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The Buffalo Bills will once again take on the Kansas City Chiefs in the NFL Playoffs, this time in the 2025 AFC Championship. The two franchises have met in the postseason now four out of the last five years, with Patrick Mahomes’ team getting the better of Josh Allen’s squad in all three matchups so far. The Bills are trying to get to their first Super Bowl since 1994. With two more wins, Buffalo would hoist its first Lombardi trophy ever.
Josh Allen enters this matchup as one of the frontrunners for MVP. The Bills leader under center had his best year statically of his career, posting the second-highest QBR in the league at 77.3. Through two postseason games, Allen has thrown for 399 total yards, rushed for 66 yards, and scored four touchdowns. Buffalo’s offense will ultimately need to be prolific against a Kansas City Chiefs defense that only allowed 19.2 points per game during the regular season.
However, what happens on the other side of the field is even more important heading into this matchup. Because, the Chiefs’ offense and Bills’ defense have both struggled at times during 2024 but appear to be playing their best football when it matters most.
Also, the past three straight elimination losses for the Bills against their AFC foe have been mainly due to their defense getting gashed by Patrick Mahomes and company. But that didn’t happen in Buffalo’s home win against Kansas City during the regular season. And there’s a certain linebacker who caused chaos against the Chiefs on offense during week 11 and is the X-factor for Sunday’s game.
The 25-year-old X-factor can be unassuming at times. Bernard recorded 104 total tackles this season, with one sack, two interceptions, and 13 tackles for loss. However, the ex-Baylor linebacker’s presence, particularly in pass coverage, is critical for this game.
Even though Travis Kelce had the lowest receiving yard total of his career in 2024, the superstar tight end had a monster performance in Kansas City’s win over the Houston Texans. Kelce caught seven passes for 117 yards and a touchdown. This was the all-time great tight end’s best performance of the season as he added another legendary playoff showing to his resume.
Buffalo’s ability to disrupt the Kelce-Mahomes connection is critical in this contest. And this need seems like a big concern for the Bills, considering their defense gives up 226.1 passing yards a game, which ranks 24th in the NFL. In addition, when the Chiefs eliminated the Bills in the Divisional Round last season, Kelce had seven receptions for 75 yards and two touchdowns.
However, if the regular season is any indication, the Bills held the legendary tight end to just eight yards on November 17. Bernard was all over the field, recording eight tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss, one pass defended, and one interception.
The Chiefs scored only 21 points in a game that Buffalo was predominately...
