Friday, January 7 The Bills might be due By Mark Cannizzaro Special to ESPN.com

Watch out for the poor, little ol' Buffalo Bills this postseason. They're the darkhorse team of the AFC playoffs.

	Linebacker Gabe Northern is one of the unsung players for a Bills defense that ranks No. 1 in the NFL.

Most of the attention in the AFC has been focused on the Jacksonville Jaguars and their run at the NFL record for fewest points allowed, the Indianapolis Colts and their three young stars, and even the Tennessee Titans, who pushed the Jags in the AFC Central all season long.

The Bills?

They've been somewhat of an afterthought.

In fact, had it not been for Wade Phillips' celebrated decision to start Rob Johnson over Doug Flutie at quarterback, there might be no attention thrown the Bills' way as they prepare to play the Titans on Saturday in Nashville.

Even though the game wasn't a must-win for the Colts, the Bills dismantled the AFC East champions 31-6 in the regular-season finale last week. Buffalo enters the wild-card round beaming with confidence.

"We feel we're as good as any team in the league," Bills linebacker Sam Cowart said. "To beat a team like Indianapolis the way we did gives us a big boost."

The Bills (11-5) will have a lot to overcome when they play Tennessee (13-3), because the Titans were 8-0 at home in their new stadium.

But Buffalo believes it's found something in Johnson, who was given the start against the Colts and played so well (24-for-32 for 287 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions) Phillips elevated him over Flutie, who had gone 10-5 in starting the first 15 games.

"I thought he looked pretty good on the run, pretty good in the pocket and pretty good handing off," Bills president Ralph C. Wilson Jr. said. "I thought he had a spectacular game."

"He threw it phenomenally," Bills tight end Jay Riemersma added.

Add the Buffalo defense to the way Johnson played and what you might have is an upset Saturday.

The Bills have the NFL's No. 1-ranked defense, statistically speaking.

"Not bad for a team with no Pro Bowlers," Bills defensive end Bruce Smith quipped. "To have the No. 1 defense in the league and no one in the Pro Bowl, that's truly saying something. It's a credit to the coaching staff, and definitely a credit to the individuals who have played this year."

By holding the Colts to season lows in rushing yards (44), total yards (226) and points (six), the Bills set a number of team records for a 16-game season.

Buffalo allowed just 229 points, breaking the previous record low of 237 set in 1988. The 4,045 yards allowed bettered the mark of 4,101 set in 1980, and the 1,370 rushing yards allowed are 25 less than the previous record set by the 1992 team. The Bills also set club records for allowing the fewest touchdowns (23), PATs (22), rushing first downs (73) and total first downs (244).

"If you had asked anyone at the beginning of the year, I don't think they would have said Buffalo would end up with the No. 1 defense in the league," Cowart said. "We've had some rocky games this year when teams like the Colts, Raiders and Seahawks were able to put some numbers up against us. Some may have thought our defense wasn't worthy of a high ranking, but we fought back and did what we had to do to get to the top.

"We're not flashy. This defense is made up of a bunch of blue-collar guys who just know how to get the job done."

As well as Johnson played Sunday, he was the last to think Phillips was even considering him as the starter in the playoffs.

"I was really surprised," Johnson said. "I'm sure everyone else was surprised, too. All I could say was, 'Thanks for the opportunity.' "

Phillips says he put a lot of thought into his choice.

"It's a tough decision, certainly," Phillips said. "It's something you look at objectively. I studied the film, it wasn't a haphazard thing. I talked to our coaches, and I think it gives us the best opportunity to win this game."

As word of the change filtered to the Buffalo players, they were just as shocked.

With that, it'll be interesting to see how they respond to the change Saturday since Flutie was such a folk hero in Buffalo and a locker-room favorite. For now, there has been little in the way of griping.

"You could knock me over with a feather when I heard, and that's saying a lot considering how big I am," 6-foot-7, 338-pound right tackle Robert Hicks said. "I'm really stunned."

Flutie, to his credit, has taken the high road. If you remember, it was when Johnson went down with an injury initially when Flutie began playing and simply won the job.

"I was a little surprised," Flutie said. "I knew Rob played an excellent game, and I know how he can throw the football. I just think in Wade's judgment, he decided that Rob has made a lot of progress over the last year and a half, and in his judgment he gives us the best opportunity to win.

"I have no choice but to accept it. I'm still going to be there. If I'm needed in the second quarter, four minutes to go and we're down by 10, whatever, I'll be ready to go."

Flutie acknowledged the decision was hard on Phillips.

"On a personal level, he likes me and it's hard to make those decisions," Flutie said. "But he has to do what in his mind is best for this football team."

Getting a first look
The Bills should present some problems to the Titans, because they're good and because they're unfamiliar.

"When players typically look at an opponent prior to the game plan going in they are just familiarizing themselves with the personnel," Titans coach Jeff Fisher said. "This is a team we haven't seen, a team that as far as common games are concerned, we didn't get a chance to see on film this year, because we didn't have much overlap.

"So there's that sense of curiosity that the players have that I think they satisfied (by looking at film) before the game plan goes in."

Tennessee last played Buffalo during the 1997 season, when the Oilers won 31-14 in Memphis. The Bills went on to a 6-10 finish that season, while the Oilers went 8-8.

It should be noted that the last playoff game between these franchises was Jan. 3, 1993, when the Titans were the Houston Oilers and blew a 35-3 lead in a wild-card game at Buffalo and lost 41-38 in overtime. Frank Reich led that comeback.

If Tennessee wins and Seattle beats Miami this weekend, the Titans play the Jaguars again at Jacksonville on Jan. 16.

Prediction: Bills 23, Titans 21.

Mark Cannizzaro of the New York Post writes a weekly AFC notebook for ESPN.com that appears each Thursday.