Instant analysis, game recap of Bills’ playoff loss to the Chiefs
The Buffalo Bills season came to an end with a gut-wrenching 27-24 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Bills opened the game with a 14-play drive. The Bills used the intermediate passing game and running attack to move the ball methodically down the field. The drive stalled out at the Chiefs nine-yard line. Tyler Bass would make a short, 27-yard field goal to give the Bills the lead 3-0 early in the first quarter.
Kansas City responded with a solid drive of their own. Patrick Mahomes completed passes to Travis Kelce and Rashee Rice to bring the Chiefs into Bills territory. Buffalo’s defense tightened up, forcing a third-and-short incompletion. Harrison Butker would tie the game with a 47-yard field goal.
Buffalo’s offense leaned on the running game on their next drive, rushing nine times. Josh Allen scrambled for a five-yard touchdown run, giving the Bills a 10-3 lead.
The Chiefs answered with another long drive. This time, Kansas City rattled off a 10-play drive. The Chiefs opened the drive with a 29-yard pass to Kelce. From there, the Chiefs completed several short passes to bring the ball into the red. Once again, the Bills defense halted progress in the red zone, and Butker made his second field goal, this time from 29 yards out. Buffalo led 10-6 early in the second quarter.
Kansas City took their first lead of the game with a 22-yard pass to Kelce. Kelce broke through on a busted coverage to run a corner route uncontested. A 22-yard rush by Clyde Edwards-Helaire aided the five-play drive.
The scoring continued on the next drive, as Buffalo responded with a 12-play drive. Once again, James Cook was featured during the series. Josh Allen rushed for a two-yard score to give the Bills the lead 17-13 going into halftime.
The offenses continued their offensive explosion into the second half. First, Kansas City took the lead once again with another Kelce touchdown. This time, Kelce took a short pass into the end zone.
The Bills responded with another sustained drive. This time, Allen completed a 15-play drive with a perfect pass to the corner of the end zone, finding Khalil Shakir.
Down 24-20, the Chiefs responded once again, this time using a solid mix of short passes and runs between the tackles. Isaiah Pacheco bulled his way into the end zone to return the lead to Kansas City 27-24.
A crazy sequence ended the offense’s dominance. The Bills were finally stopped in their territory. Buffalo ran a fake punt, which was unsuccessful. Kansas City took possession at Buffalo’s 30-yard line.
Pacheco took the first rushing play deep into Bills territory, rattling off a 29-yard run. The Chiefs attempted an end around with Mecole Hardman. Jordan Poyer forced a fumble, which went out of the end zone for a touchback. After five consecutive series ending with touchdowns, the more recent two concluded with turnovers.
Buffalo took possession midway through the fourth quarter and led a sustained drive taking 6:40 off the clock. It appeared that the Bills were looking to run out the clock. Instead, the Chiefs defense forced multiple incompletions. Tyler Bass missed a 44-yard field by a country mile to the right, putting the ball in the hands of the Chiefs offense once again.
Isaiah Pacheco ground out two rushes to make a first down and run out the clock.
Keys to the game
The quarterbacks were the stars of the night. Mahomes did a great job at extended plays. He completed passes of over 20 yards to three different receivers.
Allen, as expected, became Superman for the Bills. Allen was responsible for all three of Buffalo’s touchdowns. Overall, Allen totaled 258 yards between his passing and rushing.
The Bills made a concerted effort to run the ball. Their goal to keep Mahomes off the field worked well. Cook started the game well but faded as the fourth quarter progressed. This could have been part of the play, though, as the ball was placed in Allen’s hands more often for the ground game. Nevertheless, Cook ended the game with an average of 3.4 yards per carry. Ty Johnson averaged 5.7 yards per rush, while Allen averaged a robust six yards per run.
However, Buffalo’s offense stalled out multiple times. The final drive seemed to be a microcosm of the game. Shakir was open in the end zone but a pass missed him. Allen fumbled earlier in the drive, which could have derailed the entire series several plays sooner. The Bills needed to pick up nine yards to keep the drive moving forward. They weren’t close with their passes.
The depleted defense could not get that final stop when needed. Isaiah Pacheco was a beast, rushing 15 times for 97 yards and a rushing touchdown.
The Chiefs defense did not allow the Bills to complete a deep pass. Allen’s longest pass only went for 15 yards.
The Bills did have multiple opportunities, though, to complete a deep pass. An attempt to Trent Sherfield hit the ground, while another deep ball went through All-Pro Stefon Diggs’ hands.
Dalton Kincaid and Khalil Shakir stepped up once again. The duo combined for 12 receptions and a touchdown.
The Chiefs big players had a great game. Mahomes, Kelce, and Pacheco all found the end zone. Outside of Allen, the Bills skill players were limited by the Chiefs defense.
Buffalo’s defense kept the game close after the Bills had a botched fake punt attempt. Poyer stripped the ball from Hardman. Buffalo took possession after the ball rolled out of the end zone. If Hardman does not fumble, there’s a good chance that the game doesn’t come down to the Bills final offensive possession.
The Bills defense had a communication issue on Kelce’s 22-yard touchdown, as the tight end roamed free into space on a corner route.
Bass’s final attempt wasn’t even close. There were concerns about the kicking game entering this matchup, and unfortunately for Buffalo, it led to the end of their season. Even so, getting stuck playing for the tie was not ideal for the Bills. The Chiefs would have had over 100 seconds left on the clock and two timeouts to score points.
Quick hits
Pacheco led all rushers with 97 yards on the ground.
Kelce led all receivers with 75 yards.
The Bills held the ball for over 37 minutes.
The Bills rushed for nearly as many yards (182) as they did through the passing game (186).
Tyrel Dodson and Jordan Poyer led the Bills with eight total tackles each.
Mahomes’ yard per pass (9.3) nearly doubled Allen’s (4.8).
Neither team recorded a sack on the evening.
The Bills outgained the Chiefs 368-361.
What's next?
For the second consecutive season, Buffalo’s campaign ends with a loss in the playoffs at Highmark Stadium. The Bills now shift into offseason mode, with plenty of cap questions to address moving forward.
