The Kansas City Chiefs came into Sunday’s showdown with the Buffalo Bills winners of five of their past six games and three straight. But the Bills were able to earn the upper hand as the hosts, giving the Chiefs a 28-21 loss at Highmark Stadium ahead of their upcoming bye week.
The loss against one of the elite teams in the AFC is deflating, and it goes without saying that the Chiefs will probably have to beat the Bills if they want to get back to the Super Bowl. The latest defeat also stings, considering the Week 9 results as the Chiefs tumbled all the way down to the eight-seed after wins by the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Chargers, and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Chiefs Watch AFC Rivals Battle as Broncos, Chargers, Jaguars Earn Wins
The Chiefs' afternoon got off to a rough start before they even kicked off in Orchard Park, as the Denver Broncos battled the Houston Texans. Facing a 15-7 deficit entering the fourth quarter, quarterback Bo Nix cut into the lead with a 27-yard touchdown pass to running back R.J. Harvey and tied the game with a successful two-point conversion pass to wideout Troy Franklin to tie the game at 15.
After both teams exchanged punts on seven straight drives, Nix led a six-play, 48-yard drive highlighted by a 25-yard scramble to set up a game-winning, 34-yard field goal by Wil Lutz to give the Broncos an 18-15 victory.
While the Broncos were making their comeback, the Chargers had an expected result against the Tennessee Titans. While the Titans took a 14-7 lead on a 67-yard punt return for a touchdown by Chimere Dike with 2:55 left in the first quarter, the Chargers outscored Tennessee 13-3 in the second quarter to take a 20-17 lead into the half. A Justin Herbert rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter effectively sealed the game, and Los Angeles walked away with a 27-20 victory.
The final domino happened in Las Vegas as the Jacksonville Jaguars battled the Raiders. Despite the Raiders entering the game with a 2-5 record, the Jaguars were in for a fight as both teams combined for 31 points in the fourth quarter. Trevor Lawrence ran for a touchdown to give Jacksonville a 30-23 lead in overtime, but Geno Smith’s touchdown pass to Brock Bowers with 16 seconds remaining made things interesting before a failed two-point conversion gave the Jaguars a 30-29 victory.
Chiefs Take Major AFC Hit as Broncos, Chargers & Jaguars All Win
The trio of unfortunate results, combined with the Chiefs' loss in Buffalo, spelled disaster in the AFC standings. The Broncos' win helped them improve to 7-2 and gave them a two-game lead in the division two weeks before the two teams clash in Denver on Nov. 16. The Chargers also broke a deadlock with the Chiefs in the division but also own a game in hand thanks to their Week 1 victory over Kansas City in Brazil.
The Jaguars improved to 5-3 and jumped ahead of the Chiefs in the AFC standings, and also have a tiebreaker after a win over Kansas City in Week 5. QB Patrick Mahomes said after that loss that the Chiefs had “lost too many games already,” and the latest loss would have the Chiefs watching the playoffs from home if they started today.
The good news is that the Chiefs have nine games to go and were a team on the rise before Sunday’s setback against the Bills. With two games left against the Broncos and another game against the Chargers, Kansas City has the chance to make up for lost time and perhaps put a bad week in the past by the time the playoffs roll around.