Josh Allen fired the Buffalo Bills to a stunning comeback against the Patriots Sunday, as the Kansas City Chiefs’ NFL playoff hopes ended with an injury to their star quarterback.
The Bills’ 35-31 victory -- after having trailed 21-0 -- in sub-freezing conditions ended New England’s 10-game winning streak and kept the AFC East division title race alive.
“What makes this team this team -- we’re not out of it, we’re going to continue to fight one play at a time, no matter what the score is,” said Allen.
Reigning NFL Most Valuable Player Allen orchestrated five consecutive drives for touchdowns, at least temporarily thwarting the Patriots’ bid to reclaim the division title from Buffalo after five years.
The result underlined Buffalo’s status as a strong Super Bowl favorite despite inconsistent form this season.
“The last five-ish years we’ve found sustained success but never been able to punch our ticket to the Super Bowl... that’s every team’s dream,” said Allen.
The Patriots had been utterly dominant in the first quarter, with quarterback Drake Maye rushing for two touchdowns in the snow.
The Bills battled back. Allen slung for three passing touchdowns.
Henderson briefly reclaimed the advantage for New England with a 65-yard sprint. But running back James Cook barged through for the game-winning touchdown score.
New England -- who dominated the NFL in the Tom Brady era of the 2000s and 2010s but have faced a difficult rebuild -- still lead the Bills by a single game with three to play.
Meanwhile, the Kansas City Chiefs -- the most dominant team in the NFL over the past decade -- saw their slim hopes of making the playoffs officially end.
To compound their misery, quarterback Patrick Mahomes limped off the field with a torn left knee ligament.
“Don’t know why this had to happen. And not going to lie (it) hurts,” Mahomes posted on social media, vowing to “be back stronger than ever.
A 16-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, combined with other results, means the Chiefs will miss the playoffs for the first time since 2014.
Kansas City have won three Super Bowls from five appearances since 2020, but saw a sharp drop off in form this season.
“The guys are down,” said coach Andy Reid. “They busted their butt to win the game... it’s not a great feeling.”
The Los Angeles Rams and the Denver Broncos became the first teams to guarantee themselves post-season football.
The Rams defeated the Lions 41-31 despite having trailed 24-14. Detroit collapsed as this season’s MVP front-runner quarterback, Matthew Stafford, ran the Rams show with two passing touchdowns.
The victory was marred by a hamstring injury to star wide receiver Davante Adams.
In Denver, moments after Green Bay Packers star linebacker Micah Parsons limped off the field with yet another nasty-looking injury, the Broncos pulled ahead with a touchdown pass to Troy Franklin and won 34-26.
The Indianapolis Colts started a quarterback who retired five years ago and has been coaching high-school football since.
Philip Rivers, 44, stepped in against the Seattle Seahawks after the Colts lost Daniel Jones to a season-ending injury last weekend.
Rivers managed an eight-yard passing touchdown -- prompting wild celebrations, some 1,800 days after the grandfather’s previous one.
But a last-gasp Seahawks field goal gave touchdown-less Seattle an 18-16 win, souring the feel-good comeback story.
The Baltimore Ravens ended Cincinnati’s slim playoff hopes with a dominant 24-0 victory.
And Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence managed five passing touchdowns and one rushing score as the Jaguars demolished the New York Jets 48-20.
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