Kansas City, Missouri. In order to help Kansas City defeat the Bills 32-29 on Sunday night and go to the Super Bowl for the third straight season, Patrick Mahomes ran past the Buffalo defense for two more scores, passed for 245 yards and a touchdown, and depended on his defense at crucial times.
The AFC champs will now attempt to accomplish a feat that no other NFL club has accomplished: winning all three.
The Eagles, whom Kansas City defeated two years ago for the first championship in this run, will be a familiar opponent. Philadelphia defeated the Washington Commanders 55-23 earlier Sunday to secure a trip to New Orleans to face the champions on February 9.
Kansas City has finished the Bills season in the playoffs for the fourth time since January 2021. Like the others, it followed a heavyweight bout between two of the AFC’s best teams, which ended in a 29-all draw after Josh Allen, the quarterback for Buffalo, found Curtis Samuel in the back of the end zone to add a little extra drama at Arrowhead Stadium.
But Mahomes was just unflappable. On the next series, he completed four straight throws, which put the Bills in another game-or-die position in Kansas City and set up Harrison Butker’s game-winning field goal with 3:33 remaining.
Allen ran for a first down to start their drive, but his next two throws were incomplete after being swatted at the line of scrimmage. The Bills decided to go for it after he hit Amari Cooper for a short gain on third down. They were now 4 of 5 on fourth down, and the Kansas City blitz compelled Allen to loft up a prayer that Dalton Kincaid was unable to grab.
After taking control and gaining a few early downs, Kansas City started to celebrate once more.
With its tenth straight playoff victory, Kansas City became the fourth team to reach three consecutive Super Bowls, led by a touchdown run from Kareem Hunt and six catches for 85 yards and a touchdown from Xavier Worthy.
For Buffalo, Allen passed for 237 yards and two touchdowns. James Cook rushed for his own two scores and 85 yards.
Since a four-game streak in 1990–93, the Bills have yet to make it to the Super Bowl.
With seven meetings since Kansas City defeated Buffalo in the AFC title game at Arrowhead Stadium under identical circumstances to go to the Super Bowl in January 2021, the Bills and Kansas City have become close over the years.
During the regular season, Buffalo had won all four games. In the postseason, Kansas City had won the three crucial games.
And as the game went on, that familiarity—along with the fact that Bills coach Sean McDermott used to work for his Kansas City rival Andy Reid—was apparent. While Kansas City was ready for Allen’s tendency to take off and run, the Bills just wouldn’t allow Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce to defeat them, as he did against the Texans in the divisional round.
Following a wild first half, Kansas City led 21-16 going into the locker room.
The teams exchanged the lead as Mahomes and Hunt raced for touchdowns and Worthy caught a touchdown pass. Cook made it to Buffalo’s end zone, and Mack Hollins’ incredible touchdown catch shortly before halftime kept the Bills in the game.
Mahomes blasted into the end zone for a touchdown, Cook barely crossed the goal line for a touchdown, Kansas City stopped Allen inches from the marker on fourth down, and the Bills responded with a 70-yard drive in which their MVP-candidate quarterback hit Samuel on fourth-and-goal to tie the score at 29-all. The second half was still a game of inches.
Fifty-three minutes and forty-five seconds were no longer relevant. It all came down to the game’s final 6:45.
Injuries
Christian Benford, a cornerback for the Bills, was taken off during the first quarter after being ruled out due to a concussion. Before being authorized to play on Sunday, he had been in the concussion protocol for the whole week.
Up next
For the second time in three years, Kansas City will travel to the Big Easy to play the Eagles in the Super Bowl. They overcame a 24–14 halftime deficit in the first game, winning 38–35 thanks to a 27-yard field goal by Butker.
— AP Sports Writer Dave Skretta
