You never know when it will be your turn to be the hero, your turn to set fire to a city hungry for football championships.
But everyone can dream, everyone can see themselves doing a David Tyree helmet capture or Malcolm Butler’s final zone interception.
And on a cold and windy night in Buffalo, it was Taron Johnson who lived his dream and helped Josh Allen take another step to really start his Jim Kelly legacy.
It was Taron Johnson who intercepted Lamar Jackson for a 101-yard pick-six that sent the Bills to their first AFC Championship in 27 years with a 17-3 victory over the Ravens.
It was Taron Johnson who made 6,700 Bills Mafia fans, some of them shirtless, sound more like 67,000 fans.
It was Taron Johnson, a third year cornerback from Weber State, whose young career was compromised by injuries, who made the biggest move of his life in the biggest game of his life.
“They always tell us, ‘Look at the quarterback’s view, he’ll take you where the ball is, especially in the zone,'” said Johnson.
Jackson looked at Mark Andrews. He ended up chasing Taron Johnson to no avail.
“I took the ball and kind of looked down, but then I looked up and saw a lot of green grass on the right,” said Johnson.
Therefore, he had an important decision to make. “After I picked it up, I definitely thought for a second that maybe I should kneel down,” said Johnson. “At that point, I was like, ‘OK, it’s a person I need to beat, and this is No. 8 on the other side.’ “
Johnson went straight to the AFC Championship game.
“I saw Lamar coming, I slowed down a bit to let Tre [White] stay in front of me, just to help me, ”said Johnson.
Marv Levy, who watched everything from his home in Chicago, was very impressed by Allen’s rise to the elite in his third season.
“Just his behavior, I think, as much as anything,” Levy told the Post. “He listens well, learns, is at ease even when something doesn’t go his way.”
For a while, many did not follow Allen’s path on Saturday night.
Then, in possession of the opening ball in the second half, he found Stefon Diggs with a 3-yard touchdown pass that made Bills 10, Ravens 3.
So here came Lamar Jackson.
And in the blink of an eye, there was Lamar Jackson.
Jackson converted a third to 13 in midfield with a 15-yard run before Jerry Hughes, with Marquise “Hollywood” Brown open for what would have been the tied touchdown, pressured Jackson for a low shot.
So here came Taron Johnson.
Lamar Jackson, third and goal in the 9, threw Andrews a dart in the end zone and the next thing he realized, he was chasing Johnson uselessly in his dramatic six-yard 101.
Buffalo all exploded.
It was Jackson’s first red zone interception after launching 49 career tank destroyers.
It was the second interception of Johnson’s career and choice-six.
Sometimes it’s nighttime for Bruce Smiths and Ray Lewises.
Or a Taron Johnson.
An aggressive 5-foot-11, 77-pound corner that plays bigger than him.
And at that moment it was over.
Jackson fell into his end zone after a bad snap and went to the locker room at the end of the third quarter with a concussion after falling headlong.
Tyler Huntley, an unsigned Utah free agent who had given five career passes, was not bringing the Ravens back. He was tearing down a deep open Hollywood Brown field instead.
There have been nights when Jim Kelly hasn’t done everything himself, either, and the city only cares about the next Chiefs-Browns winner.
Allen was not intercepted, did not play any pick-sixs, acted as if he had been here before.
None of the quarterbacks affected the game with their wonderful legs, and a difficult wind jeopardized the kicking and passing games.
Josh Allen is 60 minutes from the Super Bowl. Everyone in Buffalo will believe that he can take his bills there. Thanks in large part to Taron Johnson, he may be Jim Kelly.