading into Sunday, the Bills defense ranks first in the NFL in pass yards allowed per game with 163.2. Buffalo also is eighth in total yards allowed per game (304.5) and pass yards allowed per attempt (6.5).
"There [were] a lot of different moving parts. But I think we're starting to get in a flow and a rhythm, and those guys are doing a pretty good job limiting the pass game," defensive coordinator Bobby Babich said.
3. Could the passing game take advantage of Cincinnati's weaknesses?
While the run game dominated against Pittsburgh, offensive coordinator Joe Brady and quarterback Josh Allen have an opportunity to establish the pass game early on.
The Bengals have the 32nd defense in the league in pass yards allowed per game (256.8), are ranked 30th in pass yards allowed per attempt (7.9) and allowed 26 pass touchdowns so far in 2025 (ranked 31st in the NFL).
If tight end Dalton Kincaid (hamstring) is back, Cincinnati's defense is a good start to getting his feet wet again back from injury. Even if Kincaid isn't available, Allen can find wide receiver Keon Coleman who had a statement touchdown in his first game back since Miami. Coleman hauled in a pass on fourth-and-goal against Pittsburgh, which extended the Bills lead from three to nine in the third quarter.
"That was a big play for us in the game," McDermott said of Coleman. "It's never a straight line, success. It gets kind of messy at times, but those that see it through, that continue to work and take steps in the right direction and persevere, they have a chance to come out of it. And [on Sunday], I saw some signs of some pretty good football, including some of the shorter routes that he ran on some of those slants. So, step in the right direction."
After being a healthy scratch for two weeks, Brady said Coleman handled the situation well and that he liked the wideout's approach and mindset. Alongside Coleman's return, wide receiver Brandin Cooks had his first game as a Buffalo Bill in Week 13. Brady said both players were prepared to play more than what was showcased.
"He came in with energy … you see him in between practice sessions, drills working on his own, his craft before practice, after practice," Brady said of Cooks. "He's a pros pro and he's going to be great for the room, big for our football team. ... Big first down on the game, it was good to get him out there and you feel him."
Sunday is also an opportunity get the run game going early on in addition as the Bengals have the 31st defense in the NFL in rush yards allowed per game (153.3) and are 29th in yards allowed per rush (5.1). Overall, Cincinnati is 32nd in points allowed per game (31.2), total yards per game (410) and yards per play (6.3).
"With the way that we were running the ball, the way that kind of everybody understood the game plan, it was impressive to watch," Brady said of the team's rushing performance on Sunday.
4. Keeping momentum after a strong defense performance
Buffalo's defense had one of their best games of the season against the Steelers. They swarmed to the football and knocked players to the ground quickly allowing just 166 total yards and forcing two takeaways.
The highlight on defense was the way they stopped the run. They were physical at the point of contact and had great gap integrity. The group allowed a season-low 58 rushing yards.
Head coach Sean McDermott said it was their best tackling performance of the season.
"Credit to the players during the week with the staff of working on it over and over and over again," McDermott shared. "And not until we could get it right, but until they couldn't get it wrong. It was executed at a very high level, and the physicality that came with that…just felt like we played an aggressive style of defense, which is what we want to be."
"I do think we gathered a little bit more about who Buffalo could be on defense," ESPN NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky said on One Bills Live. "I do want to credit this was a pretty good Pittsburgh run game…And for the most part Buffalo's defense held up and was outstanding. They were much better at the point of contact. I thought the linebackers in base defense when they had all three of them out there were absolutely fantastic…I do think that's a moment where you can say we're capable of it, so do that on a week-by-week basis and the defense will improve."
Buffalo's pass defense allowed just 108 yards against Pittsburgh. They normally allow an average of 163 passing yards per game, which is the best in the NFL. McDermott was pleased with how the rush and coverage worked together.
"When you can cover 'em up and execute that way, it's effective for any defense," McDermott said. "And that's signs of growth for our defense this year is being able to execute that at that level to help our rush at times."
Flipping last week's performance to this week, the Bills are preparing to take on a Bengals team with Joe Burrow back in the fold. The Bengals have struggled on the ground this season averaging just 88.5 rushing yards per game (30th) but did put up 128 in last week's game against Baltimore.
Buffalo biggest task against Cincinnati will be shutting down their passing game. They're averaging 224.8 passing yards per game, which is just outside of the top 10 at No. 11.
Wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase has that fourth-most receiving yards a 971 and has the second-most catches with 86. Chase has also found the end zone five times.
"This is a Bengals team that with Joe Burrow has had our number," Bills legend and radio analyst Eric Wood said on One Bills Live. "That won't be lost on many of these guys in the locker room that have played against him. They've got to be buttoned up against this Bengals team because they're a lot better than their 4-8 record."
The series between the two is tied 17-17 with the Bengals winning the last two (including playoffs).
5. Finding an identity on offense
The run game was dominant for Buffalo against Pittsburgh. They went off for 249 rushing yards, which is a record at Acrisure Stadium. But Brady doesn't want his team relying on just one thing. He said being able to adjust and find which element of the game it takes to win is what the Bills focus on.
"I always want our identity to be finding the way to win that game," Brady said.
Against Tampa Bay, Brady said the offense needed to better establish the pass game to win. Against Pittsburgh, it was the run game.
"All you care about in these weeks right now is just finding a way to get that win, and as you look across the NFL, how hard that is, regardless of the records," Brady said. "And you get that one win and you find a different way to win that game, how powerful it is and how much you hope that that can help you moving forward."
Even though the offensive identity might look different week-to-week on the field, the continuity and consistency remain stable. Brady said having everyone on the offense understanding the scheme and all the fine details to execute it to the highest level is what keeps the offense rolling.
On top of being prepared for anything, Brady emphasized how everyone trusts one another. Whether the run game gets going and is the difference maker, Allen and the rest of the offense still trusts the receivers and tight ends to play their role however that may look. If it's the pass game, they still know the running backs are there to chip in.
"I wish there was a magic answer to it, but I think the biggest thing is the guys just having faith and trust in that, 'Hey, this run might not work, but we'll figure it out and kind of go from there,'" Brady said.
Through 13 weeks, the Bills have the best rushing offense in the NFL averaging 155.7 rushing yards per game and are 10th when it comes to the passing offense averaging 225.3 passing yards per game.
