Buffalo Bills at Kansas City Chiefs Recap: Chiefs treat their fans to sublime torture on Halloween Sunday
Kansas City Chiefs fans left Arrowhead on Sunday with the knowledge that their team improved their record to 5-2 with another home win & now have a firm grip on first place in the AFC West. However, the road the Chiefs took to that conclusion left its fans dazed, confused & mentally exhausted from a roller coaster ride worthy of anything Six Flags has to offer.
The game began with a slow pace then slowed down & slowed down some more. The first eight possessions by both teams ended with seven punts & a turnover on downs, that being a sack of Matt Cassel by the Bills on a fourth & one from Buffalo's 19 yard-line. Now this was scintillating NFL action well worth the price of admission. Or not. Finally the Chiefs put together a six play, 71 yard scoring drive led by Jamaal Charles who gained 68 of the 71 yards himself on three rushes & a catch. On the sixth play Cassel tossed a one yard touchdown pass to Dwayne Bowe to give KC a 7-0 lead & provide the games first points with 1:28 remaining in the first half. Buffalo, fittingly, ended the half with a failed attempt on fourth down. Surely the second half would prove at least to be more entertaining, right? Or not.
The only points added to the scoreboard in the third quarter came on a Bills field goal which capped a 15 play, 56 yard drive that chewed up nearly nine minutes of game time to make the score 7-3. The Chiefs, continuing with their impressive ability to run the ball effectively without much of a passing game, countered with a field goal of their own following a 12 play, 59 yard drive that consumed over seven minutes of the clock & pushed the score to 10-3. This brand of football by both teams was run oriented, slow, methodical & deliberate. Sounds exciting doesn't it? Buffalo got the ball back with less than ten minutes remaining in the game & embarked on the longest drive of the game by either team, this one a 15 play, 83 yard masterwork highlighted by a four yard touchdown pass from Ryan Fitzpatrick to Steve Johnson to tie the contest at 10-10 with only 2:18 left. Yet another NFL game all set for a fantastic finish right? Or not. In the final two minutes of the game each team had one possession with a chance to put away the victory. KC went three & out & punted. Buffalo ran three plays for 11 yards then Fitzpatrick threw an interception to Eric Berry, his second of the season. Since neither team captured the flag in regulation this sizzling contest proceeded to overtime.
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The OT began with an exchange of punts by each team. The fun never stops! Next Buffalo crafted a nine play, 56 yard drive that setup Ryan Lindell with a 53 yard game winning field goal which he made to give the Bills their first victory of the season. Or not. Turns out Todd Haley brilliantly called timeout a fraction of a second prior to the snap. Armed with a second chance at redemption Lindell hit a low liner that bounced off the bottom of the upright. Whereupon Kansas City took seven plays to travel 36 yards to setup Ryan Succop with a 39 yard game winning field goal. Or not. Succop's aim was true, right between the uprights, but the Arrowhead wind blew his attempt wide left. Back came the Bills with a seven play drive that covered a whopping 14 yards. They punted. KC put together eight plays that gained 53 yards to give Succop his chance at redemption, this time a 35 yard try, with only five seconds remaining in OT. Succop aimed right of the upright. The wind blew it through as the gun sounded. Final score KC 13 Buffalo 10 in overtime in the greatest NFL game ever played. Or not. For Chiefs fans the operative phrase here is "a win is a win".
Gardner's Grades:
Offense: C - Jamaal Charles led the way with 22 carries for 177 yards as the Chiefs rushed for an eye-popping 264 yards. Matt Cassel was a pedestrian 14 of 26 for 152 yards & one touchdown. 424 yards total offense in five quarters? Not too bad. Scoring 13 points in five quarters? Not getting it done.
Defense: A - Holding a team to two points each quarter should be enough for an easy win. It felt like the defense controlled this game throughout.
Coaching: B - Aggressive play calling with a hard core ground game give this team a real chance to be a playoff contender. Kudo's to Todd Haley & his staff for making this so.
Looking forward Kansas City travels to Oakland this Sunday to play the Raiders in a game that all of a sudden has the feel of a 1970's AFC West Showdown again. For the first time in many years we might add. These two teams have a penchant for playing back & forth games like, well like the Bills & Chiefs just did, with the outcome in doubt tell the wee minutes of the game. If either of these two teams are to hold off the Chargers from claiming another AFC West crown this season you'd think that statement could be made clearly by the bay on Sunday.
By Allan Gardner
ProFootball-fans.com Kansas City Chiefs Correspondent