‘We’re A More Complete Team”

One of those first-rounders is Apple, one of those guys who didn’t get a second contract. The other one is the first-rounder now, safety Dax Hill, who probably lasted longer than he thought at No. 31. He had something to say Sunday, when he came off the bench for the injured Tre Flowers and defended tight end Dawson Knox in the end zone on a third-down pass.

“It felt like a movie scene,” said slot cornerback Mike Hilton of the day that played out with Bills safety Damar Hamlin in the building. “What happened between them and us, the snow and a playoff game. You couldn’t write the script any better.”

Hilton is one of those leaders oozing with the right stuff. Jilted by the Steelers for a new deal, he gladly kept his relentless versatility and rep as the NFL’s most complete slot defender in the AFC North. He was also one of the guys waving to the crowd after it was over Sunday.

“We’re not going to Atlanta. Y’all not going to Atlanta. We’ll see you in Kansas City,” Hilton said. “No matter who we play, where we play, we feel like we’re the best team on the field and we know if we execute, it’s hard to beat us and we did that today.”

Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo again used Hilton like a newfangled device from Silicon Valley. He lined him up in the slot to blitz, he lined him up in the slot to drop, he lined him up in the slot to cover. He responded with a team-high eight tackles, two hits on Allen, a tackle for a loss and a pass defensed.

Early in the fourth quarter when the Bills still had a glimmer in the snow after Allen hooked up with wide receiver Stefon Diggs for 32 yards on first down, Hilton blitzed Allen on the next snap to get things back under control and he hurried an incompletion. Then one play later Hilton blitzed again and blew up Allen (with help from edge Trey Hendrickson) and Hendrickson’s fumble recovery was overturned into an incomplete pass. But the Bills had been stopped and a few plays later Apple defended a fourth-down ball to end the suspense…