What we learned about Kansas City Chiefs in 20-17 loss to Buffalo Bills
The Kansas City Chiefs’ late-game offensive magic was absent for another week.
And because of that, the Buffalo Bills’ playoff hopes are revived again following Sunday afternoon’s 20-17 victory over the Chiefs in Kansas City.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the offense, which has struggled all season in fourth-quarter comeback situations, went three-and-out with the game tied at 17-17 in the fourth quarter of this one.
After Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen engineered a field-goal drive to take the lead at 20-17 with 1:57 left, KC’s offense had one more shot to drive the length of the field for the tie or win.
And they ruined a potential dramatic game-winning touchdown with a silly penalty.
Mahomes completed a 25-yard pass to Travis Kelce, who lateraled a half-field pass backward to an uncovered Kadarius Toney, who high-stepped 24 more yards for an apparent long touchdown with 1:25 left.
The play came back, though, when Toney was flagged for offsides after lining up in the neutral zone.
KC’s final drive stalled after that with a turnover on downs.
Mahomes was hot after the final incompletion, having to be restrained by teammates while screaming at a nearby official.
It might have been a season-saving win for the Bills, who improved to 7-6. With a loss, the Bills’ chances of making the playoffs would’ve been just 9%, according to the New York Times’ playoff estimator.
The victory, however, moved the Bills’ chances back to 36%, leaving a longtime Chiefs’ rival and talented offense with plenty of playoff hope.
The Chiefs rallied to make it 14-7 at half after falling behind by two scores in their third straight game.
Mahomes had a screen pass deflected then intercepted by Buffalo’s AJ Epenesa on the first drive. The Chiefs followed on the next few possessions by replicating many of their most frequent sins this season, which included receiver-dropped passes and multiple offensive penalties.
The momentum shifted a bit after the Bills took a 14-0 lead. The Chiefs’ Chris Jones broke free to create a sack, then Chamarri Conner — stepping in for a momentarily injured Justin Reid — intercepted an Allen pass.
KC shook some things up offensively on its next offensive drive. The Chiefs, who’d had just 21 no-huddle snaps all season coming into the game, went three straight on the next drive to pick up a pair of first downs.
Later — after getting out of a first-and-25 hole — Jerick McKinnon powered ahead on third-and-goal from the Bills’ 4 for a red-zone touchdown, celebrating by leaning on center Creed Humphrey’s back while pretending to bench press.
The Chiefs (8-5) will play at the New England Patriots at noon Central Time on Sunday, Dec. 17.
