The Kansas City Chiefs fell to Josh Allen and the Bills in the regular season yet again, as the team falls to a disappointing 5-4 record.
First Half
The first half started strong on both sides, with each team scoring a touchdown while the Bills forced a three-and-out and the Chiefs forced a turnover on downs near midfield.
After forcing Buffalo’s first punt of the day, Kansas City took its one and only lead of the game with a field goal to up 10-7. The Bills responded promptly with a quick five-play touchdown drive before stopping the Chiefs on downs to get the ball back.
Buffalo then had the chance to take control of the game, and they spent that chance wisely, scoring another quick touchdown in just over two and a half minutes to take a 21-10 lead with just over a minute and a half left in the first half.
That’s when quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the offense made a huge play when they needed it most, as Mahomes connected with wide receiver Hollywood Brown for 40 yards to get down to the one with 46 seconds left to go.
Unfortunately, the golden opportunity was wasted by the Chiefs, getting stopped on three straight downs and resorting to a field goal to make it 21-13 Buffalo at the half.
Second Half
While the Chiefs went into the locker room with a bitter taste thanks to the wasted opportunity, they still had made a one-possession game and were getting the ball to begin the second half. Sadly for Kansas City, they couldn’t make anything of it, going three and out down eight.
However, after a much-needed forced punt by the Kansas City defense, the offense had another chance, but a controversial intentional grounding call helped to force a fifth straight drive without a touchdown for the Chiefs.
The Bills then sent an early dagger through the Chiefs with another efficient touchdown drive, taking a 28-13 lead late in the third quarter. It was now or never for Kansas City, and on a 4th and 17 from the Buffalo 40, the offense finally responded with a 29-yard reception and conversion by wide receiver Rashee Rice. This led to a touchdown and a 28-21 deficit.
After another forced punt by the Kansas City defense, the offense had a chance to tie, but could do nothing as Mahomes resorted to arm punting the ball down to the Buffalo 33-yard line. The Chiefs once again needed a stop but could not get one as the Bills looked to ice the game with a field goal from the Kansas City 34-yard line with 27 seconds left.
However, a missed 52-yard from kicker Matt Prater just barely kept the door open which was almost swung open when Mahomes and the offense drove down to the Buffalo 40 in just 11 seconds, Brown almost caught a ball in the endzone for a miracle, but it wasn’t meant to be as one more try resulted in another incompletion and another regular season loss to the Bills for the Chiefs.
Key Statistics
After a streak of three dominating performances, Kansas City quickly came back down to earth in Buffalo with their 28-21 loss that saw Mahomes have just a 44% completion percentage for 250 yards and a pick.
It was clear that the team missed the presence of running back Isiah Pacheco, who is week-to-week with an MCL injury and sat out this one. As a result, running back Kareem Hunt took 11 out of the 20 total rushes, which were made up of six different Chiefs. Hunt was only able to garner 49 yards on the ground, with the rest of the team combining for just 30 more.
Meanwhile, the rushing game went a little crazy on the Kansas City defense, as running back James Cook, the second leading rusher this season, totaled up 114 yards, but only averaged 4.2 yards per carry, as he was force-fed the ball 27 times.
Looking at the receiving game, Rice led the way, continuing to impress since his return in week seven. Rice amassed 80 yards on four receptions in Buffalo, now accounting for 215 yards in his three weeks of action this season.
Brown and tight end Travis Kelce also had good days, as Brown totaled up 73 yards on just two catches and Kelce continued to contribute largely, garnering four catches for 66 yards. The issue was that the “everybody gotta eat” mantra did not ring all that true, a strategy that the Chiefs have utilized quite successfully this season, spreading the ball out to a number of receivers throughout the game.
Against Buffalo, outside of Rice, Brown, and Kelce, only one receiver had over 20 yards, and not a single other had more than six.
On the defense, the main star of the show once again was former Missouri Tiger linebacker, Nick Botlon, who led the team with 14 tackles along with one tackle for loss.
The Outlook
The Chiefs now sit at an underwhelming 5-4 record with a gauntlet of a schedule on deck after a bye week, starting with the division-leading Denver Broncos, who sit with a record of 7-2. Kansas City will go into Denver with what is essentially a must-win now, a situation that this team has not been in for a long time.
The Chiefs just need to stick to who they are in order to succeed, spreading the ball out and moving the ball efficiently. A huge issue that hindered this strategy against the Bills was the offensive line play, as the Bills put on a lot of pressure throughout the game, forcing Mahomes to throw it away or just go down a number of times, as Buffalo racked up three sacks along with five tackles for losses.
This issue will hopefully be partially resolved as 2025 first-round pick, offensive tackle Josh Simmons, is finally back with the team after missing the last four games with “family issues” out in California. Simmons was much needed against Buffalo and may be greatly needed against the Broncos as well come November 16.
