The Buffalo Bills season came to an end with a gut-wrenching 27-24 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.
As these postseason games between these two sides typically go, it was a back-and-forth affair.
The Bills opened the game with a 14-play drive. Buffalo 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. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes completed passes to receivers Travis Kelce and Rashee Rice to bring the Chiefs into Bills territory. Buffalo’s defense tightened up, and 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. Quarterback Josh Allen scrambled for a five-yard touchdown run, giving the Bills a 10-3 lead.
The Chiefs answered with another long drive. 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 zone. Once again, the Bills defense halted progress in the red zone, and Butker made his second field goal. Buffalo led 10-6 early in the second quarter.
The Chiefs 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, Cook was featured during the series. 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 on a short pass.
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 wideout Khalil Shakir.
Down 24-20, the Chiefs continued to respond, 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. Bills safety Jordan Poyer forced a fumble, which went out of the end zone for a touchback. After five consecutive series ending with touchdowns, then 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 stops.
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.
Pacheco and KC ground out two rushes to make a first down and ran out the clock. Both on the game and the Bills’ season.
Here’s the rest of Bills Wire’s recap of the game that was: