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The best game on this week’s NFL schedule will be between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills in primetime to decide who the AFC favorite will be heading into the middle part of the season. A familiar matchup for both sides after two scraps last year, one of which was the AFC Championship Game, the teams’ awareness of each other’s strategies should make for intriguing television and high drama to cap off the weekend.
Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen are among the best signal-callers in the league, likely competing for their share of the MVP votes at the end of the season. Kansas City’s defense is well aware of the threat Allen poses to the team’s hopes of advancing past .500 for the first time since week one, and they’ve prepared all week to contain the Bills’ high-octane offense.
Anthony Hitchens is something of a quarterback himself, but playing linebacker on the other side of the ball. Amid all the Chiefs’ struggles through four games, Hitchens has had his share of ups and downs. He needs a big game against Buffalo to get his season back on track. He spoke to reporters before Friday’s practice about the challenge of stopping Allen. He plans to counter Allen’s pre-play maneuvering to keep Kansas City ahead of the curve in all four quarters.
“He’s a big guy, a big target,” Hitchens explained. “There are certain ways you need to tackle him. He’s one of those guys that you have to stay high around his arms and his upper body, can’t be diving at his legs, his feet, he’ll just keep it moving. He’s got a good pump fake, strong arm, can hold the ball with one arm. Just like every week man, every week presents a new challenge.
“This week is definitely number 17 [Josh Allen] back there. [He has] got a strong arm, ability to run, ability to check at the line. He’s going to be in this league for a long time and play some good ball. Just a new week, a new challenge. This week it’s the quarterback, and we’ve got some things for him. Me and him can play a little cat and mouse game with the checks and audibles and see how we do there.”
Hitchens will need to make good on every bit of what he said in the Friday press conference to help propel the Chiefs to victory. If last week’s bounce-back win against Philadelphia was any indication, a big performance could be in the works in front of a country waiting for Kansas City to look unbeatable again.
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