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You never know when it’s your turn to be the hero, your turn to set fire to a league starved soccer town.
But everyone is allowed to dream, everyone is entitled to have a David Tyree Helmet Catch, or a Malcolm Butler end zone interception.
And on a freezing and windy night in Buffalo, it was Taron Johnson who lived his dream and helped Josh Allen take one step closer to the start of 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 ring, some of them shirtless, looking more like 67,000 fans.
It was Taron Johnson, a third-year Weber State cornerback whose young career was compromised by injury, who made the biggest game of his life in the biggest game of his life.
“They always tell us, ‘Look at the vision of the quarterback, he’s going to take you where the ball is, especially in the zone,” Johnson said.
Jackson looked at the Mark Andrews end. He ended up suing Taron Johnson in vain.
“I grabbed the ball and kind of looked down, but then I looked up, and I just saw a bunch of green grass on the right side,” Johnson said.
So he had an important decision to make. “After I grabbed it I really thought for a second that maybe I should kneel down,” Johnson said. “At that point I was like, ‘OK, this is a person I have to beat, and this is number 8 on the other side.’ “
Johnson headed straight for the AFC Championship game.
“I saw Lamar arrive, I slowed down a bit to let Tre [White] stand in front of me, just to help me, ”Johnson said.
Marv Levy, who watched it all from his Chicago home, had been most impressed with Allen’s rise to the top flight in his third season.
“Just his behavior, I guess as much as anything,” Levy told The Post. “He listens well, he learns, he stays cool even when something isn’t exactly going his way.
For a while, for a half a time, a lot of things went wrong for Allen on Saturday night.
Then, on the opening possession of the second half, he found Stefon Diggs with a 3-yard touchdown pass that made Bills 10, Ravens 3.
Then came Lamar Jackson.
And in the blink of an eye, there was Lamar Jackson.
Jackson had converted a third and 13 in midfield with a 15-yard scramble before Jerry Hughes, with Marquise “Hollywood” Brown wide open for what would have been the tying touchdown, put pressure on Jackson in a low pitch.
Then came Taron Johnson.
Lamar Jackson, third and baseman in the 9th, threw a dart for Andrews in the end zone and the next thing he knew he was chasing Johnson unsuccessfully on his spectacular 101-yard pick-six.
All of Buffalo exploded.
It was Jackson’s first interception in the red zone after throwing 49 career touchdowns.
It was Johnson’s second career interception and his pick of six.
Sometimes it’s a night for the Bruce Smiths and the Ray Lewises.
Or a Taron Johnson.
A fiery 5-foot-11, 192-pound wedge that plays bigger than him.
And just then, it was over.
Jackson was down in his end zone after a bad slam and headed for the locker room at the end of the third quarter with a concussion after landing on his head.
Tyler Huntley, an undrafted free agent from Utah who threw five career passes, didn’t bring the Ravens back to full force. He instead knocked over a deep field of Hollywood Brown wide open.
There have been nights when Jim Kelly hasn’t done it on his own either, and the city only cares about the Chiefs-Browns winner.
Allen wasn’t pulled over, didn’t throw a pick-six, acted like he’d been here before.
None of the quarterbacks had impacted the game with their wonderful legs, and a difficult wind had jeopardized the passing and kicking matches.
Josh Allen is 60 minutes away from a Super Bowl. Every Buffalo will believe he can take their bills there. Thanks in large part to Taron Johnson, he may be Jim Kelly.
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