The Chiefs have picked up top accolades in the last two AFC contenders meet, first in the Conference Championship, and then last year, in the fiercest penalty shootout of the Divisional Tour. But not on Sunday. Taron Johnson jumped past the late Patrick Mahomes’ pass to take the win 24-20.
Both sides started slow in the expected confrontation, trying so hard to get big plays that they ended up with turnovers in the red. But Mahomes and Josh Allen each dealt strikes on the field as the match went on, with Stefon Diggs, Gabe Davis and Von Miller all scoring the spotlight to propel Buffalo to 5-1 this season.
Mahomes capped the first half remarkably by delivering a pair of quick kicks in the final seconds to net a field goal by the Chiefs at 62 yards by Harrison Boetker who netted the score at 10-10. He only needed 12 seconds in total to do so, a year after using the last 13 seconds of the Bills-Chiefs playoff to set up a field goal to force overtime. Just as in the post-season match, the two teams also tied after the first, second and third quarters.
Here are some of the points gleaned from Sunday’s Bell Chiefs shootout:
Why did the bill win
The biggest reason is twofold: Josh Allen, predictably, was often a big game machine. And while he doesn’t get much credit, the defense did make plays exactly when he needed them. Let’s start with Allen: He wasn’t very methodical out of the gate, constantly dropping 10-15 yards behind the line in hopes of making a huge game, even though Devin Singletary was running in open space with ease. But once Allen’s connection to Stefon Diggs was discovered, crime found its rhythm, and the boy put Diggs into a clinic wide, and finished with 10 catches for 148 yards and a point.
Gabe Davis’ speed was also on display again, and Allen showed his confidence to all outlets, including Dawson Knox, with crunch time bombs and bullets. Defensively, Taron Johnson deserves credit for jumping Mahomes’ lopsided throw to double coverage to close out the game. But Von Miller was just as pivotal, scoring two bags and keeping the Mahomes on the move.
Why did the presidents lose?
It wasn’t for lack of trying. Kansas City still proved to be the king of miraculous driving, particularly at the end of the first half, when Mahomes needed 12 seconds to score a field goal that the team scored at 62 yards from Harrison Poetker. The Mahomes, on their own, remained a charmer, relying on super-reliable Travis Kelce and surprisingly open JuJu Smith-Schuster to keep KC always in the mix, if not up front. But QB was also clearly pressured to give plays at times, for example when someone was forced into the end zone and was criticized by Kair Elam.
It didn’t help that there was no real running game in their scenario. Or that rookie Joshua Williams was tasked with shutting down fast Bills receivers from the outside. Chiefs fans shouldn’t be overly concerned given how close this one is, as one would expect, but it’s fair to remain skeptical of the depth of Mahomes’ receiving options given how much they are in numbers 15 and 87.
turning point
Given that this was a back-and-forth from start to finish, it should have been Mahomes’ second pick, as Johnson jumped on the road and took advantage of the Chiefs QB’s attempts to make something out of nothing. This interception put the ball back into Buffalo’s hands, up 24-20 after TD’s 12-game campaign in the Bills, and secured the visitors close victory.
play the game
Allen’s big plays are all worthwhile, but give it to QB for her ultimate TD tug of war to Dawson Knox. Everything about tossing banknotes forever was a textbook.
What’s Next
The Bills (5-1) will rest in farewell week before returning home on October 30 for Sunday night’s game with the Packers (3-3), who were defeated by the Jets in Week 6. The Chiefs (4-2), within That, he’ll hit the road for a Super Bowl LIV rematch with the 49ers (3-3), who were teased by the Falcons on Sunday.
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