For the fifth-straight time in the regular season, the Bills had their way with Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs on Sunday.
The Chiefs entered their Week 9 matchup against the Bills on a roll offensively, and despite ranking third in their division, Mahomes had emerged as the favorite in the NFL MVP race. Mahomes entered the game second in the NFL in passing yards and tied for first in touchdowns, but Buffalo stalled that momentum during a 28-21 win.
The Bills defense stepped up in the game, pressuring Mahomes on 52.6% of his dropbacks, per Next Gen Stats. The pressure affected Mahomes greatly as he went 3-of-16 for 61 yards and a pick when facing pressure. Mahomes took three sacks in the game.
Thanks in part to the pass rush and good coverage from the secondary, Mahomes completed just 44% of his passes in the game for 250 yards, no touchdowns and an interception. This was the lowest completion percentage ever for Mahomes in a single game, and the first time he’s completed under 50% of his passes in a game. Before, his previous low was completing 50% of his passes in a 21-7 win over the Browns last year.
In contrast, Allen completed a career-high 88.5% of his passes, going 23-of-26 for 273 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 19 yards and two touchdowns.
The Chiefs are currently 5-4 and on the outside of the AFC playoff picture, but the Bills remain winless against Mahomes in the postseason. They are now 5-1 against Mahomes and the Chiefs in the regular season, but it won’t matter much unless they can repeat this kind of performance in the postseason and make their first Super Bowl since the 1990s.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Patrick Mahomes Had Unfortunate Career First in Chiefs’ Loss to Bills.