Did we expect anything less than a thriller between these bitter rivals in this AFC Championship?
The Kansas City Chiefs held off the Buffalo Bills to win the AFC Championship Game 32-29 in an absolute thriller at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday night.
The Chiefs now have a shot at NFL history as they can become the first team to ever win three Super Bowls in a row if they can defeat the Chiefs Philadelphia Eagles again.
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The Chiefs won Super Bowl LVII in the 2022 season 38:35 against the Eagles in Arizona.
In the meantime, Josh Allen and the Bills are now 0-4 in the postseason against the Chiefs, despite suffering one of their two losses in the 2024 regular season.
But Buffalo’s offense found itself where it wanted to be in this game: with the ball in its hands late in the fourth quarter. The defense stopped Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense and forced a field goal that Harrison Butker split the uprights for a 32-29 lead.
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) fights for a touchdown during the first half of Sunday’s AFC Championship NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Jan. 26, 2025, in Kansas City, Missouri. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Allen, tough all season, had a chance to at least tie the game, or better yet, score a game-winning touchdown drive with 3:33 left in the fourth quarter.
However, Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo chose the perfect play call on consecutive plays, starting with a third-and-10 from the Buffalo 42-yard line, where he sent an all-out blitz. This resulted in a five-yard gain to Amari Cooper, giving Allen and the Bills a fourth-and-5.
Then another blitz was called, but it was a cornerback sent to the pocket after the Chiefs obscured it with both linebackers at the line of scrimmage and instead went back into coverage.
Allen hurled a prayer ball down the middle of the field and tight end Dalton Kincaid had a chance to take advantage, but the ball bounced off his chest and landed on the turf.
That came after the two-minute warning, and Mahomes and the entire Chiefs staff knew they needed a few first downs to put the game on ice. In typical Chiefs fashion, they got what they needed as Isiah Pacheco scored on a 10-yard catch for a first down and Samaje Perine scored 17 yards on his only touch of the game with 1:35 remaining and no Bills timeout to seal it the victory.
The celebrations began after a hard-fought victory for the Chiefs, which was a thriller from the start.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) celebrates his touchdown with Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) during the second half of the AFC Championship NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Mahomes and the Chiefs were well positioned from the game’s first possession, going 90 yards in just nine plays before Kareem Hunt scored on the ground from 12 yards out to take the early lead.
However, this game was back and forth throughout, as Allen was able to take the lead early in the second quarter after staging a 72-yard drive in ten plays, capped by a six-yard rush from James Cook became.
However, the Chiefs took the game’s largest lead after responding with 14 unanswered points as they scored back-to-back touchdown drives to close the first half. It was again rookie Xavier Worthy who reached the end zone from 11 yards out, while Mahomes himself climbed from one yard out to make it 21:10.
Buffalo didn’t go away without a fight, however, cutting the lead to 21-16 before the end of the half Mack Hollins hauled in a beautifully thrown deep ball from Allen for a 34-yard touchdown.
The Bills finally regained their lead in the second half after Cook scored his second touchdown of the game. This one came on fourth-and-goal and required him to jump over the Chiefs defenders and extend his arm across the goal line to make it a 22-21 contest.
Perhaps the biggest turning point in this game, however, came on the Bills’ next drive after they forced a punt on the Chiefs. On fourth-and-1 from the Kansas City 41-yard line, the Bills decided to go for it with 13:01 left in the fourth quarter. Allen had a quarterback sneak, but after replay it was ruled that he was short of the line for the win, giving the Chiefs the ball with great field position to get the ball back.
Mahomes didn’t miss the opportunity and needed just five plays to get offside and end his drive with another rushing score for himself to make the score 29-22.
As if the excitement wasn’t enough, the Bills found themselves at the Chiefs’ four-yard line after Allen fired a 32-yard pass to Hollins on third-and-8 on the ensuing drive. On the fourth-and-goal, Curtis Samuel slipped out of coverage and had both feet in the end zone when he scored the touchdown to tie the score again.
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These two AFC juggernauts traded blows, but the winner remained the same and a rematch will be shown in New Orleans on Fox and exclusively on free streaming on Tubi on February 9th.
Will it be the Chiefs who make NFL history? Or will the Eagles get their Super Bowl revenge with Saquon Barkley leading the way in the backfield alongside Jalen Hurts and Co.?
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