On January 13, 2024, in Kansas City, Missouri, Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs warms up before facing the Miami Dolphins in an NFL wild-card playoff football game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
GETTY/KARA DURRETTE IMAGES
On Sunday, Patrick Mahomes took the Kansas City Chiefs on the road for their first-ever NFL playoff game against the Buffalo Bills. This was an excellent game between two of the best AFC teams. Furthermore, the sideline activities were almost as fascinating as the actual game. I’m grateful, Jason Kelce.
With an NFL+ Premium subscription, you can watch the game again on demand (on your mobile device) even though you can no longer view it live.
New York’s Orchard Park — At first, it appeared as though the kick would go through the uprights. The winds at Orchard Park, which were gusting between 11 and 13 mph, helped it soar up and to the right, away from the upright, before it abruptly changed course.
In Sunday’s AFC divisional playoff game, with 1:43 remaining, the Kansas City Chiefs took the field at their own 34-yard line with a three-point lead after Buffalo Bills kicker Tyler Bass missed a 44-yard field goal.
In the end, I’m solely responsible for it. “I need to improve my ability to reach my target,” Bass stated following the Bills’ 24–27 defeat. “When you have a left-to-right [wind], I need to play it a little bit more left. I’ve been here long enough to realize that’s what you need to do. You know, throughout warm-ups, I was putting my trust in my line. Hit a solid ball, but it was unsuccessful. You realize how horrible I feel? It hurts because I adore this team. This one hurts a lot. Yes, I need to perform better. Completely at my expense.”
Bass’s field goal percentage (76.5%) at the end of the regular season and postseason was the lowest in his four-year career.
Bass’s field goal percentage (76.5%) at the end of the regular season and postseason was the lowest in his four-year career. Following the match, head coach Sean McDermott declared that they have “full confidence” in Bass. The head coach also mentioned how the Bills’ special teams and defense weren’t performing “the way we needed to.”
For the Bills, the field goal try will be just another one of those “what-if” moments in a game full of chances that came up empty. The Bills finished their season in the divisional round for the third consecutive year, which increased their record against Patrick Mahomes in the postseason to 0-3. Kansas City loses in the postseason once more.
Bass’s field goal percentage (76.5%) at the end of the regular season and postseason was the lowest in his four-year career. Following the match, head coach Sean McDermott declared that they have “full confidence” in Bass. The head coach also mentioned how the Bills’ special teams and defense weren’t performing “the way we needed to.”
For the Bills, the field goal try will be just another one of those “what-if” moments in a game full of chances that came up empty. The Bills finished their season in the divisional round for the third consecutive year, which increased their record against Patrick Mahomes in the postseason to 0-3. Kansas City loses in the postseason once more.
Quarterback Josh Allen stated, “I wish [Bass] wouldn’t have been put in that situation.” “As a team, you either win or lose. A game isn’t defined by one play. A season is not defined by it. I am aware that there will be others who express that opinion. Again, we perform a few plays before, and at this point we’re probably singing a different tune, so we have to be there for him.”
Before Bass attempted to score, there were two incompletions by Allen from the Kansas City 26-yard line. This concluded a 16-play, 54-yard drive that resulted in 0 points. During one such second-and-nine play, wide receiver Stefon Diggs was wide open as he went across the center of the field, but defensive end pressure forced Allen to target Khalil Shakir deep.
Buffalo’s hypothetical scenarios also include how and when to take such downfield shots, given that the Bills dominated the most of the game with the short passing game. It was only the second occasion in Allen’s 103 career starts (including playoffs) that Buffalo had zero offensive plays of 20 yards or more in a game where the Bills failed to run a play longer than 18 yards (Week 5, 2018). On 26 completions, Allen averaged 0.7 air yards, 24 of which were within five yards of the line of scrimmage. Only two quarterbacks have completed more than 20 passes in a game and averaged less air yards upon completions since 2006.
In addition to rushing for 72 yards on 12 carries and two rushing touchdowns, Allen completed 26 of 39 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown. Neither turnovers nor sacks occurred. Despite controlling the possession time (37:03), the Bills managed to score just seven points in the second half.
Allen remarked, “Losing stinks.” “Losing to them, losing to anybody at home sucks.”
The big plays left their mark, as the Bills’ defense gave up two scores on the Chiefs’ opening drives of the second half. A season-high eight plays by the Chiefs gained 20 yards or more.
Injuries had an impact on defense, but the team did not force a turnover, something it has prided itself on doing; the Bills’ six-game winning streak heading into the
Early in the fourth quarter, the defense forced a fumble out of bounds near the goal line by Mecole Hardman after a botched Bills fake punt, but it was insufficient to keep the Bills in the game.
DaQuan Jones, a defensive tackle, stated, “It just comes down to making the plays that come your way, making the tackles, and doing your job.” “Some of those plays, we weren’t doing that and they exposed us.”
following another AFC East championship, which the Bills had a 4% chance of winning when they were 6-6 following Week 13, the team will face a challenging summer full of unknowns. Another year will pass before the team gets another shot at winning its first Super Bowl.
“I’m extremely disappointed. I mean, you put so much time into this,” McDermott said. “We put so much time into a season, let alone this game, and the preparation for it, and to come out and to not perform the way I’d hoped we would’ve, it’s extremely disappointing and frustrating and it’s a type of situation in our business where you got to spend the whole offseason thinking about it, but it drives you harder, if that’s even possible to drive someone harder, drives you harder to come back next season and continue to work at it.”
