Bills Open as Slight Favorites vs. Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes in AFC Divisional Round
After knocking off the plucky Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday, the Buffalo Bills are now set to renew what's currently the AFC's strongest non-divisional rivalry when they face the Kansas City Chiefs in the Divisional Round on Sunday.
The Bills have won three of the last five games against the Chiefs, but both of those losses came in the playoffs. The 2020 AFC Championship Game was a decisive win for Kansas City, while the 2021 Divisional Round game was an instant classic that the Chiefs won in overtime. Buffalo won the most-recent matchup, though, defeating Kansas City 20-17 on the road on Dec. 10.
Bills vs. Chiefs
USA TODAY
Despite the Chiefs being their boogeymen in the playoffs, oddsmakers like the Bills chances to shed their demons as they opened as 2.5-point favorites.
This game is very different from all the other ones, though. While the past five games have all been in Kansas City due to seeding and NFL scheduling quirks, Buffalo will get home-field advantage this time. While the Bills are obviously thrilled to finally get a home game in this matchup, what may be more significant is what it means for the Chiefs.
As has been widely publicized, this marks the first true road playoff game that Chiefs superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes will play in his six years as a starter, not counting when he played the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium in Super Bowl 55. Additionally, this marks the first time the Chiefs have played in Buffalo since 2020 and first with a crowd since 2014, long before Mahomes or Bills quarterback Josh Allen were in the league.
With this being the third playoff game in four years between these rivals, expect Bills Mafia to bring everything it has on Sunday evening.
