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It took the Kansas City Chiefs five frustrating decades to make their second Super Bowl appearance. Now the reigning champions are heading there for the second year in a row.
Showing no lingering effects from a concussion, Patrick Mahomes cut through the Buffalo high school with ruthless efficiency as the Chiefs clinched a 38-24 win over Josh Allen and the Bills in the AFC Championship game on Sunday. evening. Mahomes threw for 325 yards and three touchdowns, with most of the attention focused on his favorite targets Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill.
The Chiefs will face familiar foe Tom Brady and champion NFC Buccaneers two weeks from now in Tampa, Fla.
Kelce finished with 13 catches for 118 yards and two touchdowns, and Hill added nine catches for 172 yards, becoming the first duo in NFL history with back-to-back games of at least 100 yards each receiving in a single series playoffs.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Darrel Williams have added short spells of TD for the Chiefs, who will look to become the eighth franchise and first team since the New England Patriots led by Brady in 2003 and 2004 to defend the Lombardi Trophy.
Allen, who had his worst game of the season in a loss to the Chiefs in Week 6, once again struggled against the Kansas City defense. He finished with 287 passing yards with two touchdowns and one interception, but a big chunk of his numbers came as the Bills tried to bounce back from a 38-15 deficit in the dying minutes.
Their frustration boiled over with 3:19 to go, when Allen was sacked by Tanoh Kpassagnon. Alex Okafor finished the tackle and Allen threw the ball in the face in retaliation. Offensive linemen Jon Feliciano and Dion Dawkins rushed in and equalized Okafor, resulting in a flood of compensatory personal fouls penalties.
It capped off a bitter loss for the Bills, who had reached their first AFC title game since defeating Kansas City at home on Jan. 1, 1994. They had won 11 of 12 since losing to the Chiefs. earlier this season, and they hadn’t been left behind. in the second half since week 8 and were riding a wave of confidence that this could finally be their championship year.
Instead, after finally winning over the Patriots in the AFC East, the Bills have a new roadblock to the Super Bowl.
The Chiefs actually spotted the Bills a 9-0 lead, thanks in large part to Mecole Hardman’s muffled punt inside their five that gave Buffalo a touchdown. But the reigning champions were hardly shaken; the Chiefs, after all, rallied in double digits in every one of their playoff wins last season, including their Super Bowl triumph over San Francisco.
Mahomes and Kelce quickly found their rhythm. And the rest of the Chiefs offense followed suit.
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