Monday Night Football Preview: Can the 49ers creep closer to the Last Wild Card spot vs the Bills?

The surging Buffalo Bills are heading back to the scene of the crime where they lost to the Arizona Cardinals on a Kyler Murray Hail Mary. This time they will be playing the San Francisco 49ers who are playing in Arizona because of Covid-19 restrictions in Santa Clara. Both teams have a lot to play for in this game. A Bills win would put them one step closer to their first AFC East division title in more than 2 decades. A 49ers win would put them in a three-way tie for the last Wild Card spot in the NFC.

The 49ers are coming off probably their best win of the season beating the Los Angeles Rams 23-20 on a walk-off field goal. The team has been rejuvenated with the return of star cornerback Richard Sherman and running back Raheem Mostert. The team will lean on the run game while starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and star tight end George Kittle are still out of the lineup. Backup quarterback Nick Mullens has been up and down throughout the season in place of Garoppolo. He has thrown just six touchdowns and 7 interceptions in his place. However, they may not need to lean on the passing game as the Bills struggle to stop the run giving up nearly 130 rushing yards a game. Look for the 49ers to attack the Bills defensive line with a running back group that had 112 yards against an excellent Rams defense.

The Bills come into this game winning four of their last five games with the one loss being on a Hail Mary as time expired against the Cardinals. Star quarterback Josh Allen has been on a roll this season throwing for over 3,000 yards, 22 touchdowns and just eight interceptions. He also has 311 yards rushing and six touchdowns. His improvement has largely been because of the acquisition of wide receiver Stefon Diggs. He has 80 catches for 945 yards and four touchdowns. The team averages a shade over 27 points a game, and they have the 8th best passing attack in the league. A win tonight would clinch their 3rd winning season in four years under coach Sean McDermont.

The keys to the game:

Will Allen be able to have success against the 49ers secondary?

Allen will be going up against one of the toughest pass defenses that he has faced all season. The 49ers come into this game giving up just 217 passing yards a game. The big matchup will be Diggs versus Sherman. Sherman is coming off a great game last Sunday recording one interception and having seven tackles. They should be on each other for the majority of the night. Receivers Cole Beasley and Gabriel Davis will have to step up if Diggs gets locked down.

Will the 49ers running game be able to limit the Bills possessions?

The 49ers pride themselves on running the football but it has been a little bit of a struggle this season because of injuries. However, they are getting healthy at the position now and are poised to pound the rock against the 9th worst run defense in the league. Getting Mostert back in the lineup is huge for the team because it will take the pressure off Mullens, and it will give him opportunities for one-on-one matchups for his receivers. Mostert need to touch the ball between 20 and 25 times if the 49ers are going to have a shot at winning this game.

Prediction?

The Bills will come out firing with Allen and Diggs and have success early. However, The 49ers will use their experience to get a gutsy win on Monday night behind big games from Mostert and receiver Deebo Samuel. Kicker Robbie Gould will be the difference once again this week and will give the Bills another heartbreaking loss in Arizona.

49ers 30 Bills 27