Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) - Heading into the Week 13 weekend, the Buffalo Bills had a chance to re-gain not only the lead atop the AFC East standings, but also re-gain the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC standings.
Come Sunday evening, the Bills got all they needed to re-take the lead in the AFC, and then some.
Week 13 started for the Bills with a win on "Thursday Night Football" over their division rival New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro. Buffalo was able to control the time of possession battle in the game, while also doing just enough offensively to keep the game out of reach in a 24-10 win.
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That was just Step 1 for what the Bills needed to re-gain the No. 1 seed in the conference.
Buffalo needed a pair of outcomes to go its way come Sunday afternoon in order for the team to get back atop the AFC. First, they needed the San Francisco 49ers to down the Miami Dolphins at Levi Stadium for the Bills to gain a one-game advantage in the AFC East. Buffalo then needed a win by the Cincinnati Bengals at home over the Chiefs to leap frog Kansas City for the conference lead.
While things didn't look too promising for the 49ers after giving up an early 75-yard touchdown to the Dolphins and losing quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo to a season-ending foot injury early in the first quarter, they got just enough from rookie quarterback Brock Purdy and turned the rest of the way to their stellar defense in a 33-17 win.
The 49ers defense, ranked No. 1 overall in the NFL, limited Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to 18-of-33 passing for 295 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but more importantly, they got pressure on the third-year quarterback, forcing him into some bad throws and mistakes. This included a pair of interceptions in the second half and a fumble recovery for a touchdown that put the game out of reach for Miami.
Then in Cincinnati, the Bengals were able to overcome a third quarter deficit to down the Chiefs for a third-straight time, 27-24.
After a three-yard touchdown run by quarterback Patrick Mahomes put the Chiefs up 24-17 with 3:49 remaining in the third quarter, the Bengals were able to respond with a 41-yard field goal by kicker Evan McPherson early in the fourth quarter.
Just two plays into their next drive, Mahomes connected with his favorite target Travis Kelce on a 19-yard pass, but the veteran tight end made a costly mistake by coughing up the football. Cincinnati managed to recover the loose change, and turned it around into a go-ahead touchdown drive with quarterback Joe Burrow finding running back Chris Evans for an eight-yard touchdown pass.
With 8:54 remaining in regulation, the Chiefs were able to generate a 10-play drive in 5:35, but only got as far as the Bengals' 33-yard line before a third down sack of Mahomes backed Kansas City up five yards. On the ensuing 55-yard field goal attempt from kicker Harrison Butker, he pushed his kick too far right, missing and giving Cincinnati the ball back with 3:19 to go.
The Chiefs defense then had no answers to stop Burrow and the Bengals offense, as Cincinnati chewed away at the rest of the game clock to secure a victory.
With the Bills holding the head-to-head tie-breaker with the Chiefs, it allowed them to secure the No. 1 seed in the AFC with a 9-3 record.
Up next for the Bills will be a pair of important divisional matchups at Highmark Stadium against the New York Jets this upcoming Sunday, followed by a meeting with the Dolphins in Week 15.
Speaking of the Jets, they were in Minnesota on Sunday to take on the Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium with the hopes of remaingin in striking range of the Bills and Dolphins in the AFC East.
Although the Jets offense, led by quarterback Mike White, sputtered throughout the contest, they managed to rely on their defense to keep them in the game from start-to-finish. After getting five field goals from veteran kicker Greg Zuerlein earlier in the game, the Jets finally broke through with a rushing touchdown from White to cut the deficit to 27-22 with 6:45 remaining in regulation.
However, with two more chances to take the lead after a pair of key defensive stops, the Jets failed to convert and ended up falling to 7-5 on the season. This included a fourth down drop by wide receiver Braxton Berrios, who could not keep the football from finding the turf in the end zone with 1:46 to go in the game.
The Bills and Jets will kick things off in Week 14 at 1 p.m. EST on Sunday in Orchard Park.
