Orchard Park, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - The Buffalo Bills improved to 9-2 on the season, their best start since 1992, with a 30-21 victory over the Chiefs, and in the process, handed Kansas City its first loss of the 2024 season.
Here are my Arrows Up and Arrows Down from the contest, starting with Up for the sixth-straight time after the Bills' sixth-straight win:
ARROW UP:
QB - Josh Allen
Allen put on an MVP-like performance on Sunday, completing 27-of-40 pass attempts (67.5%) for 262 yards and a touchdown. He also ran 12 times for 55 yards and another touchdown, giving him 317 yards of offense and responsible for two scores.
The 4th-and-2 run
When the Bills absolutely had to make a play on a 4th-and-2 with just 2:27 left in the game, Allen called his own number, running forward and not only gaining a first down, but then deciding to take it all the way to the end zone.
Allen even broke several tackles on his way to the end zone. It was a classic Allen run that, essentially, sealed the game.
Sean McDermott going for it on 4th-and-2
That run doesn’t happen without McDermott deciding to go for it on that fourth down instead of attempting a field goal to put the Bills up by five points.
The Bills head coach was aggressive all day, and that call proved vital to the outcome.
LB - Terrel Bernard
What a difference it was for the Bills to have Bernard healthy and playing in this game versus last postseason when he was injured and wasn’t available.
Bernard was one of the best players on the field all afternoon, collecting a team-high eight total tackles, including a huge sack early in the game. He also had another quarterback hit, a pass breakup, and then the game-sealing interception on the Chiefs' final drive.
WR - Amari Cooper
Cooper made two fantastic catches on beautifully thrown balls by Allen. One on the very first drive with his injured left hand, and another over his right shoulder to set up another touchdown.
WR - Curtis Samuel
Samuel finally got involved in the offense, and made some critical plays, including scoring his first touchdown in a Bills uniform, a 12-yard pass, catch, and run.
He finished the contest with five catches for 58 yards and the touchdown.
WR - Khalil Shakir
Shakir was the game’s leading receiver with eight catches for 70 yards. He was big in critical situations when needed, as usual.
RT - Ryan Van Demark
Van Demark made his first start in the NFL, and filled in for the injured Spencer Brown real nicely, helping keep Allen clean in the pocket throughout the game.
Prior to Sunday, Van Demark played 75 total offensive snaps through his three-year NFL career.
Third down offense
The Bills were a terrific 9-for-15 (60%) on the day on third down, with several of them being long yardage conversions.
DB - Cam Lewis
Lewis made several critical plays on Sunday.
The first came on special teams to get off a block and tackle the punt returner at the 14-yard line after the Chiefs had set it up to try and get a big return with an extra blocker.
Another came when he tackled Travis Kelce in the open field for a gain of only six when the Chiefs tight end had a lot more turf in front of him.
Lewis also made another open field tackle on the Chiefs' final drive, followed by a big pass breakup.
Start and end with interceptions
The Bills defense started this game by intercepting Patrick Mahomes on the Chiefs' second offensive play, Mahomes' first pass. Pressure forced him to make an errant throw, and Taylor Rapp did a great job on the back-end to be there.
Then Bernard sealed the game late with his pick on a 4th-and-13.
It’s the 13th-straight game the Bills have forced a turnover.
Defense on Travis Kelce
The Chiefs tight end finished the game with only two catches for just eight yards. That’s an absolutely terrific job by the Bills defense not letting him impact the game.
Final drive of first half
Down 14-13, the Bills got the ball with 2:51 remaining in the first half. They did a great job to march down the field and take every second off the clock before kicking a 33-yard field goal to take the 16-14 lead on the final play of the half.
They never trailed again after that.
Close out drive
The Chiefs cut the lead to two points with 7:53 left in the game. The Bills needed a long drive, but also needed points.
They got both in a big way, going 70 yards in 12 plays, taking 5:36 off the clock, and scoring a touchdown to go up two scores.
The Bills converted two third downs and a fourth down (the Allen touchdown) on that drive as well.
30 points scored
The Chiefs came into this game allowing only 17.9 points per-contest, good for fifth in the NFL. The Bills offense scored 30 points on them.
It was the first time the Chiefs have surrendered more than 28 points over their last 39 contests, an NFL record.
Red zone offense
The Bills were inside the Chiefs' 20-yard line four different times. They scored three touchdowns (75%).
Defensive line pressure
The Bills' defensive line impacted Mahomes pretty regularly. They did a great job to force him off his spot, and even make some errant throws.
Overall, the Bills defense was credited with two sacks and seven quarterback hits, five of which came from defensive linemen.
P - Sam Martin
Martin continues to have an outstanding season when it comes to pinning opponents deep.
In this one, he punted three times, and Kansas City’s starting field position after those punts were their own 12-, 20-, and 14-yard lines.
PR - Brandon Codrington
Codrington, once again, almost took one to the house, but was tackled by the last man who could do it. He made good decisions and saved the Bills plenty of yardage on drive starts by returning four punts for 56 yards.
Following three of the four punts Codrington returned, the Bills' drive starts were their own 40-yard line, the Chiefs' 41-yard line, and their own 33-yard line.
Penalties
The Bills were called for just three penalties for 24 yards.
ARROW DOWN:
Tyler Bass' extra point miss
Bass missed the first extra point of the contest, only giving the Bills a six-point lead instead of seven, which loomed very large throughout the contest.
Running game
The Bills ran the ball 31 times for 104 yards, but they only averaged 3.4 yards per-carry. Buffalo’s running backs carried 19 times for 49 yards, an average of just 2.58 yards per-run.
Sean McDermott’s first fourth down decision
I loved McDermott's aggressiveness overall, but felt he was too aggressive when the Bills faced a 4th-and-2 from the Chiefs' 34-yard line up 13-7 in the second quarter.
Understandably, he may have been worried about a missed field goal attempt. Instead, Allen and Dawson Knox were not on the same page, and it turned into an interception that ultimately set the Chiefs up for their second touchdown.
Letting Xavier Worthy behind the defense a couple times
The Bills were very fortunate that Worthy did not get both feet in bounds on a long pass play from Mahomes.
He did, however, grab a 31-yarder in the first quarter, and finished with four catches for 61 yards and a touchdown.
Red zone defense
The Chiefs converted each of their three trips inside the Bills' 20-yard line into touchdowns.
Related
