Buffalo Rumblinks, 1/20: AFC Divisional Game Preview: Bills vs. Chiefs…
A five-game winning run to end the regular season helped the Buffalo Bills (12-6) secure the second seed in the AFC. One of the victories during that run was a 20-17 victory on the road against the third-seeded Kansas City Chiefs (12-6), which helped the Bills secure home-field advantage for the AFC Divisional Round playoff game on Sunday night.
The Buffalo Rumblinks podcast for today previews the team’s win-or-go-home game against Kansas City, where the Bills are trying to exact revenge for two prior postseason losses to the Chiefs. In addition, the main storylines and important games to follow as the Bills attempt to send KC and Patrick Mahomes home for the season.
A sneak peek at the Chiefs
One of the main storylines to follow when the Bills play the Chiefs is Josh Allen, the quarterback, who has to have a big game against Kansas City in order for Buffalo to win. If the Bills are to go forward, who else has to stand up? The talented defensive tackle Chris Jones will present a challenge for Buffalo’s offensive line, tight end Dalton Kincaid will need to perform in his biggest game yet, cornerback Trent McDuffie will be a formidable force in the nickel position, Buffalo’s pass rush will need to make life miserable for Mahomes, and the Bills and Chiefs will have changed since that instant classic in the 2021 AFC Divisional Round.
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When did Bills Mafia last see the Chiefs in Buffalo?
It’s happening at last! The Buffalo Bills faithful will pack the stadium when The Kansas City Chiefs play at Orchard Park, New York, for the first time since November 2014.
Like me, I’m sure there are other Western New York Bills supporters who are eager to show Patrick Mahomes what home-field advantage in the postseason looks like in Buffalo. Mahomes will go north to Orchard Park for a Divisional Round game, marking the first time in his career that he will leave the comforts of Arrowhead Stadium in a non-neutral-site Super Bowl.
Regarding his recent trip to Buffalo, Mahomes had some positive things to say:
“I’ve had the good fortune to participate in numerous games at Arrowhead Stadium,” said Mahomes. However, we now have a fantastic chance to tour and perform in a challenging setting where I haven’t been allowed to play for spectators. It’s one of the finest football settings, so even though I know it will be hostile and there will be trash talk, I’m thrilled about it because you want to play in the best atmosphere and experience what it’s like when you grow up watching these games.
On Sunday night, Bills Mafia will need to perform at their peak. With a career road record of 38-11, Mahomes is still a road warrior. This is your time to finally show him what life is like in Buffalo in January.
But, I wanted to take a look back at the last time Kansas City visited Buffalo, as Bills supporters eagerly await an opportunity to show Mahomes what a hostile environment Highmark Stadium can be during a football game.
Buffalo Bills in 2014
2014 sure did take Bills fans on a rollercoaster. Since it was the first season without Ralph Wilson Jr.’s ownership of the team, it began as a very significant year. When Terry Pegula took management, he assured supporters that the team would remain in Buffalo. As he began his first season as co-owner with his wife Kim Pegula, boy did he go on one crazy trip. The Buffalo Bills under Doug Marrone’s coaching drove supporters crazy in a lot of ways.
Buffalo won its first two games under the direction of second-year quarterback EJ Manuel. Following two more losses, Marrone decided he had had enough of Manuel and benched him in favour of journeyman and fan favourite quarterback Kyle Orton. Over the following twelve games, the “gunslinger” Orton would win seven of them.
He lost one game during this time, against the Chiefs in Week 8. The current iteration of these teams pales in comparison to the box score. The Chiefs’ 17–13 victory was somewhat underwhelming. The only touchdowns in this blowout, which would hurt Buffalo’s hopes of making the playoffs, were from Chris Hogan, Jamaal Charles, and Alex Smith.
The squad maintained its competitiveness up until the 8-6 Bills’ heartbreaking loss to the 2-12 Oakland Raiders eliminated Buffalo from the postseason picture.
The Bills would end with a 9-7 record, their best season since 2004, after defeating the 12-win New England Patriots (who would go on to win another Super Bowl that year) in a meaningless game.
Doug Marrone would take a buyout to depart the club at the end of the season. A buyout that came about as a result of a contract provision giving Marrone a release if the team’s ownership changed. With simply a text message to the players he guided to the greatest record the Bills had seen in ten years, Marrone would quickly go.
Since these difficult times, we’ve gone a long way. Let’s take a look back at 2014 and see where some of our favourite Buffalo Bills from today were playing.
Josh Allen, around the year 2014
QB 1 for the Bills Mafia was travelling a long way to the NFL in 2014. Allen was a player for the California Junior College (JUCO) Reedley College. During his lone season at Reedley, Allen oversaw an offensive unit that ranked ninth in total offence among all junior-college teams in California with an average of 452.2 yards per game. Reedley scored 39.4 points per game to rank 10th in the state, averaged 166.9 yards running to rank 26th, and averaged 285.3 passing yards per game to rank seventh among all junior colleges in California. With 26 touchdown passes, Allen was ninth out of all junior college quarterbacks in California in 2014. As a rookie, he also led all California JUCO quarterbacks in passing yards (20) and was 42nd in the state in running (66.0 yards per game on average).
A raven’s heap of high praise for Allen, the former Reedley OC, and reflections on Josh’s development
Around 2014, Stefon Diggs
In 2014, during his last season at Maryland, Diggs was, of course, acting like Stefon Diggs. After missing time due to an injury, Diggs participated in ten games. The coaches selected him to the second team of the Big Ten, while the media gave him an honourable mention All-Big Ten selection. In ten games, he led the club in catches (62), receiving yards (792), and receiving touchdowns (5).
This is a link to the UMS Football Roster for Stefon Diggs (5374).
Dalton Kincaid, maybe in 2014
Kincaid was fourteen years old in 2014. The young guy was a star basketball player even though he didn’t play football at the time. He likened his on-court skills to those of Shane Battier rather than LeBron James or Steph Curry.
“Sets screens, gets rebounds, makes adjustments, does the little things, and I’ve always loved nothing more than helping my teammates,” Kincaid said. “No stats.”
He didn’t start playing football until his pals persuaded him to do so during his final year of high school. He found that listening to his friends was beneficial.
Despite not being able to locate a picture of Dalton Kincaid at the age of 14, there is an old tweet of him showing off a slam dunk on some guy.
Does anybody recall the ALS charity fund-raising ice bucket challenge? In 2014, it was quite the rage. That year, a lot of the films were shot using the brand-new iPhone 6. The best-selling video game of the year was “Grand Theft Auto V,” the top-grossing film was “Transformers: Age of Extinction,” and the top song on the charts of 2014 was Pharrell Williams’ “Happy.”
Recall those Patriots who won the Super Bowl? The deflate gate incident of twenty-fourteen exposed the petty behaviour of Bill Belechick and Tom Brady.
By defeating the Miami Heat and LeBron James in the NBA Finals, the San Antonio Spurs prevented them from completing a three-peat.
Finally, 10 years later, The Buffalo Sabres were in the midst of their tank, still unable to produce a postseason season.
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