Josh Allen was near perfect as the Bills beat the hapless Jaguars

ORCHARD PARK, NY – The Buffalo Bills offense was unstoppable on Saturday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars in a 47-10 win that kept the Bills perfect on the season and handed the Jaguars their third straight loss.

Quarterback Josh Allen led the Bills to touchdown drives on all five of their first half possessions to take a commanding lead at home. The win ended the Jaguars’ two-game skid. This is the fifth time the Bills have scored 30 points in each of the first three games of the season.

Here are the most important things to know from Monday night for both teams:

Buffalo Bills (3-0)

“Perfect” is a difficult word to throw around, and one that is rarely achieved.

There is an argument, however, that the Bills’ offense and Josh Allen (247 first-half passing yards and four touchdowns) got pretty close in the first round against the Jaguars.

Allen completed 23 of 30 passes for 263 yards and four touchdowns in the game. He also rushed for 44 yards on six carries. He passed Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes for the most likely MVP, per ESPN BET, and set his own record for touchdown passes in a game, all in the first 30 minutes. Until the first drive of the third quarter, he went 6-of-6 for 77 yards with two passing touchdowns on third down.

Those stats are impressive, including thriving under pressure — his four touchdowns while under pressure this season leads the NFL.

The Bills have scored 30-plus points in each of the first three games of the season for the first time since 2011. This offense has been clear to the entire league that ending it is not an easy task.

Pivotal play: tackle Damar Hamlin. The Bills offense will get a lot of love for this performance, and deservedly so, but the defense did its job. On a hard pass from Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence on first-and-10 deep in the second quarter — with no one near the throw zone — Hamlin picked off Lawrence and returned the ball 19 yards. Hamlin’s first career pick set up the team’s fourth touchdown of the day, with Allen passing to wide receiver Khalil Shakir for the score five plays later.

Promising trends: Offense takes a variety of players involved. Four different Bills players caught touchdowns vs. Jaguars, and running back James Cook had a rushing score. Six Bills have caught touchdowns this season — the most in the NFL. Getting the ball to multiple players has been an early trend for the Bills, and one that offensive coordinator Joe Brady needs to continue. It just adds to how dangerous this unit is.

Fun Stats: Allen is the first player with four first-half touchdowns on “Monday Night Football” since the Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger on Nov. 5, 2007, against the Ravens. The last example before that was Brett Favre (2003, Packers vs. Raiders).

Next game: at Baltimore Ravens (8:20 p.m. ET, Sunday)

Jacksonville Jaguars (0-3)

It may not be time to panic yet, but it’s close for the Jaguars after the complete beatdown they suffered Monday night. They’re now 0-3, and making the playoffs — which owner Shad Khan said earlier this season was their hope — is more of an uphill battle.

Only six teams since 1979 have made the playoffs after an 0-3 start. Only one has done it this century: the 2018 Houston Texans. The list includes the 1992 San Diego Chargers, the only team to make the playoffs after starting the season 0-4.

There is a lot of football left, and the schedule seems to be easier after the game next week in Houston with games against Indianapolis, Chicago and New England. But a poor start after collapsing at the end of the 2023 season (finishing 1-5) will certainly increase the pressure on head coach Doug Pederson.

Describe the game in two words: Defense crash. The Jaguars allowed 34 points in the first half, which is the most points they have allowed in the first half in franchise history, according to ESPN Research, and just four shy of the most they have allowed in a half. The Jaguars were down two starters in the secondary and lost another also in linebacker Foyesade Oluokun, but that is no reason to allow Allen to throw for 247 meters and 4 TDs in the first half.

A disturbing trend: The Jaguars already have injuries to cornerback Tyson Campbell (on IR with a hamstring injury) and nickel back Darnell Savage (quad), but now cornerback Jarrian Jones (shoulder) — who replaced Savage in the lineup — and Oluokun (leg) are also hurt. Defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen likes to play a lot of man coverage, but the injury will hurt the Jaguars’ ability to do so, especially facing a short week and having to go to Houston to deal with CJ Stroud, Tank Dell, Nico Collins and Stefon Diggs.

Eye statistics: The Jaguars finally got receiver Christian Kirk more involved in the offense. After being targeted seven times and catching just two passes for 29 yards in the first two games, Kirk was targeted seven times and caught six passes for 73 yards in the first two minutes of the fourth quarter. That is partly dictated by the score and the Jaguars need to pass more to try to stay in the game, but Kirk needs to be a big part of the offense.

Next game: at Houston Texans (1 p.m. ET, Sunday)