Bills Season Ends in Historic Divisional Playoff Loss

[BillsFans Staff Writer]

Image Credit: © Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

 

It was one for the history books. Buffalo and Kansas City traded punches over the final two minutes of regulation and overtime. When it was all said and done, it was the Chiefs that came out a 42-36 winner in Sunday's divisional playoff game.

 

Over the final two minutes of regulation play, the lead changed hands three times. A total of 25 points was scored as it was one of those games where the last team with the ball was likely to win. Kansas City held a 26-21 lead when Buffalo QB Josh Allen took over and led the Bills on a 17-play drive that would give the Bills the lead. It wasn't easy.

 

To keep the drive alive, Buffalo head coach Sean McDermott would go for it on 4th-and-4 from the Kansas City 30-yard line. Then, the Bills faced a 4th-and-13 at the Chiefs 27-yard line. Allen found a wide-open Gabriel Davis in the end zone to give Buffalo a 29-23 lead with 1:54 left in the game.

 

© Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

 

That, of course, was plenty of time for Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes to lead Kansas City on a scoring drive of its own. It didn't take long. On a 2nd-and-10 play from their own 36-yard line, Mahomes hit WR Tyreek Hill over the middle. The fleet-footed receiver did the rest, and 64 yards later, the Chiefs were back in the lead. The extra point made it 33-29 with 1:02 remaining in the game.

 

Needing a touchdown, the Bills and Allen quickly marched the ball down the field. Allen hit Davis twice, once for 28 yards and a second time for 12. A 16-yard completion to Emmanuel Sanders set the Bills up at the Kansas City 19-yard line with 23 seconds to play. On the very next play, Allen found Davis for his playoff record fourth touchdown reception and a 36-33.

 

The only problem was that there were still 13 seconds on the clock. A 19-yard completion to Hill and another 25-yard pass to TE Travis Kelce allowed Chiefs K Harrison Butker a chance to tie the game. Butker had missed a field goal and an extra point earlier in the game. Harrison's 49-yard field goal was good as time ran out, and the game was tied at 36-36.

 

© Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

 

Quite possibly, the only thing Allen got wrong all night was the overtime coin toss. The Chiefs took the kickoff and marched down the field in eight plays against the NFL's best defense. From the Bills 8-yard line, Mahomes found Kelce in the right corner of the end zone for the game-winner.

 

It was the first time in NFL history that opposing quarterbacks each threw for at least 300 yards, at least three touchdowns, completed at least 70 percent of their passes and didn't throw an interception. Plus, both quarterbacks led their respective teams in rushing with at least 65 yards. That had never been done in an NFL regular season or postseason game.

 

Allen finished with 27 completions in 37 attempts for 329 yards and four touchdowns. Mahomes was 33-of-44 for 378 yards and three touchdowns. Allen carried 11 times for 68 yards to lead the Bills, while Mahomes ran for 69 yards on seven attempts.

 

Davis had a historic day as he hauled in eight passes for 201 yards and the record four touchdowns. The Chiefs become the first NFL team to host four consecutive conference championship games with the win. They broke a record held by the Philadelphia Eagles, who, ironically, were coached by Andy Reid, the Chiefs head coach. It was the Bills' ninth straight road playoff loss.

 

Go Bills!!

 

 

BillsFans.com - Editorial Staff

 

 

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Bills Clinch AFC East, Will Host Patriots in Playoffs

Buffalo Runs to 29-14 Win, Secures Playoff Berth

 

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[BillsFan101]

History of the Buffalo Bills

 

4 Blown Superbowls

The Music City Miracle

Over 2 decades of Futility

The 13 Second Epic Fail

 

If it didn't hurt so much it would be comical.

 

Oh well there is always next year, sure keep telling yourself that. Because I can pretty much figure out how next season ends already.

[Foxx]

1 hour ago, BillsFan101 said:

History of the Buffalo Bills

 

4 Blown Superbowls

The Music City Miracle

Over 2 decades of Futility

The 13 Second Epic Fail

 

If it didn't hurt so much it would be comical.

 

Oh well there is always next year, sure keep telling yourself that. Because I can pretty much figure out how next season ends already.

I mean... we have to eventually exhaust the ways to lose... right?

asking for a friend...

[Crap Throwing Clavin]

17 minutes ago, Foxx said:

I mean... we have to eventually exhaust the ways to lose... right?

asking for a friend...

 

They'll always find a new way.

 

Sometimes I wonder if it's easier being a Jets fan.  At least they always lose in a normal catastrophic fashion.

[LB3]

4 hours ago, BillsFan101 said:

History of the Buffalo Bills

 

4 Blown Superbowls

The Music City Miracle

Over 2 decades of Futility

The 13 Second Epic Fail

 

If it didn't hurt so much it would be comical.

 

Oh well there is always next year, sure keep telling yourself that. Because I can pretty much figure out how next season ends already.

Me too.

[Blessed Believer]

56 minutes ago, LB3 said:

Me too.

I know many fans are reacting to another gut wrenching loss…and what people say for the first 48 hours after the disappointment should not even be considered.  But…..you can’t correlate last night’s 13 seconds with the glorious future that waits our heroes. 
 

We all know our offense is top notch and can hang with the best, so scoring points is not the problem (assuming good health).  So, that leaves us to look at the defense and the coaching to improve enough to get us over the top. I know Bills D is rated #1, but all we should care about is this….how does it stack up against KC or Cincinnati ?  Those two teams will probably be back in the way to try to keep Bills from playing in the SB next year.  
 

So, get TWhite healthy…draft wisely to improve the pass rush and coverage, maybe add a few free agents to improve personnel, and also the coaches need to do some soul searching to find how they could improve and learn from these mistakes from last night. And we all know, mistakes were made. 
 

in conclusion…what happened last night is now in the past. What happened on Wide right and Music City Meltdown is in the past. We should only be looking forward to the future, and the Bills future to me looks very very good. 
 

Go Bills….2022 or bust! 
BB

[LB3]

31 minutes ago, Blessed Believer said:

I know many fans are reacting to another gut wrenching loss…and what people say for the first 48 hours after the disappointment should not even be considered.  But…..you can’t correlate last night’s 13 seconds with the glorious future that waits our heroes. 
 

We all know our offense is top notch and can hang with the best, so scoring points is not the problem (assuming good health).  So, that leaves us to look at the defense and the coaching to improve enough to get us over the top. I know Bills D is rated #1, but all we should care about is this….how does it stack up against KC or Cincinnati ?  Those two teams will probably be back in the way to try to keep Bills from playing in the SB next year.  
 

So, get TWhite healthy…draft wisely to improve the pass rush and coverage, maybe add a few free agents to improve personnel, and also the coaches need to do some soul searching to find how they could improve and learn from these mistakes from last night. And we all know, mistakes were made. 
 

in conclusion…what happened last night is now in the past. What happened on Wide right and Music City Meltdown is in the past. We should only be looking forward to the future, and the Bills future to me looks very very good. 
 

Go Bills….2022 or bust! 
BB

It's nice having a QB that is top two in the league. We should be contenders every nearly every year barring injuries.

[CarpetCrawler]

They had the better team, we had the better QB.

[Fansince88]

There is a Pats fan that comes into work every 3 weeks or so do make a delivery. He said after watching that game Sunday night he realized the Pats are so far behind in the AFC because the SB is going through KC and Buffalo for the next 5 or so years. He is your typical pompous Pats fan so I feel better. LOL

[Carptom1]

7 hours ago, CarpetCrawler said:

They had the better team, we had the better QB.

As a Chiefs fan I would dispute that. We had a coach a Quarterback and a couple skill guys that didn’t let the moment get to big for them. I don’t know if there is another tandem that could pull that 13 seconds off. I don’t think our team is better, they have just now been in the biggest positions and don’t panic. The bills will get there, Allen has no fear, a great amount of skill and now enough heartbreak to keep that from happening. Your head coach has learned from this too. And Reid had plenty of high pressure head scratcher decisions too. But now he seems cool in those times. It’s all part of the process.

[DolphinGuy_1off]

[IDBillzFan]

11 hours ago, Carptom1 said:

As a Chiefs fan I would dispute that. We had a coach a Quarterback and a couple skill guys that didn’t let the moment get to big for them.

 

You may never believe this, and that's okay, but your team didn't win so much as the Bills lost.

 

Yes, the moment wasn't too big for your team, and it was too big for some on the Bills sideline, but you never see the win if there isn't an embarrassment of riches from the Bills. You can believe your team pulled this off, but it never happens without two massive assists from the Bills with 13 seconds left on the clock. 

 

 

 

[TakeYouToTasker 2.0]

OK, I’m finally ready to talk about it.

 

I don’t mind the losing. It’s playoff football, and each game can only have one winner and one loser. Each season has one winner and thirty-one losers.

 

But man, could it please be possible that from now on they could just lose in normal ways like every other team, and not in spectacular and historic ways that have documentaries written about them and are discussed every single year?

 

It’s not the “what” that hurts so much as it’s the “how”.

[IDBillzFan]

9 minutes ago, TakeYouToTasker 2.0 said:

OK, I’m finally ready to talk about it.

 

I don’t mind the losing. It’s playoff football, and each game can only have one winner and one loser. Each season has one winner and thirty-one losers.

 

But man, could it please be possible that from now on they could just lose in normal ways like every other team, and not in spectacular and historic ways that have documentaries written about them and are discussed every single year?

 

It’s not the “what” that hurts so much as it’s the “how”.

 

I completely get this because it feels like it happens so often, but other than Wide Right, I think this one is different than the rest because when we wake up for preseason football, we have a fixable issue.

 

Most of the egregious let downs in the past came from watching a bad or mediocre team rise to a single occasion. Think about that Dallas Monday Nighter. Half the losses to the Patriots*. Even Music City Miracle ended with the team mired in QB crap.

 

This time the pieces are all there for the run. Fix the defense...kinda like everyone said about Andy Reid before Chiefs got their SB with him and Mahomes.