By Tim Graham, Joe Buscaglia and Nate Taylor
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and coach Andy Reid expressed frustration with the officiating after Sunday’s loss to the Buffalo Bills, with Reid describing a late offensive offside call as “a bit embarrassing for the National Football League.”
“Another game we’re talking about the refs,” said Mahomes, who was shown earlier on the sidelines visibly upset as the clock ticked down. “It’s not what we want for the NFL. It’s not what we want for football. Let us play the game. Then whatever happens happens.”
Mahomes nearly won the game on the final drive by throwing a 25-yard pass to tight end Travis Kelce, who then lateraled the ball back to receiver Kadarius Toney for the score. But officials said Toney was lined up in the neutral zone before the ball was hiked and threw the flag. The Chiefs then turned the ball over on downs, ending the contest with a 20-17 loss.
Mahomes slammed his helmet on the ground and multiple teammates had to hold him back as he shouted toward the field in the final minute following the call. Mahomes can be heard saying the offensive offside was the “wildest f—— call I’ve ever seen” while embracing Bills quarterback Josh Allen after the game. He can also be heard muttering that the call was “f—— terrible” in video clips circulated on social media.
Mahomes later said Kelce’s play was “a legendary moment” ruined by the call that did not impact the play result. Reid said officials have typically given the sideline warning before calling a penalty like the one called on Toney.
Referee Carl Cheffers addressed the call after the game, saying the down judge saw that Toney’s “alignment was over the ball and that’s what he ruled on the field.” Regarding Reid’s comment, Cheffers said that if a coach or receiver looks for alignment advice, officials will give it to them, but “ultimately, they are responsible for wherever they line up.”
“And certainly, no warning is required, especially if they are lined up so far offsides where they’re actually blocking our view of the ball,” Cheffers said. “So, we would give them some sort of warning if it was anywhere close, but this particular one is beyond warning.”
The Bills, for their part, kept their playoff hopes alive as Allen led a game-winning 12-play, 49-yard drive that culminated in a 39-yard field goal by Tyler Bass with 1:54 left.
The Bills join five other teams — Denver Broncos, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers — with 7-6 records and remain in the hunt for a final postseason spot. The Steelers, Colts and Cleveland Browns are the current wild-card teams if the season ended Sunday based on tie-breakers.
Allen finished 23-of-42 for 233 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Running back James Cook led the Bills both in rushing (58 yards on 10 carries) and receiving (five catches for 83 yards and a score).
Mahomes was 25-of-43 for 271 yards, one touchdown and one interception. The Chiefs dropped to 8-5 with the loss.
NFL Week 14 scores: Live updates, schedule, news, playoff standings and highlights
Bills’ postseason hopes stay afloat
The Bills survived a turbulent week and a mind-blowing trick touchdown that was wiped out by a penalty with 1:12 to play. The victory was crucial to keep Buffalo’s playoff hopes legitimate. Bills coach Sean McDermott was skewered in a controversial article in which unnamed sources called his coaching abilities into question. Even his most ardent supporters couldn’t deny his shortcomings this season, especially while going 0-3 when taking a lead inside the final two minutes of a game. Buffalo took another such lead when Bass kicked his late field goal.
Von Miller, arrested last week for third-degree felony assault of his pregnant girlfriend yet still permitted to play, helped generate heavy pressure against Mahomes on the final possession. — Tim Graham, Buffalo senior sports writer
Even in giving the Chiefs one chance after another to take hold of the game, the Bills held on for their dear playoff lives in what might wind up being the most important win of their season. Not only do the Bills enter a six-way tie for the final two playoff spots at 7-6, but they also collect a much-needed AFC victory for tiebreaker purposes. The Bills are still behind in that area, but bring that record up to 4-5 on the year. Now, with four games to go, the Bills have two games against AFC opponents with losing records and a real chance to sneak back into the playoffs — even through all the disappointment of the first 12 games. — Joe Buscaglia, Bills staff writer
Chiefs’ WR room continues to disappoint
Once again, one of the Chiefs’ receivers is the main culprit of another disappointing loss. This time, the pivotal moment in the Chiefs falling to the Bills was because Toney committed a mental error, one that led to an offside penalty after he lined up in the neutral zone during the team’s two-minute drill. Had Toney started the play in the proper spot, he would’ve benefited from one of the most impressively-instinctual plays of the season from Kelce, who caught a pass for 25 yards and then lateraled the ball across to the field to Toney, who was wide open to run into the end zone for a 24-yard touchdown, a score that would’ve given the Chiefs a potential four-point lead with 1:25 left in the game. Instead, Toney’s penalty nullified the 51-yard play. The Chiefs never gained another yard, as Mahomes’ next three passes fell incomplete. — Nate Taylor, Chiefs staff writer
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Bills defense gets the job done
The Bills have had several moments this season where an over-achieving defense has put up a great fight in the first three quarters, only to get the rug pulled out from underneath them in the fourth quarter and overtime before yielding the end. They even lost two other key defenders in starting safety Micah Hyde and core rotational defensive end A.J. Epenesa. But in a game against the defending world champion Chiefs, with the best quarterback in the league who has had plenty of success late in games over the Bills in the past playing against them, the defense came up huge with pressure on Mahomes, key stops and to walk off with a victory. It was a huge moment for an embattled defense, and one that could catapult the Bills forward into the playoffs when all hope seemed to have been lost. — Buscaglia
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Chiefs are looking at an away playoff game
Having lost four of their last six games, the Chiefs’ chances of earning the AFC’s top playoff seed — including home-field advantage and a first-round bye — have dwindled at a considerable rate. The Chiefs, who never led in Sunday’s game, will have to win their final four games of the regular season — against the Patriots, Raiders, Bengals and Chargers — just to have a chance of reaching the top of the conference standings. The Chiefs will need help, too, as the Baltimore Ravens and the Miami Dolphins will need to at least lose two of the remaining games for such a scenario to occur. At this point, the Chiefs are as close as possible to potentially having to play a postseason game on the road for the first time in the Mahomes era. — Taylor
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(Photo: Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
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