KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The fastest offense in football was too fast for the No. 1-rated defense in the NFL on Sunday night.
The Kansas City Chiefs’ team speed was the biggest factor from start to finish – and especially at the finish – in the Buffalo Bills’ 42-36 overtime loss in the AFC divisional playoff game.
Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill is the fastest starting player in the NFL, with 4.29 speed in the 40-yard dash.
The Bills’ respect for him forced them to stay back in a two-deep shell defense most of the game. But Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was patient enough to use short runs and short passes to execute long marches for touchdowns.
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Along the way, the Chiefs used their other world-class speedsters. Receiver Mecole Hardman, the second fastest man on the field Sunday with 4.32 speed, made big plays. So did receiver Byron Pringle, with 4.46 speed, and running back Jerick McKinnon, with 4.41 speed.
Here’s a closer look at some of the key plays in the dramatic game:
Cheetah TD. The Chiefs’ big play of the second half was a 64-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Hill with 1:13 left in the fourth quarter.
“Their fast guys, you understand, stick out on tape,” safety Micah Hyde said. “Every game you watch them. I thought we prevented them most of the game – those big explosive plays. But he just got out the gate. We take pride in not doing that, and that’s why it hurts even more.”
Hill was lined up by himself on the left side of the formation against Levi Wallace. Hill ran over the middle and caught the ball at midfield. Jordan Poyer was still back at the Bills’ 37 when Hill caught the ball. But as Poyer came up to try to make a tackle, Hill blew past the safety at the 40 and zoomed into the end zone.
There was nobody left to make a tackle, because linebacker Matt Milano was deep covering tight end Noah Gray in man coverage. Dane Jackson was deep covering receiver Demarcus Robinson.
The 5-foot-8, 183-pound Hill, nicknamed “Cheetah,” has scored 71 touchdowns in six seasons. He ranked third in the NFL in catches this year with 111.
The longest 13 seconds. The Bills’ defense couldn’t keep the Chiefs from scoring a tying field goal, even though only 13 seconds remained in regulation.
First, they kicked off out of the end zone, rather than squib kicking the ball. Maybe they were worried about the fact Hardman was the deep return man.
The Bills were defending the sideline, trying to prevent a cheap completion that would kill the clock.
First, the Chiefs ran a 5-yard quick hitch to Hill, who got 14 yards after the catch to turn it into a 19-yard gain. The Bills’ defenders were sitting back at the 40-yard line to start the play. Then the Bills gave up a 25-yard pass to tight end Travis Kelce against zone defense to bring the ball to the Buffalo 31. Kelce ran up a seam in the zone between Wallace and Matt Milano. Kansas City then tied it with a 49-yard field goal.
Five hours before kickoff, dozens of fans brought a slice of Orchard Park to a parking lot in the shadow of Arrowhead Stadium.
Blitz beaten. By unofficial count, the Bills blitzed only three times in the game. They did not blitz at all in the regular-season win over the Chiefs.
On a second-and-7 situation from the Buffalo 34 in overtime, Milano blitzed off left tackle. But Mahomes hung in the pocket just long enough to hit Hardman on a shallow crossing route.
Hardman, nicknamed “the Jet,” was wide open and burst across the field for a 26-yard gain.
Five on one. Hardman showed his game-breaking ability in the third quarter when he scored on a 25-yard jet sweep run around the left end.
The Bills actually were in good position to defend the play. Defensive end Mario Addison stayed home at right defensive end and Wallace looked in position on the outside. But Wallace attacked the outside and got bumped by tight end Blake Bell.
Then Hardman made a hesitation juke that froze Efe Obada and Jordan Poyer for an instant. Milano got shoved to the sideline by Kelce.
That’s all Hardman needed to get up the sideline.
Up the middle. The Bills burned a Chiefs Cover 2 defense for the go-ahead touchdown with 13 seconds left.
Gabriel Davis beat cornerback L’Jarius Snead straight up the field for a 19-yard touchdown that gave the Bills their short-lived 36-33 lead.
Chiefs safety Armani Watts was focused on guarding against Stefon Diggs, who ran a hitch to the right against cornerback Charvarius Ward. Safety Juan Thornhill was focused on the other side of the field, where Cole Beasley and Dawson Knox were running.
Juked to the ground. Davis put a hesitation move on cornerback Mike Hughes on his 27-yard, fourth-quarter TD that caused Hughes to trip backward onto his back.
Bombs away. On his 75-yard TD catch late in the third quarter, Davis ran a post pattern against a Cover 2 defense, but the throw by Allen was too good.
The Bills had fullback Reggie Gilliam on the field and ran a hard play-action fake. That gave Allen time to set up and launch a rocket from the Bills’ 17. Davis blew past Thornhill and caught the ball 63 yards downfield at the Kansas City 25. He trotted into the end zone for a 75-yard touchdown.
Bills blitz beater. Kansas City refrained from big blitzes until late in the first half.
With 42 seconds left and the Bills at the Kansas City 18, Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo rushed seven men at the quarterback. Allen saw it coming, backpedaled with linebacker Ben Niemann bearing down on him and hit a wide-open Davis on a post pattern at the goal line.
Davis beat Hughes, who bumped into slot cornerback L’Jarius Snead as he was following Davis off the line. That happened because Cole Beasley went in motion to the left, toward Davis. Snead was racing over to follow Beasley.
