Chiefs hold off Bills in AFC championship game thriller

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Kansas City Chiefs’ drive for an NFL three-peat is alive.

They survived a classic AFC Championship game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, scoring the winning points on Harrison Butker’s 35-yard field goal with 3:33 left for a 32-29 victory.

The Chiefs led 21–10 late in the first half only to fall behind 22–21 at the end of the third quarter. They scored 11 points in the fourth to claim the victory. Kansas City stopped the Bills on fourth down near midfield after Butker’s Kick. The win was the Chiefs ’17. even in games decided by One Score, an NFL record.

The Chiefs, who have been to five of the last six Super Bowls, will continue their bid to become the first team to win three consecutive championships in the Super Bowl era in Super Bowl Lix in two weeks against the Philadelphia Eagles in New Orleans.

Here are the key takeaways from the AFC Championship Game:

Describe the game in two words: Late rally. The Chiefs pulled away heading into the fourth quarter, but stopped the Bills on fourth down at midfield and went on to score a touchdown that gave them a 29-22 lead. The Bills then tied the game before Butker’s field goal lifted Kansas City to the win.

QB breakdown: Patrick Mahomes had one of his better games of the season. He threw mostly quick passes, went 18 for 26 for 245 yards and a touchdown and was much sharper than in the divisional round win over the Houston Texans. Mahomes was also productive as a runner, recording 43 yards and two touchdowns. The Bills had been effective in eliminating Mahomes as a runner when the teams met in Week 11 and held him without a carry. But Mahomes’ rushing was a big factor in this contest. Not only did he score twice, but he converted on fourth-down carries in the second quarter that kept alive a drive that culminated in Kansas City’s second touchdown.

Most Surprising Performance: A week after his big division game against the Texans, tight end Travis Kelce had two catches for 19 yards. But the Chiefs got significant contributions from their wide receivers unlike last week. Xavier Worthy scored a touchdown, Justin Watson had a catch on a 2-point conversion and Hollywood Brown and Juju Smith-Schuster combined for five receptions and 95 yards. – Teicher

Next game: Super Bowl Six, Feb. 9 vs. Eagles, New Orleans, 6:30 p.m. ET (Fox)

Once again, the Bills’ Super Bowl dreams were stung by the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes.

A season that exceeded expectations and reached new heights had the same familiar ending. A sloppy first half set up a tight fourth quarter, and Buffalo’s efforts weren’t enough.

The Bills’ offense had an opportunity to put together a winning drive in the fourth quarter, but seemed unprepared for a blitz on fourth-and-5 with two minutes left in the game. Tight end Dalton Kincaid didn’t come down with a late heave from quarterback Josh Allen.

The Bills have now lost all four postseason meetings against the Mahomes-led Chiefs team since 2020 and have dropped eight straight road playoff games. Allen-led Bills teams are 0-2 in the AFC Championship Game.

The Bills tied the game at 29. But ultimately, the defense was unable to get off the field or contain Mahomes when it needed to. A short-handed secondary—with starting cornerback Christian Benford, who left in the first quarter with a concussion, and safety Taylor Rapp, who didn’t play (hip/back)—didn’t help.

Allen finished the best season of his career with a mixed performance, completing 22 of 34 passes for 237 yards and two touchdowns. He also had 11 rushes for 39 yards.

Describe the game in two words: Kryptonite after the season. The Bills’ playoff game against the Chiefs snuck up once again, and Buffalo will enter the season with new questions about what this team needs to do to get past Kansas City in the postseason.

Biggest hole in game plan: Not establishing the race with James Cook early. The Bills’ rushing attack was key to getting them to the conference title game, but it wasn’t an integral part of the offense in the first half. It didn’t help keep the ball away from Mahomes and limited the offense. Buffalo offensive coordinator Joe Brady dialed 11 designed runs in the first half (four by Cook), the same amount the Bills had during the first drive of the second half. Cook was successful once he got going, rushing for 85 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries.

Worrying trend: Sloppy performance. The offensive unit had six plays that could have been turnovers, with a fumble by running back Ray Davis that he recovered, three fumbles by Allen that he recovered and two near interceptions. The typically reliable Allen Tush push game (with a 27-of-30 first-down conversion rate entering the game) was inconsistent. The Bills’ special teams allowed a 41-yard punt return that set up an eventual Chiefs touchdown, and Buffalo’s defense struggled to get off the field and not force a punt until the second half. — Getzenberg