What’s new is old for the AFC.
On Sunday, the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Buffalo Bills, 32–29, in another classic AFC championship game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, becoming the first team in league history to reach five Super Bowls in six years.
The Chiefs will face the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans on Feb. 9, and have the opportunity to become the first team in NFL history to win three consecutive titles in the modern Super Bowl era.
Meanwhile, the Bills are left gutted once more. Buffalo was able to go blow-for-blow with Kansas City, entering the fourth quarter with a 22–21 lead and the ball. However, Josh Allen was stuffed on fourth-and-inches at the Chiefs’ 40-yard line, turning the tide of the game.
Kansas City’s offense was led by Patrick Mahomes, who had a combined 288 total yards and three scores, including two on the ground.
Here are the key takeaways from Sunday’s game.
Kansas City is now one win away from the impossible
In the history of the NFL, only eight teams had previously had a chance to three-peat in the Super Bowl era. The Chiefs are the first to reach the Super Bowl, finding a way behind Mahomes.
Kansas City will have a tough test against Saquon Barkley and the Eagles, who hung 55 points on the Washington Commanders in the NFC title game earlier Sunday. This is a rematch of Super Bowl LVII, in which the Chiefs bested the Eagles, 38–35, in what will be remembered as the Kelce Bowl.
If the Chiefs win in two weeks, they’ll be widely regarded as the greatest team of all time. But to get it done, Kansas City will have to handle one of the league’s best, who are 17–3 including the postseason.
Josh Allen suffers another brutal loss to Kansas City
Allen has lost six playoff games in his career, and four have come at the hands of the Chiefs, including three at Arrowhead Stadium.
There’s little more Allen could have done. He didn’t turn the ball over despite fumbling three times and throwing his first two passes at Chiefs defenders. All told, Allen went 22-of-34 for 237 yards and two touchdowns while adding 39 yards on the ground.
Ultimately, the game may well be remembered for Dalton Kincaid dropping what would have been one of the all-time throws, when Allen was flushed on fourth-and-5 with less than two minutes remaining.
Travis Kelce was shut down, but the Chiefs found their other weapons
Since the trade of Tyreek Hill prior to the 2022 season, the Chiefs have largely relied on getting the ball to Travis Kelce in key spots while hoping for meager contributions from others.
On Sunday, the future first-ballot Hall of Famer caught just two of his four targets for 19 yards, but was surrounded by receivers and backs who stepped up in clutch moments.
Rookie Xavier Worthy, whom the Chiefs moved up in the draft for in a trade with Buffalo, had six catches for a game-high 85 yards, including a miraculous 26-yarder between safety Cole Bishop and corner Rasul Douglas. Additionally, JuJu Smith-Schuster only notched two receptions but totaled 60 yards, the same amount of yardage he had in his past six games combined.
Buffalo has to figure out a better strategy to stop Kansas City’s offense
In the Bills’ four postseason losses to the Chiefs in this era, there’s been a common theme. Kansas City’s offense has done whatever it wanted, never scoring fewer than 27 points, including 42, 38 and 32.
While the Bills didn’t look good on their initial two possessions, one could argue the breaking point for Buffalo’s defense was the loss of star corner Christian Benford, who left in the first quarter with a concussion. Without Benford, the Chiefs were able to relentlessly target Kaiir Elam, who has struggled since coming into the league as a first-round pick in 2022.
Going into the offseason, general manager Brandon Beane has to make some adjustments. For starters, will Beane keep Douglas or find another perimeter corner? Also, will the Bills make a splash personnel choice up front? On Sunday, Mahomes was sacked only twice, while he ran for 43 yards and two scores.
This is one of the best teams we’ve ever seen
Watch daytime television shows or look at social media, and you’ll see plenty of complaining about the Chiefs for a variety of reasons. The reality? This is one of the best teams ever assembled.
Kansas City has been coached by Andy Reid for 12 seasons. The Chiefs have made the playoffs 11 times. They have now won nine consecutive AFC West titles, reached seven consecutive conference title games, gone to five Super Bowls over the past six campaigns and won three with a chance to make it four in New Orleans.
Without question, it’s among the most accomplished decade-long runs we’ve seen in North American sports. Factor in the salary cap and free agency, first-place schedules and the reverse draft order, and it’s almost impossible to do what the Chiefs are in the process of doing.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as AFC Championship Rapid Reaction: Chiefs Are One Win Away from Historic Three-Peat.