While the Chiefs reach the American Conference finals for the sixth consecutive year next week, the Bills experience another bitter disappointment. This team, always plagued by bad luck, seems doomed for eternity.
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Teams across the NFL have to be worried. Even in the midst of an ordinary season measured for its excellence, the Chiefs were still one win away from the Super Bowl thanks to a 27-24 victory in Buffalo.
Chapter 7 of the rivalry between quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen delivered once again. The battle was fierce from start to finish and the lead changed hands five times. Another great vintage!
Although the two rivals played their usual spectacular games, it was the ground game that prevailed: the Chiefs gained 146 yards rushing, compared to 182 yards for the Bills. The Chiefs excelled at managing no fewer than eight plays of 20 yards or more…compared to zero for the Bills.
For the fourth time in a row, the game between the two rivals was decided by one possession. It was as exciting as can be, from the action on the field to Jason Kelce in his locker room cheering on his brother, who scored two touchdowns on five receptions. We bet the Eagles center had three times as many beers, but that's another story.
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Another missed punt
Back to the Bills: Fans can choose to see the glass half full by telling themselves that their 6-6 record a few weeks ago didn't even suggest a playoff berth.
This team was able to regroup and win its share of one-on-one games against big opponents.
The glass is half empty, however, as this team seems doomed to even come close.
The 1990s saw four straight Super Bowl losses, including Scott Norwood's famous missed field goal against the Giants.
There have been other heartbreaking losses in recent years, including two years ago when they thought they had finished off the Chiefs with 13 seconds left before being defeated in overtime.
Then, this time against the Chiefs, it was another shot too far right from 44 yards by Tyler Bass that ended their hopes. Like an old nightmare reborn to better track the proven Bills Mafia.
Missed opportunities
Apparently Bass is the poor, easy scapegoat. He didn't get the job done, but the Bills have lost this game at other times, too.
Receiver Stefon Diggs didn't make any big offensive plays and wasn't able to control a great bomb from Josh Allen late in the game. The same goes for Trent Sherfield. Diggs, clearly identified as the number one receiver, had just 63 yards in the Bills' last three playoff losses. It disappears too often and we need to find a better option.
The same Allen, who completed 26 of 39 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown (plus two rushing touchdowns), missed Khalil Shakir's opener in the end zone. He says his blocker Dion Dawkins being pushed by Chris Jones hindered his momentum, but still…
And what about the completely botched punt attempt that resulted in the Bills losing the ball?
It's questionable whether head coach Sean McDermott has squeezed as much juice as possible out of this team's lemon and whether a move would be beneficial. However, you have to remember that he did a good job in a defense riddled with injuries. That too has to be taken into account.
One wonders if this will one day be the year of the Bills. Every window closes sooner or later. With a Josh Allen on board, there's no reason to think about blowing everything up. This team will remain competitive as long as he is there, but changes need to be made.
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History repeats itself
In the 1990s, the Bills had a great team that had the misfortune of playing in the Super Bowl twice against one of the best teams of all time, the Cowboys.
In recent years, the Chiefs, another great team, have stood in the way of the Bills in the playoffs three times, dashing their hopes.
Bills fans have endured years of misery and now that they've been successful again for a few years, it's Mahomes and his gang who are poisoning their existence.
In the end, we will believe that the bills are indeed cursed for life.
THE 3 STARS OF THE GAME
Patrick Mahomes
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In his first playoff game on the road, Patrick Mahomes was undaunted by the hostile environment in Buffalo, missing just six of his 23 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns.
Josh Allen
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If Diggs and Scherfield make the big plays, we'd be talking about a near-perfect matchup for Allen. He also led his team on the ground with 72 yards. Against a defense the caliber of the Chiefs, he did what was necessary.
Travis Kelce
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The Chiefs tight end hadn't scored a touchdown since Nov. 20 and was Mahomes' preferred target with two touchdowns. The pair has 16 career playoff touchdowns, an all-time high for a quarterback and receiver duo.