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Bills Officially Lose Key Starter to Injury in Chiefs AFC Title Matchup

By Joe Summers

Jan 18, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; |Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) looks on during the fourth quarter of a 2025 AFC divisional round game against the Houston Texans at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
Jan 18, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; |Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) looks on during the fourth quarter of a 2025 AFC divisional round game against the Houston Texans at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
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Injuries are a key storyline as we inch closer to the AFC Championship on Sunday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. The Kansas City Chiefs are perhaps the healthiest they've been all year, giving them an advantage over the Buffalo Bills in a few key areas.

We'll get the final injury reports on Friday, though at least one key Bills starter won't be suiting up this week.

Safety Taylor Rapp, who popped up on the injury report with a hip ailment this week, reportedly will not play. Considering that Buffalo's secondary is already shaky, Rapp's absence represents a major loss.

Bills Lose Starting Safety Taylor Rapp to Injury Before AFC Championship

Rapp is far from an excellent player, ranking 117th out of 170 qualified safeties at Pro Football Focus (PFF), but he's still the starter. He notched 82 tackles, six deflected passes, and a pair of interceptions during the regular season, adding another pick in the Divisional Round win over the Baltimore Ravens.

While Rapp surrendered a 68.8% completion percentage and 109.7 passer rating when targeted in coverage, he's still a leader on the defense. Second-round rookie Cole Bishop will now presumably be the starter and he's even worse than Rapp at this stage, grading 150th at PFF.

This is an opportunity for Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Xavier Worthy to capaitalize on. Buffalo was 22nd in the NFL in opponent yards per pass play (6.8) even with their starters, so Mahomes should have every chance to attack down the field.

Kansas City's offense was sluggish against the Houston Texans' ferocious defensive front. The Bills are considerably worse defensively, making this a situation that the Chiefs should comfortably approach 30 points or more.

There's no question which team is healthier overall entering Sunday. Kansas City is a 1.5-point favorite at FanDuel Sportsbook with -122 odds on the moneyline but based on Rapp's absence, perhaps those odds will prove to be a steal.

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