Cincinnati Bengals vs. Buffalo Bills: 2002 Week 17 Recap

Game story

In Week 17 of the 2002 NFL season on 2002-12-29, the Buffalo Bills took care of business against the Cincinnati Bengals, pulling away with a 27–9 final that controlled the game from start to finish.

The highest-scoring period was Q2 with 17 combined points — the stretch that most shaped the final margin.

J. Kitna (Cincinnati Bengals) paced the passing game, with -12.18 total EPA.

On the individual side, D. Bledsoe (Buffalo Bills) delivered the top overall EPA impact at +9.80 — the clearest player-of-the-game signal on the analytics sheet.

The momentum swing (+5.9% win probability) landed in the second quarter when Buffalo Bills changed the game: (13:13) 11-D.Bledsoe pass to 81-P.Price pushed ob at CIN 21 for 28 yards (31-J.Perry). Caught along left sideline at CIN 26.

Line score

Final score and points by quarter.

Stars of the game

Top performers by total expected points added (EPA) across passing, rushing, and receiving.

1. 1 D. Bledsoe · Buffalo Bills · Passing · +9.80 total EPA · 36 snaps · +0.27 EPA/play
2. 2 E. Moulds · Buffalo Bills · Receiving · +8.14 total EPA · 11 snaps · +0.74 EPA/play
3. 3 C. Johnson · Cincinnati Bengals · Receiving · +4.84 total EPA · 12 snaps · +0.40 EPA/play
4. 4 P. Price · Buffalo Bills · Receiving · +3.64 total EPA · 8 snaps · +0.45 EPA/play
5. 5 D. Bledsoe · Buffalo Bills · Rushing · +3.11 total EPA · 3 snaps · +1.04 EPA/play
6. 6 L. Centers · Buffalo Bills · Rushing · +2.56 total EPA · 1 snaps · +2.56 EPA/play
7. 7 J. Riemersma · Buffalo Bills · Receiving · +2.49 total EPA · 3 snaps · +0.83 EPA/play
8. 8 P. Warrick · Cincinnati Bengals · Receiving · +1.24 total EPA · 4 snaps · +0.31 EPA/play

Player of the game

FantasyHQ analytics player-of-the-game pick based on total EPA and signature plays.

Who scored touchdowns and field goals

Every touchdown and field goal with the player named in official play-by-play.

Touchdowns

• Buffalo Bills — D. Bledsoe (Q2 40:29)
• Buffalo Bills — E. Moulds (D. Bledsoe pass) (Q2 32:44)
• Buffalo Bills — L. Centers (Q3 16:41)
• Cincinnati Bengals — J. Kitna (Q4 8:13)

Field goals

• Buffalo Bills — M. Hollis (Q1 53:39)
• Buffalo Bills — M. Hollis (Q1 46:15)
• Cincinnati Bengals — N. Rackers (Q2 30:27)

How it unfolded, quarter by quarter

A quarter-by-quarter recap built from live scoring plays and play descriptions.

The opening quarter: Buffalo Bills won the period 6–0. Buffalo Bills connected on a field goal from the CIN 14 (Q1 53:39) — (8:39) 1-M.Hollis 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.; Buffalo Bills connected on a field goal from the CIN 7 (Q1 46:15) — (1:15) 1-M.Hollis 25 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman..

The second quarter: Buffalo Bills won the period 14–3. Buffalo Bills found the end zone from the CIN 7 (Q2 40:29) — (10:29) 11-D.Bledsoe up the middle for 7 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Quarterback Draw; Buffalo Bills added 1 points from the CIN 2 (Q2 40:25) — 1-M.Hollis extra point is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.; Buffalo Bills found the end zone from the CIN 2 (Q2 32:44) — (2:44) 11-D.Bledsoe pass to 80-E.Moulds for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Caught on right side of end zone.; Buffalo Bills added 1 points from the CIN 2 (Q2 32:41) — 1-M.Hollis extra point is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.; Cincinnati Bengals connected on a field goal from the BUF 2 (Q2 30:27) — (:27) 5-N.Rackers 19 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-B.St. Louis, Holder-8-N.Harris..

The third quarter: Buffalo Bills won the period 7–0. Buffalo Bills found the end zone from the CIN 4 (Q3 16:41) — (1:41) (Shotgun) 37-L.Centers up the middle for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN.; Buffalo Bills added 1 points from the CIN 2 (Q3 16:37) — 1-M.Hollis extra point is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman..

The fourth quarter: Cincinnati Bengals won the period 6–0. Cincinnati Bengals found the end zone from the BUF 6 (Q4 8:13) — (8:13) 3-J.Kitna scrambles up the middle for 6 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Penalty on BUF-59-L.Fletcher, Defensive Holding, declined..

Turning points

Plays that moved win probability the most — the swings that decided the game.

• Buffalo Bills (Q2 43:13) — (13:13) 11-D.Bledsoe pass to 81-P.Price pushed ob at CIN 21 for 28 yards (31-J.Perry). Caught along left sideline at CIN 26. [WPA +5.9% · EPA +2.52]
• Buffalo Bills (Q1 55:32) — (10:32) 11-D.Bledsoe pass to 82-J.Reed pushed ob at CIN 33 for 17 yards (31-J.Perry). Caught along right sideline at CIN 41. [WPA +5.7% · EPA +1.25]
• Cincinnati Bengals (Q1 59:09) — (14:09) 3-J.Kitna pass incomplete to 84-T.Houshmandzadeh (22-N.Clements). Receiver and coverage at BUF 20. [WPA -5.2% · EPA -1.82]
• Buffalo Bills (Q2 40:29) — (10:29) 11-D.Bledsoe up the middle for 7 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Quarterback Draw [WPA +4.8% · EPA +2.67]
• Cincinnati Bengals (Q1 49:24) — (4:24) 3-J.Kitna sacked at CIN 7 for -8 yards (27-C.Wire). [WPA -4.7% · EPA -1.65]

Impact plays

Highest expected-points added snaps that flipped field position and scoring chances.

• Cincinnati Bengals (Q4 3:19) — (3:19) 3-J.Kitna pass intended for 83-D.Farmer INTERCEPTED by 22-N.Clements at BUF 32. 22-N.Clements pushed ob at CIN 26 for 42 yards (72-M.O'Dwyer). [WPA -0.1% · EPA -5.06]
• Cincinnati Bengals (Q4 1:37) — (1:37) 3-J.Kitna pass intended for 83-D.Farmer INTERCEPTED by 47-A.Brooks at BUF 15. 47-A.Brooks to BUF 28 for 13 yards (83-D.Farmer). [WPA -0.1% · EPA -4.43]
• Buffalo Bills (Q3 24:48) — (9:48) 11-D.Bledsoe sacked at CIN 10 for 0 yards (Team). FUMBLES (Team), RECOVERED by CIN-51-T.Spikes at CIN 9. [WPA -1.5% · EPA -4.29]
• Buffalo Bills (Q2 32:44) — (2:44) 11-D.Bledsoe pass to 80-E.Moulds for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Caught on right side of end zone. [WPA +2.2% · EPA +4.05]

Quarterback report card

J.Kitna led all passers in efficiency for Cincinnati Bengals, setting the tone in the passing game according to FantasyHQ analytics.

• J.Kitna (Cincinnati Bengals) · 38 dropbacks · 50.0% completion · -0.32 EPA/play · -12.18 total EPA
• D.Bledsoe (Buffalo Bills) · 36 dropbacks · 63.9% completion · +0.27 EPA/play · +9.80 total EPA

Team stats comparison

Side-by-side offensive and defensive efficiency from FantasyHQ analytics.

By the numbers

Buffalo Bills held the efficiency edge in offensive EPA per play (+0.05 vs -0.20), even if the scoreboard told a different story.

• Buffalo Bills: 12 drives, +4.47 total EPA, 5 scoring drives
• Cincinnati Bengals: 11 drives, -14.17 total EPA, 2 scoring drives

Key takeaways

What to remember for fantasy research, film review, and follow-up box score digging.

• Buffalo Bills leaves with the win and the better postgame narrative for Week-to-week momentum.
• D. Bledsoe (Buffalo Bills) is the first name to pull up for highlight reels and prop-retrospective research.

Every scoring play

Chronological scoring with field position and full play-by-play context.

1. Buffalo Bills FG (+3) — Q1 53:39 · CIN 14 · Score 0-3
   (8:39) 1-M.Hollis 32 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.
2. Buffalo Bills FG (+3) — Q1 46:15 · CIN 7 · Score 0-6
   (1:15) 1-M.Hollis 25 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.
3. Buffalo Bills TD (+6) — Q2 40:29 · CIN 7 · Score 0-12
   (10:29) 11-D.Bledsoe up the middle for 7 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Quarterback Draw
4. Buffalo Bills XP (+1) — Q2 40:25 · CIN 2 · Score 0-13
   1-M.Hollis extra point is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.
5. Buffalo Bills TD (+6) — Q2 32:44 · CIN 2 · Score 0-19
   (2:44) 11-D.Bledsoe pass to 80-E.Moulds for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Caught on right side of end zone.
6. Buffalo Bills XP (+1) — Q2 32:41 · CIN 2 · Score 0-20
   1-M.Hollis extra point is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.
7. Cincinnati Bengals FG (+3) — Q2 30:27 · BUF 2 · Score 3-20
   (:27) 5-N.Rackers 19 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-48-B.St. Louis, Holder-8-N.Harris.
8. Buffalo Bills TD (+6) — Q3 16:41 · CIN 4 · Score 3-26
   (1:41) (Shotgun) 37-L.Centers up the middle for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN.
9. Buffalo Bills XP (+1) — Q3 16:37 · CIN 2 · Score 3-27
   1-M.Hollis extra point is GOOD, Center-70-T.Teague, Holder-8-B.Moorman.
10. Cincinnati Bengals TD (+6) — Q4 8:13 · BUF 6 · Score 9-27
    (8:13) 3-J.Kitna scrambles up the middle for 6 yards, TOUCHDOWN. Penalty on BUF-59-L.Fletcher, Defensive Holding, declined.