Sure it was the regular season again, but it’s a victory
The Buffalo Bills’ 2023 season is in the books but there’s one little thing missing. Illustrations. Let’s pretend last year is an actual book, with each game a chapter. It’s up to us to find one play or “illustration” that best shows us the theme of that chapter.
Make sense? I hope so because we’re about to take a look at some plays and vote. Remember, it’s not necessarily the best play we want, it’s the one that best illustrates...
Chapter 14: Buffalo Bills at Kansas City
The anticipation going into any Buffalo Bills contest against the Kansas City Chiefs is through the roof, and this game was no different. However, this one was far from business as usual with both high-powered offenses kept under the league average in scoring. An atypical defensive battle between these teams made every point critical. The Bills squeaked out a win thanks to a very frustrated Patrick Mahomes.
A.J. Epenesa’s interception (Q1; 11:36)
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There was no single defensive stat that demonstrates how well the Bills played this game — there was simply the final score. Holding the Chiefs to 17 points overall with three scoring drives was not a unique performance in 2023 against Kansas City, but it absolutely represents a good day at the office. This turnover early on courtesy of defensive end A.J. Epenesa kept KC from scoring and was one of many key stops on the day.
Stefon Diggs incompletion (Q2; 0:53)
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One of the reasons the game was close was a lack of chemistry between quarterback Josh Allen and wide receiver Stefon Diggs. Diggs was targeted 11 times, but only managed four catches for 24 yards. The two were often close to connecting, like we see here, but sputtered. Credit the Chiefs’ defense, which forced tough throws.
Tyler Bass’ game winning field goal (Q4; 1:57)
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I believe there were a lot of critical moments for Tyler Bass from last season, and here he is again — this time with the game-winning score. Tied at 17 prior to this kick, the “celebrations” at the end of the clip speak volumes. The Chiefs had nearly two minutes and two timeouts to drive down the field and get at least three points to extend the game.
Kadarius Toney’s offensive offside (Q4; 1:25)
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This might have been the play of the year if it weren’t for Kadarius Toney being flagrantly offside. There was a lot of discussion after the game about the decision made by the refs, but everyone knew the flag was the right call.
Mahomes’ incomplete pass (Q4; 1:01)
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Look, the Toney penalty was a big one. But let’s not forget that the Chiefs had over a minute left and the penalty put them at 2nd & 15. They still had two timeouts. They had multiple chances to keep the drive alive. Failing a first down, if they managed to get some yardage they could have tried for a long field goal with a pretty good kicker on the roster. On three tries, Kansas City got nothing. Zero yards. Cue Willy Wonka...
Author’s note: Picking which incomplete pass was a lot like publicly picking a favorite child. I went with this chaos as it was closest to catastrophe but it was followed up by a tipped pass and then near perfect coverage by Buffalo. The defense showed up all game, but shined in this series.