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Kansas City Chiefs 27, Buffalo Bills 24
In the end, I decided to separate my review of the two divisional games yesterday, because they felt so wildly different and, frankly, so unrelated to one another. It felt almost like a necessity to put them in different blog entries, and not to put them in one and the same.
Perhaps part of the reason was that I was really pulling hard for the Buffalo Bills. Since my parents moved up to a town not quite two hours outside of Buffalo just before the Bills got good enough to be considered a serious contender, and my father became a supporter of the Bills team, I also began to pull for the team.
At times, I believed that the Bills truly had a serious shot at winning the Super Bowl. I was pleasantly surprised in how they played so well against the Chiefs in the AFC Championship Game following a remarkably successful season in 2020, when the Bills finished 13-3 and won two playoff games. The next season, I thought that the Bills might have a serious shot at beating the Chiefs, and indeed they did. They even seemed to have iced the win with a late field goal, before the infamous "13 seconds" which saw the Chiefs somehow drive down the field and kick their own field goal to force overtime, and then ultimately to win it. Last season, I had hoped that the Bills might go to the AFC title game again, only to get outplayed by the Bengals.
Yet, yesterday's game was even more heartbreaking for me as a supporter. It has been a long, long time since I watched a game with so much interest, and felt that tension throughout a close and hard fought contest. Both teams played well, and neither team seemed to finally be able to pin the other. They just kept going back and forth.
In the end, everyone was talking about one thing, however: Another wide right heartbreak for Buffalo. Yes, another field goal - this one from 44 yards by Buffalo placekicker Tyler Bass with less than two minutes to play - effectively ended what hopes the Bills and their fans had of winning this game. It was not entirely over just yet, but when the Buffalo defense failed to prevent the Chiefs from converting a first down just a couple of plays later, it was. By that point, all that Mahomes, Reid, and KC had to do was run out the clock in the game, since Buffalo had no more timeouts remaining.
Still, in a tight, back and forth game that remained close throughout, the missed field goal was only the last and most obvious culprit for why Buffalo lost this game. Several Bills receivers dropped passes which might have altered the course of this game. The defense played tough for most of the game, yet there were times when the Chiefs moved the ball shockingly quickly and efficiently down the field. Also, there were times when Chiefs receivers were unforgivably wide open, such as that touchdown catch by tight end Travis Kelce late in the first half. There were some poor decisions and poor execution, such as when the Bills head coach Sean McDermott went for it on fourth down in a fake punt situation, and then the team did not even come remotely close to getting the first down.
So yes, the Bills missed some opportunities that might have changed the outcome in their favor. Also, the Bills got lucky at times. There was that touchback late in the fourth, when the Chiefs were right by the end zone and seemed about to lay the hammer down and ice the game right there. The ball may indeed have been coming out before the ball carrier was down, but it was extremely close. Buffalo got a new chance then, and I am not entirely sure that it was deserved. Otherwise, KC might have effectively put the game out of reach right then and there.
And yet, this game remained so tight, that it feels like Buffalo was just an inch or two away from winning the game. Maybe if one of those missed catches is made instead. Or maybe if the defense tightened up at times during those inexplicable lapses. Or if that rather weak fourth down fake punt was more effective - and it could hardly have been much less effective than it was. Or, yes, if Bass kicks it through the uprights, although even then, there was plenty of time for KC's offense to get down the field. All they would have needed was a field goal for the win, and Buffalo's already weakened defense - they were particularly thin with their linebackers due to injuries - looked extremely vulnerable late in the game.
All in all, the Bills played well, and gave themselves a chance to win against a very tough opponent. They did some things right, for sure. Buffalo owned the ball for over 37 minutes of the game. They ran extremely effectively against the vaunted KC defense, something that I am sure did not escape the notice of the Baltimore Ravens, or the other teams still alive in these playoffs.
Josh Allen played well, all things considered. He completed 26 of 39 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for an additional 72 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries, some of which were real highlight material. Also, he did not throw any costly interceptions, although he did have one fumble in the fourth quarter which almost was - probably should have been - recovered by the Kansas City defense.
The commentators likened the game to two heavyweight fighters landing one well-placed punch after another during the fight, wearing each other out. Despite the injuries, particularly on defense, the Bills were in this thing almost right to the end of the game.
This was a game with seven lead changes. Both teams had highlight material. Both teams also showed some vulnerabilities which, frankly, potential future playoff opponents might be able to take advantage of. I mentioned KC's suspect run defense, but with the Bills seriously depleted at the linebacker position, and with some of those lapses at times in their passing defense, to say nothing of those missed catches by receivers, Buffalo fans and players might have only have pushed back their heartbreak for another week even if they had beaten Kansas City.
None of that will comfort heartbroken and desolate fans in western New York, however. The team had played so well towards the end of the season, catching fire with five straight wins and an unlikely AFC East division title, as well as earning the second seed in the playoffs. Then, they beat the Steelers last weekend, and finally got a chance to host the Chiefs in this game. It felt like they were so close to winning, to finally beating KC. Instead, they find themselves eliminated by them for a third time in the past four postseasons. And the loss to Cincy in last season's divisional round means that the Bills become the first team since the Chicago Bears in the 1980's to suffer home losses in the divisional round in consecutive seasons.
The Buffalo Bills have been knocking on the door of being a legitimate Super Bowl contender for years now. And I still maintain that, when they play at their best, they can beat any team in the league on any given Sunday. Right now, however, that feels like little consolation, as fans in Buffalo face the still long winter season following an earlier than expected exit from the playoffs, with the Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid, and the KC Chiefs once again getting the better of them.
My pick: Inaccurate
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