Orchard Park, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - For a fifth-straight year, the Buffalo Bills hold off the Kansas City Chiefs in the regular season with a 28-21 win at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park.
The Bills' opening drive saw a mixture of both James Cook and Khalil Shakir getting involved offensively, before quarterback Josh Allen found tight end Dalton Kincaid wide-open for a 23-yard touchdown pass. The first drive was able to take seven minutes off the clock and give the Bills a quick 7-0 lead.
After forcing a three-and-out of the Chiefs on their opening drive, the Bills were stymied on their next drive, failing to convert on a fourth down attempt just inside Kansas City territory.
The Chiefs took advantage of the shorter field position, and managed to find the end zone for the first time to tie the game. As the second quarter got started, Rashee Rice took a direct snap and walked in, untouched for a touchdown.
After a quick three-and-out by the Bills, the Chiefs took the ball and drove back into field goal range, only for the Buffalo defense to make a stop on third down. Kansas City then took the lead with a 46-yard field goal by Harrison Butker with 9:27 left in the half.
On Buffalo's next drive, Allen was able to connect, once again, with Kincaid, this time on a 47-yard pass play to get the Bills inside the Chiefs' 10-yard line. Two plays later, running back Ty Johnson was able to find the endzone for the first time this season, putting the Bills back in front, 14-10.
The Chiefs managed to get back into Buffalo territory on their next drive, but a massive fourth down stop by safety Cole Bishop helped get the Bills the ball back with 4:15 remaining in the second quarter.
Allen was able to take advantage of the turnover on downs by connecting with another one of his tight ends, this time with a 30-yard pass to Dawson Knox to get the Bills to the 3-yard line.
Two plays later, it was Allen sneaking the ball in himself for another touchdown.
With the touchdown, Allen set an NFL record with the most games (47) with, at least, a passing and rushing touchdown.
The Chiefs wasted little time getting down the field with a pair of long passes to tight end Travis Kelce and wide receiver Hollywood Brown, setting themselves up at the Bills' 1-yard line with 20 seconds left in the half.
However, the Buffalo defense locked it down and only allowed the Chiefs to get a chip-shot field goal from Butker to take a 21-13 lead into halftime.
The Bills defense opened the second half by forcing a pair of punts, which included a third-down sack on the second Kansas City drive by Michael Hoecht and Greg Rousseau.
Just before the end of the third quarter, Allen and the offense sliced-and-diced through the Chiefs defense on two deep passes to Shakir and Elijah Moore, getting down to the Kansas City 10-yard line.
The Bills capped off the drive three plays later, as Allen, once again, used his legs with a little help from O'Cyrus Torrence pushing him across the goal line for his second rushing touchdown of the game.
As the game bled into the fourth quarter, the Chiefs were able to convert a pair of long yardage situations, including a 4th-and-17 to get into scoring position once again.
Eventually, running back Kareem Hunt was able to pound the football into the end zone, cutting into the Bills' lead. A successful two-point conversion attempt then trimmed Kansas City's deficit to just seven points with 11:32 still remaining in the game.
That Kansas City drive saw the Bills take another huge loss on defense to injury, as Hoecht hobbled to the sideline and was quickly ruled out of the game with an Achilles injury.
After forcing a Bills punt, the Chiefs looked to move the ball down the field and try to tie the contest. However, facing a 3rd-and-10 at their own 23-yard line and pressure in his vicinity, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes tossed a deep pass into double coverage, where it was intercepted by rookie cornerback Max Hairston. It was the first career interception for Hairston.
It became a strategy game for the Bills, at that point, by trying to trim as much clock as possible and force Kansas City to burn all three of their timeouts.
After the Buffalo offense stalled at the Chiefs' 34-yard line, kicker Matt Prater was called upon to attempt a 52-yard field goal to officially put the game out of reach. However, his kick hit the right upright, giving the ball back to Kansas City with 27 seconds remaining.
With no timeouts little time to work with, the Chiefs only advanced as far as the Buffalo 40-yard line before three-straight incompletions from Mahomes put a cap on a 28-21 victory for the Bills.
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SCORING RECAP
First Quarter:
- 7-0 BUFFALO: Bills Touchdown (8:00): Josh Allen tosses a 23-yard touchdown pass to Dalton Kincaid. (Matt Prater's extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 11 play, 84 yards, 7:00
Second Quarter:
- 7-7 TIE: Chiefs Touchdown (14:56): Rashee Rice takes a direct snap and walks in untouched for a 3-yard touchdown run. (Harrison Butker's extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 7 plays, 52 yards. 4:21
- 10-7 KANSAS CITY: Chiefs Field Goal (9:27): Harrison Butker's 46-yard field goal attempt is good.
Drive info: 7 plays, 36 yards, 3:20
- 14-10 BUFFALO: Bills Touchdown (6:39): Ty Johnson finds a hole and finds the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown run. (Matt Prater's extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 5 plays, 70 yards, 2:48
- 21-10 BUFFALO: Bills Touchdown (1:33): Josh Allen quarterback sneaks it in for a 1-yard touchdown run. (Matt Prater's extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 7 plays, 60 yards, 2:39
- 21-13 BUFFALO: Chiefs Field Goal (0:03): Harrison Butker's 19-yard field goal attempt is good.
Drive info: 7 plays, 66 yards, 1:30
Third Quarter:
- 28-13 BUFFALO: Bills Touchdown (1:34): Josh Allen sneaks the football to the left for a 1-yard touchdown. (Matt Prater's extra point attempt is good)
Drive info: 8 plays, 74 yards, 3:57
Fourth Quarter:
- 28-21 BUFFALO: Chiefs Touchdown (11:32): Kareem Hunt rumbles his way into the end zone for a 2-yard touchdown run. (Kansas City's two-point conversion attempt is successful)
Drive info: 11 plays, 66 yards, 5:02
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SKYWORKS EQUIPMENT RENTAL STATS OF THE GAME:
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What's next:
The Bills head on the road for the second matchup of the season with the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium. Kickoff in South Florida is set for 1 p.m. on the official voice of the Bills - WGR Sports Radio 550.