1 week Ago
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The Buffalo Bills face the undefeated 9-0 Kansas City Chiefs for a week eleven matchup on Sunday afternoon.
The 8-2 Bills will be looking for their sixth straight victory when they take on their AFC rival at home in Orchard Park. The Channel 2 sports team each gives a key to the game before things get underway inside Highmark Stadium at 4:25 p.m.
Sunday. Jon Scott: Containing Kelce Before the season began, many believed the Chiefs had surrounded Patrick Mahomes with the most depth of talent he’s had in his career. Injuries have hit the offense hard, with Isiah Pacheco, Hollywood Brown, and Rashee Rice all on injured reserve.
So back to old-reliable Mahomes has gone. Travis Kelce had a slow start to the season (eight receptions for 89 yards over the first three games), but ever since Rice was lost for the year during the Week 4 games against the Chargers, Kelce has returned more to form with 52 catches for 410 yards and two touchdowns. The future Hall of Fame tight end has had at least seven receptions for 60-plus yards in five of his last six games.
Kelce is seeing a 29% target share over the last six weeks, tops on the team. Kelce has had success against the Bills recently. He has seen 10 targets in each of the last three regular season meetings, catching a total of 20 passes for 245 yards and a TD.
We saw what he did in last season’s divisional round win over Buffalo, with five catches for 75 yards and two TDs. It will be interesting the way the Bills choose to matchup with Kelce. Taron Johnson is probably the most likely option, with Dorian Williams still not very strong in pass coverage.
I’m sure other personnel packages will be used to slow Kelce down, including possibly finding a different look with a Big Nickel. Yes, Kansas City now has DeAndre Hopkins and Xavier Worthy has popped at times as a rookie, but it’s Mahomes to Kelce that continues to be the bread and butter for Chiefs success. Jonathan Acosta: Can Rousseau continue his excellent season? I’m using my key this week to highlight one particular player as opposed to a specific area of the game.
The attention on this game, deservedly, revolves around the two star quarterbacks, but after Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes, I think Greg Rousseau can be the biggest X-factor in this game. Rousseau has elevated his game so far this season, leading the Bills with 5.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss.
That last figure not only leads the Buffalo defense, but it also is tied for the NFL lead along with Cincinnati’s Trey Hendrickson. We’ve seen his ability to wreak havoc in multiple ways: getting pressure on the quarterback like with his strip sack against Indianapolis; using his long frame to bat down passes, like with his two pass deflections against Seattle; and his consistent ability to excel at stopping the run, an ability he’s shown all season. Going up against a quarterback the caliber of Mahomes, the Chiefs’ offense is going to get theirs and make some plays.
But a player like Rousseau playing in a disruptive manner can almost single handedly help end drives with critical run stuffs and tackles in the backfield. In addition, one of Mahomes’ many talents is avoiding sacks, but even being able to flush him out of the pocket and throw the ball away is a win on a given down for the Bills defense. In last year’s AFC Divisional round loss in Orchard Park, the Bills defense generated zero sacks and just two tackles for loss.
In order to properly effect Patrick Mahomes, the Bills will need more disruption this time around, and Rousseau has shown the ability to provide that this season, and will be counted on to provide that Sunday against Kansas City. Lindsey Moppert: Clutch kicks Despite their several meetings in both the regular season and playoffs, you never quite know what you’re going to get when the Bills and Chiefs go head to head. Dare I bring up “13 seconds?” How about “wide right?” Both unforgettable final drives ended in game-deciding field goals and ultimately wins for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Those are just two recent examples of how unpredictable these games can be when the current top two teams in the AFC standings meet every year. This time around will be different due to the fact that the Chiefs three-time Super Bowl champion kicker, Harrison Butker, was recently placed on injured reserve with a knee injury. Butker has been an essential and reliable piece to the Chiefs 9-0 record so far this season.
Kansas City has stayed undefeated by an average scoring margin of less than a touchdown. The Chiefs will have to rely on their new kicker this week, Spencer Shrader to have the same impact. The same can be said about the importance of Tyler Bass’ accuracy and consistency in clutch moments on Sunday.
These Bills-Chiefs rivalry games never tend to be a blowout for either team, meaning that Bass will need to make all of his kicks to give the Bills the best chance to win. When it comes down to it, the Bills want to know that they can rely on Bass come Sunday in the same way they did in week nine to beat the Miami Dolphins with a franchise-record 61-yard field goal..
