Were you expecting more than a thriller from this AFC Championship game between these fierce rivals?
The Kansas City Chiefs held off the Buffalo Bills for a thrilling 32-29 victory in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday night at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
If the Chiefs can defeat the Philadelphia Eagles again, they will be challenging NFL history as they could become the first team in history to win three consecutive Super Bowls.
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In the 2022 season, the Chiefs defeated the Eagles 38-35 in Super Bowl LII in Arizona.
Josh Allen's Bills, meanwhile, are 0-4 against the Chiefs in the postseason despite suffering one of two losses during the 2024 regular season.
But Buffalo's offense found itself exactly 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 Harrison Butker made a field goal that cracked the uprights for a 32-29 lead.
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, 15, runs for a touchdown during the first half of the AFC Championship game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday in Kansas City, Missouri, Jan. 26, 2025. . (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Allen, who has been in the clutch all season, had a chance to at least tie the game, or even nail the game-clinching touchdown drive with 3:33 left in the fourth quarter.
But Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo dialed up the perfect play call on consecutive plays, sending an all-out attack from a third-and-10 from the Buffalo 42-yard line. That gave Amari Cooper a 5-yard gain, and Allen and the Bills had gains of 4 and 5 yards.
Another blitz was then called, but the cornerbacks were sent into the pocket after the Chiefs disguised it with both linebackers at the line of scrimmage and instead returned to the coverage area.
Allen sent a prayer to the middle of the field and tight end Dalton Kincaid had a chance to create a chance, but the ball hit his chest and bounced off to the turf.
That was after the two-minute warning, and Mahomes and the entire Chiefs sideline knew they needed a couple of first downs to end the game. In typical Chiefs fashion, Isaiah Pacheco made a 10-yard catch for a first down and Samaje Perine gained 17 yards with 1:35 left to get what he needed without taking a timeout. Ta. Seal victory.
The celebrations began after the Chiefs' victory, which was a thrilling and hard-fought game right from the start.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) celebrates a 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 , Sunday, January 26, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Mahomes and the Chiefs took control from the first possession of the game, going 90 yards in just nine plays before Kareem Hunt scored on the ground from 12 yards out to take an early lead.
But the game was a back-and-forth affair, with Allen taking the lead early in the second quarter after a 10-play, 72-yard drive capped by a 6-yard rush by James Cook. Ta.
But the Chiefs ended the first half with back-to-back touchdown drives and responded with 14 unanswered points to take their largest lead of the game. Rookie Xavier Worthy found the end zone again from 11 yards out, and Mahomes himself scrambled with 1 yard left to make it 21-10.
But Buffalo wasn't going to win without a fight, as Mack Hollins took a beautifully thrown deep ball from Allen for a 34-yard touchdown, cutting the lead to 21-16 before halftime.
The Bills would eventually regain the lead in the second half after Cook scored his second touchdown of the game, but it would be his fourth and goal, and Cook would jump over a Chiefs defender and put his arms around the goal line. I needed to stick it out. The match was 22-21.
But perhaps the game's biggest turning point came on the Bills' next drive, when they forced the Chiefs to punt. On a fourth-and-1 from Kansas City's own 41-yard line, the Bills elected to go ahead with 13:01 left in the fourth quarter. Allen made a quarterback sneak that a replay review determined was just short of the gain line, giving the Chiefs the ball with great field position to get the ball back.
Mahomes didn't waste the chance, getting downfield in just five plays for another rushing score to make it 29-22.
As if the suspense wasn't enough, on the ensuing drive, the Bills found themselves at the Chiefs' 4-yard line after Allen once again fired a 32-yard pass to Hollins deep downfield. On fourth and goal, Curtis Samuel broke out of coverage and stayed two feet into the end zone for a touchdown to tie the game again.
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These two AFC giants traded blows, but the winner remained the same, and the rematch is scheduled to be seen on February 9 in New Orleans on Fox and exclusively free streaming on Tubi.
Will the Chiefs 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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