The fourth time is the charm?
The Buffalo Bills clinched a spot in the AFC Championship Game with a 27-25 victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night, setting up a fourth postseason meeting between Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen and his Kansas City counterpart Patrick Mahomes.
Mahomes is 3-0 in the playoffs against the Bills since 2020, including twice in the divisional round and once in the championship game. During the regular season, Allen beat Mahomes four times – more than any other NFL quarterback beat the Mahomes-led Chiefs.
At stake is a trip to the Super Bowl, where the Bills have not been since their four consecutive trips from the 1990 to 1993 seasons.
The Bills and Chiefs meet in the late game Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium after Washington plays at Philadelphia for the NFC title.
Read more: Saquon Barkley continues to make history with one of the greatest seasons of all time
Buffalo narrowly beat the Ravens and posted a 10-0 record at home.
During his postgame interview on CBS, Allen gave a shoutout to his teammates on the other side of the ball.
“How about the Buffalo Bills defense,” he said. “All year long this team has heard that we have no talent, we’re too small, we can’t stop the run, we’re not good enough to compete. We just put our heads down and work hard.”
The Chiefs, meanwhile, are looking to become the first NFL team to win three Super Bowls in a row. This year the game will be played on February 9th at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
NFC: No. 6 Washington at. No. 2 Philadelphia
This will be the third meeting between these NFC East rivals, with each team winning the home game during the regular season.
Running back Saquon Barkley, who broke the 200-yard rushing mark for the second time this season against the Rams on Sunday, is the most dangerous weapon in Philadelphia’s arsenal. The Washington Commanders know this, as Barkley ran for 150 and 146 yards against them this season.
The Commanders are led by the spectacular rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, who remains extremely cool under pressure.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts suffered an undisclosed left leg injury in Sunday’s game and indicated afterward that he is confident he can play against the Commanders.
In the last game between the teams, Hurts suffered a concussion in the first quarter and was replaced by backup Kenny Pickett. In the end, the Commanders won.
This game marks the return to Philadelphia of Commanders owner Josh Harris, who also owns the Philadelphia 76ers.
AFC: No. 2 Buffalo at No. 1 Kansas City
These teams met in Week 11 and the Bills handed the Chiefs their first of two losses this season. Buffalo won 30-21 and James Cook scored two touchdowns.
The Bills led the game by two points with just under two minutes left. Instead of shooting a short field goal, Buffalo tried it on fourth down and reaped the benefits. Allen dropped back, then stepped forward and broke through the defense, fending off several tackles en route to a 26-yard touchdown run.
“They made the plays when they needed to,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid said in Week 11. “For some of our young players, it’s a great game to learn from.” When two good teams play each other “The difference between winning and losing is small.”
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.