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ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — With the outcome well in hand, Bills coach Sean McDermott took a moment to look back and take in the spectacle of a still-packed stadium and fans in full-throated vigor singing along to "Mr. Brightside."
The scene Sunday and the 35-8 win over the New York Jets was the type of sendoff McDermott envisioned in what could very well have been the Bills' final game at their 53-year-old Highmark Stadium.
"Come on, where else does that happen in the NFL, right? That type of togetherness. That type of fellowship, community, love of their team and of each other," McDermott said. "And I'll never forget it. Special moment."
He wasn't the only one.
With the game over, backup offensive tackle Alec Anderson jumped into the crowd to take pictures. Cornerback Tre'Davious White lingered in the end zone, just outside the tunnel, as fans sang to "Iris," the song by the hometown Goo Goo Dolls.
"It's only in Buffalo you get that," White said. "That's why this place is so special, and that's why people want to come here. ... It's a lot of things to remember about the stadium. But I hold it dear to my heart."
The Bills won with mostly backups. After taking the first snap, Josh Allen headed to the sideline and spent the rest of the game watching backup Mitch Trubisky throw four touchdown passes, including two to Gabe Davis. Ty Johnson had a TD run and a scoring catch.
Tight end Dawson Knox earned $200,000 in bonuses for reaching 400 yards receiving and scoring for the fourth time this year on a 17-yard TD catch.
Buffalo's defense, meanwhile, manhandled an injury-depleted and backup-filled Jets offense that was blanked through 3 1/2 quarters and finished with 122 yards offense and nine first downs.
The win, coupled with the Los Angeles Chargers' loss at Denver, led to Buffalo moving up one spot in clinching the No. 6 seed. The Bills will travel to play the AFC South champion Jacksonville Jaguars in the wild-card round next Sunday.
It didn't take McDermott long to begin looking ahead to the playoffs.
"I'm already there," McDermott said. "That's where my head is already right now, is ready to put in the work to get ourselves ready to go to play our best football."
It'll be the third playoff meeting between the teams, with Jacksonville winning both. The Jaguars defeated Buffalo 30-27 in what stood as Bills Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly's final game in 1996. More recently, the Jaguars beat Buffalo 10-3 in 2017 in the Bills' first playoff appearance after ending a 17-year postseason drought.
It was the latest blowout loss for the Jets (3-14), who closed their first season under coach Aaron Glenn by losing five straight — a stretch in which they were outscored by a combined 188-54.
"The only thing I can think about is moving on to next year. I let the players down. I let the organization down, and that burns me, It really does," Glenn said. "But here's what I do know: I know the reason why I came here, and I am not gonna waver."
Several players blamed themselves.
"This has definitely been the worst season I've been a part of as a team. Key word, a 'part.' I got my hands in it," fourth-year defensive end Jermaine Johnson said. "My hands are bloody. Everybody's hands are bloody in this."
The Jets became the NFL's first team to lose by 23 or more in five consecutive games in one season.
For Buffalo, the outing turned into an afternoon-long celebration. The Bills move across the street to their new $2.1 billion facility next season.
Fans showed up early and most stayed through the end to celebrate a stadium that has been the Bills' home since opening in 1973.
The team honored its past with Kelly and fellow Hall of Famers Thurman Thomas and Andre Reed addressing the crowd. Even 100-year-old Hall of Fame coach Marv Levy delivered his familiar line of, "Where would you rather be than right here, right now," in a video message broadcast on the scoreboard during half time.
By then, the outcome was essentially sealed with Buffalo leading 21-0 in a half the Jets were limited to four first downs and 63 yards offense.
Trubisky finished 22 of 29 for 259 yards.
"It was a fun night, just trying to stay focused on giving (the fans) a good show," he said. "We just really wanted to perform well one last time in the stadium for them. And that was super special."
Allen, nursing a sore right foot, took the first snap to extend his starting streak to 135 (including playoffs) — the NFL's longest active run among quarterbacks.
Buffalo's James Cook who entered as the NFL's rushing leader finished with 15 yards to up his total to 1,564. The only player capable of catching Cook is Baltimore's Derrick Henry, who has 1,469 yards rushing, entering the Ravens game against Pittsburgh.
The loss secured New York the No. 2 pick in the draft.
Undrafted rookie Brady Cook, making his fourth straight start, went 11 of 22 for 60 yards and a 2-yard touchdown pass to fullback Andrew Beck with 7:33 remaining.
The Jets became the NFL's first team to finish a season without a defensive interception. And New York finished with just four takeaways, breaking the NFL-low record of seven set by San Francisco in 2018.
Jets: LB Quincy Williams left in the second half with a hand injury.
Bills: K Matt Prater aggravated a quadriceps injury in the first half. ... CB Maxwell Hairston left with an ankle injury.
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