KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 245 yards and a touchdown, ran through the Buffalo defense for 2 more scores and relied on his defense in key moments to assist the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Bills 32-29 beat Sunday night and reach the Super Bowl for the third straight season.
Now the AFC champions will attempt to do something no other NFL team has done: win all three.
The Chiefs can have a well-recognized foe within the Eagles, who they beat two years ago for his or her first title on this run. Philadelphia is coming off a 55-23 win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday, Feb. 9 in New Orleans on the Champs.
It is the fourth time since January 2021 that the Chiefs have ended the Bills' season within the playoffs. And like all of the others, it got here after a heavyweight battle between two of the highest teams within the AFC that scored 29-all after Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen lined up Curtis Samuel at the back of the top zone so as to add slightly more drama at Arrowhead Stadium.
However, Mahomes was simply unflappable. He accomplished 4 consecutive passes on the next possession, establishing Harrison Butker's go-ahead field goal with 3:33 left, putting the Bills in one other Kansas City door-stie situation.
Allen began their drive by running down first, but his next two throws were contested at the road of scrimmage and fell incomplete. He hit Amari Cooper for a brief gain to 3rd, and the Bills went for it – they were 4 of 5 catching at that time.
The Chiefs took over, picked up just a few first downs and commenced celebrating again.
Kareem Hunt had a touchdown run and Xavier Worthy had six catches for 85 yards and a rating for Kansas City, which became the fourth franchise to succeed in three consecutive Super Bowls with its ninth straight playoff victory.
Allen threw for 237 yards and two scores for Buffalo. James Cook ran for 85 yards and two touchdowns of his own.
The Bills haven’t been to the Super Bowl since a run of 4 in 1990-93.
The Bills and Chiefs have change into well acquainted through the years, meeting seven times since Kansas City Buffalo reached the Super Bowl under the identical circumstances – the AFC title game at Arrowhead Stadium – in January 2021.
Buffalo had won all 4 games within the regular season. Kansas City had won the three that mattered within the postseason.
And that familiarity, together with the undeniable fact that Bills coach Sean McDermott once worked for Chiefs counterpart Andy Reid, was evident within the context of the sport. The Bills simply refused to let the Chiefs, who beat Travis Kelce closely with them, do as they did against the Texans within the divisional round, while Kansas City was prepared for Allen's proclivity to take off and run.
It was the Chiefs who took a 21-16 lead into the locker room after a topsy-turvy first half.
Mahomes and Hunt competed for points and Worthy had a touchdown reception because the teams traded the lead. Cook reached the top zone for Buffalo, and a spectacular touchdown catch by Mack Hollins just before halftime kept the Bills in the sport.
It remained a matter of inches within the second half. A 70-yard drive wherein their MVP-candidate quarterback Samuel scored on fourth-and-goal to tie the sport at 29.
Fifty-three minutes and 45 seconds had been motivated. It all got here right down to the ultimate 6:45 of the sport.
Originally published:
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