The Chiefs and Bills are ready to go at it again.
The NFL season is down to four teams battling it out for the Super Bowl, including the matchup that everyone had been waiting for in the AFC Championship Game. The Kansas City Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills will go at it in the playoffs for the fourth time in five seasons, this time with a trip to the big game on the line.
Of course, these two teams are incredibly familiar with each other. They have played almost two times per season during this decade, so there will be no secrets when the ball is kicked on Sunday night. Before the game, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid talked about the rivalry between the two teams, via ESPN’s Michele Steele.
“I feel like we play these guys all the time. So they know us, we know them,” Reid said, per Steele.
The two teams played earlier this season in Buffalo, with the Bills taking home a 30-21 win to end the Chiefs’ undefeated season. That as the only game that the Chiefs lost this season when Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the key players were in the lineup. Buffalo will be looking to replicate that on Sunday, but it will be a much more difficult task on the road and with the mental block of the playoffs in their head.
Who is the key for the Chiefs against the Bills?
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The Chiefs will need to score some points on Sunday in order to take down the explosive Bills, so Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce will have to show up like usual. However, the stops that they do or don’t get may be even more important.
As a result, the Chiefs absolutely need defensive tackle Chris Jones to have a huge day on Sunday in order to get a win. Jones getting pressure from both the interior and on the outside will be very important in creating some of the negative plays that can put the Bills behind the chains and stall some of their drives.
First and foremost, Jones needs to be great against the run, which is an area that he struggles in at times. The Bills won’t hesitate to pound the rock between the tackles over and over and drain the clock while marching down the field, but a big day from Jones can help prevent that.
In the passing game, Jones will be key at getting pressure in the face of Josh Allen and preventing him from escaping up through the middle of the pocket. If Jones can keep Allen contained, prevent some of those back breaking scrambles, and even create a sack or two to set the Bills back, he can be the driving force behind a Chiefs victory on Sunday.