On Sunday night, everything looked so familiar at Arrowhead Stadium: Patrick Mahomes hoisting the AFC championship trophy as confetti rained down, Andy Reid hugging Chiefs owner Clark Hunt, and Travis Kelce kissing Taylor Swift before grabbing the mic and imploring fans to party the night away once more.
The two-time defending Super Bowl winners had earned the opportunity for an unprecedented three-peat.
And once again, they had passed over the Buffalo Bills on the way.
This time, it was Mahomes’ arm and legs — 245 yards passing and a touchdown, two more rushing — plus some big stops by the Kansas City defense that helped the Chiefs defeat the Bills 32-29 in the AFC Championship Game.
“It’s just so hard to get to the Super Bowl and I don’t take it for granted, and to do it again at Arrowhead Stadium was special,” Mahomes told reporters afterwards. “You get that trophy on that stage and you look around here and there’s not an empty seat — it’s special.”
The Chiefs will face a familiar rival in the big game: the Eagles, whom they defeated for the crown two years ago. Philadelphia defeated the Commanders 55-23 earlier Sunday, earning a crack at the championship on February 9 in New Orleans.
The Chiefs have eliminated the Bills from the playoffs for the fourth time since January 2021. And, like the others, it came after a heavyweight fight between two of the AFC’s best teams, one that was tied 29-all after Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen found Curtis Samuel in the back of the end zone, setting up some more drama in the conference championship game.
Mahomes was simply unflappable, however. On the next series, he completed four consecutive throws, setting up Harrison Butker’s game-winning field goal with 3:33 remaining and putting the Bills in yet another do-or-die situation in Kansas City.
Allen started their drive by running for a first down, but his next two throws were blocked at the line of scrimmage. He connected Amari Cooper for a short gain on third down, and the Bills decided to go for it — they were 4 for 5 on fourth downs at the time — and the Kansas City blitz forced Allen to loft a prayer that Dalton Kincaid was unable to catch far downfield.
The Chiefs took over, got a couple of first downs, and began to cheer once more.
“I’ve always emphasized that it’s not about one individual. It’s not just a few guys. “It’s about the entire team,” Mahomes explained. “We needed the defense to make stops, and they did. Offense, we made plays. That is why we are so unique.”
Kareem Hunt had a touchdown run, and Xavier Worthy had six catches for 85 yards and a touchdown for Kansas City, which became only the fourth franchise to win at least three consecutive Super Bowls with its ninth playoff victory.
“Every one of these is so special,” said Clark Hunt, whose father Lamar’s name appears on the AFC championship trophy. “What a game today. Travis, Patrick, and their teammates are always able to complete their tasks. That was true all year. And it’s a compliment to Coach Reid and his wonderful staff. We now have the opportunity to achieve something unprecedented.
Buffalo’s Allen threw for 237 yards and two touchdowns, while James Cook rushed for 85 yards and two touchdowns.
Nonetheless, the Bills have not been to the Super Bowl since a four-year streak from 1990 to 1993.
“I told them they had nothing to be ashamed of,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “And I love them.”
The Bills and Chiefs have gotten well acquainted over the years, having met eight times since Kansas City defeated Buffalo in the AFC title game at Arrowhead Stadium to advance to the Super Bowl in January 2021.
Buffalo has won all four games of the regular season. Kansas City has won the four most important postseason games.
All of that familiarity, combined with the fact that McDermott previously worked for Reid, was clear throughout the game. The Bills refused to let Kelce beat them, as he did against the Texans in the divisional round, and Kansas City did everything it could to block Allen from beating him with his legs — or arm, for that matter.
The Chiefs led 21-16 at halftime.
As the teams traded leads, Mahomes and Kareem Hunt ran for touchdowns and Worthy caught one. Cook scored for Buffalo, and Mack Hollins made a beautiful touchdown reception shortly before halftime to keep the Bills in the game.
In the second half, it remained a game of inches: Cook barely crossed the goal line for a touchdown, the Chiefs stopped Allen inches shy of the marker on fourth down, Mahomes bulldozed into the end zone for a score, and the Bills responded with a 70-yard drive in which their MVP-candidate quarterback connected with Samuel on fourth-and-goal to tie the game at 29-all.
Fifty-three minutes and 45 seconds had been rendered ineffective. Everything came down to the final 6:15 of the game.
“That’s football, you understand. The loss hurts. That’s what distinguishes this game,” Bills pass rusher Von Miller said. “We did all within our power to win. And we just ran out of time.”
Injuries
Christian Benford, a Bills cornerback, was taken off in the first quarter and diagnosed with a concussion. He spent the week in the concussion protocol before being cleared to play Sunday.
The Chiefs are returning to the Big Easy to face the Eagles in the Super Bowl for the second time in three years. In the first game, they came from a 24-14 halftime deficit to win 38-35 on Butker’s 27-yard.
