Chiefs advance to sixth straight AFC title game after beating Bills
By Larry Holder, Nate Taylor and Joe Buscaglia
The Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills added another playoff classic to their rivalry on Sunday. But once again the Chiefs came out on top with a 27-24 victory over the Bills at Highmark Stadium.
The Chiefs travel to Baltimore next Sunday to take on the Ravens in the AFC Championship at M&T Stadium. Kansas City will play in its sixth consecutive AFC Championship Game.
The Bills, meanwhile, are sent home by the Chiefs for the third time in four years. Kansas City defeated Buffalo in the conference championship in the 2020 playoffs, the divisional round in the 2021 playoffs and again in the divisional round Sunday.
“It sucks,” Josh Allen said after the game. “Losing sucks. Losing at home to them, to anyone, sucks.”
Bills kicker Tyler Bass missed a 44-yard field goal wide right with 1:43 left in the game that would have tied the score.
The Chiefs' Isiah Pacheco got the game-winning score when he broke through for a 5-yard touchdown run less than a minute into the fourth quarter to go up 27-24.
But a series of wild turns in the fourth quarter hampered both teams after the Pacheco touchdown. It started when Buffalo failed to get a scoop on a fake punt attempt in its own territory. Kansas City used only 10 players for the punt return and still stopped the Bills' Damar Hamlin just short of the first down on the fake punt attempt. The Chiefs took control of the ball on downs at the Bills' 32-yard line.
“They turned on the defense in that fourth quarter. That's a great offense, that's a great football player in Josh Allen and a great team and they went up and down the field and the defense said enough is enough and they got the stops,” Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes said.
Two plays later, the Chiefs' Mecole Hardman caught a pass from Mahomes and fumbled with the ball as he was tackled near the goal line. Officials originally ruled Hardman down. Buffalo successfully challenged the call, as the officials ruled the ball went out of the end zone for a touchback that gave possession to the Bills.
The Bills appeared to put themselves in position to at least tie the game, but the Bass miss ended the Bills' season.
Allen's two rushing touchdowns in the first half lifted the Bills to a 17-13 halftime lead. The first came early in the second quarter on a 5-yard run. The second helped Buffalo regain the lead at 17-13 on a 2-yard TD scamper near the end of the first half.
The Chiefs took a 13-10 lead when Mahomes connected with a wide-open Travis Kelce on a 22-yard touchdown reception with 3:33 left in the second quarter. Kelce blew a kiss and formed his hands into a heart toward the suite where pop star Taylor Swift, Kelce's girlfriend, was watching the game at the stadium. Shortly afterwards, Eagles center Jason Kelce, Travis' brother, came shirtless to the front of the open-air suite to express his satisfaction with his brother's touchdown.
Kansas City's defense stepped up
With the Chiefs' season on the line, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo relied on his best personnel, his dime package. With three safeties on the field – Justin Reid, Deon Bush and rookie Chamarri Conner – the Chiefs defense was able to prevent the Bills from entering the end zone on their final drive of the game. Chris Jones, the Chiefs' best pass rusher, was also exceptional. He created enough pressure to influence Allen's final two pass attempts, both of which fell incomplete.
Even more impressive, the Chiefs didn't give up the big pass to Allen despite safety Mike Edwards suffering a concussion on just the second play of the game when he broke up a pass in the middle of the field. The Chiefs' stop just outside the red zone in the closing minutes forced the Bills into a potential tying field goal. When Bills kicker Bass missed his 44-yard attempt wide right, several Chiefs defenders celebrated by jumping into the air and into each other's arms.
Just like during their season, the Chiefs' offensive players have their defensive teammates to thank. Midway through the fourth quarter, the Chiefs offense had two chances to score with a 27-24 lead. Their golden opportunity came when the Bills failed with a fake punt play deep in their own territory. But two plays later, during a pop-pass jet sweep, Hardman fumbled the ball near the pylon, rolling the ball into the end zone and out of bounds for a turnover. — Nate Taylor, Chiefs beat writer
The Bills' playoff curse continues
For the third time in four postseasons, the Bills' Super Bowl dreams have been dashed by the Chiefs. Even with different conditions this time around, getting the opportunity to play the Chiefs at home in the playoffs for the first time since head coach Sean McDermott, the Bills still couldn't get over the hump. They got to see a near-perfect game from Mahomes, who scored a statement victory in his first-ever road playoff game. Now the Bills are left with another premature playoff exit and nothing but offseason questions with an aging roster and a big cap sheet that will likely need a lot of trimming.
The Bills had no answers in the middle of the field for the Chiefs as Mahomes, Kelce and Pacheco gained big plays at will. The Chiefs clearly had a plan to attack linebackers AJ Klein and Tyrel Dodson through the air, and it worked consistently. Kelce was seemingly open the entire game, and once that was established, Pacheco came through with clutch runs throughout the second half. Other than a late forced punt and a Hardman fumble, it was a perfect game from Mahomes, who remains a thorn in the Bills' side when not in the regular season. – Joe Buscaglia, Bills beat writer
Required reading
(Photo: Timothy T Ludwig/Getty Images)