The Kansas Metropolis Chiefs emerged victorious in an exhilarating AFC Championship Sport on Sunday, defeating the Buffalo Payments 32-29 to advance to their third straight Tremendous Bowl. Whereas the Chiefs celebrated one other postseason triumph, tight finish Travis Kelce took a second to acknowledge the Payments and ship excessive reward for his or her efficiency.
“That Buffalo crew was pretty much as good as we’ve ever performed,” Kelce mentioned, through Jeremy Bergman on X, previously Twitter.
The Payments, who the Chiefs have now eradicated in 4 of the previous 5 postseasons, gave Kansas Metropolis every part they might deal with. Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen, visibly emotional throughout his postgame press convention, admitted the loss was robust to swallow. “It’s not enjoyable, however to be the champs, you’ve obtained to beat the champs, and we didn’t do it tonight,” Allen mentioned.
Travis Kelce and the Chiefs advance to Tremendous Bowl LIX
The sport was a heavyweight battle from begin to end. Patrick Mahomes led the Chiefs with 245 passing yards, a landing, and two dashing scores, together with a late drive that arrange Harrison Butker’s game-winning discipline aim with simply over three minutes remaining. Regardless of Allen’s robust effort—finishing 22-of-34 passes for 237 yards and two touchdowns—the Payments fell brief on their last drive, because the Chiefs’ protection got here up huge on fourth-and-5 to seal the victory.
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“It’s soccer. Josh made a hell of an try simply to get the ball up there, and it simply sucks lots not with the ability to convey it down,” tight finish Dalton Kincaid mentioned, reflecting on the failed fourth-down play that ended Buffalo’s hopes.
For Kelce and the Chiefs, the sport underscored simply how aggressive the Payments have been throughout this stretch of postseason battles. “It’s simply so arduous to get to the Tremendous Bowl, and I don’t take it with no consideration,” Mahomes mentioned. “To do it once more at Arrowhead Stadium was particular.”
Buffalo’s gamers echoed these sentiments, acknowledging the challenges of dealing with Kansas Metropolis yr after yr. “That’s a superb soccer crew,” Payments head coach Sean McDermott mentioned. “They’ve received two Tremendous Bowls, been to seven straight AFC Championship Video games. We’ve obtained to maintain working to recover from that hump.”
For the Payments, the loss marked one other heartbreaking finish to an in any other case profitable season. Their 78 wins over the previous six seasons are probably the most in NFL historical past for a crew and not using a Tremendous Bowl look. “You’ll be able to both get it accomplished or you possibly can’t,” Allen mentioned. “And we didn’t get it accomplished.”
Because the Chiefs put together for a Tremendous Bowl rematch in opposition to the Philadelphia Eagles, Kelce’s reward for Buffalo serves as a reminder of the respect between two of the AFC’s elite groups. Nevertheless, Kansas Metropolis’s sights stay firmly set on making NFL historical past with an unprecedented third straight championship.