The Big Lead

Bills-Chiefs set to renew rivalry in what could be the game of the year

By Max Weisman

The game could be a preview of the AFC Championship
The game could be a preview of the AFC Championship / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images
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The Kansas City Chiefs will head to Buffalo to play the Bills on Sunday, marking just the fifth time since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970 that two teams with eight or more wins will play in Week 11 or earlier. The game, between the 9-0 Chiefs and 8-2 Bills, is another iteration of what is currently the NFL's best rivalry.

It starts before the first meeting between quarterbacks Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes. In the 2017 NFL draft, the Bills traded the No. 10 overall pick to the Chiefs in exchange for the Chiefs' 2017 first and third-rounders and their 2018 first-rounder. The Chiefs used pick 10 to take Mahomes, and the Bills used the 2018 first-round pick on Allen. Now, each game between the two feels bigger than the last.

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Since Mahomes and Allen's first meeting in 2020, the Chiefs have a 4-3 record against the Bills, including the playoffs. Buffalo has won the last three regular-season meetings, while the Chiefs have won all three playoff meetings.

This game marks the first time the Bills-Chiefs regular season matchup will be played in Buffalo since 2020, but home-field advantage seems to mean nothing in the rivalry. Buffalo is 0-2 at home and 3-2 on the road.

As of Tuesday, the Chiefs are underdogs by 2.5 points, but that hasn't stopped Patrick Mahomes from winning football games in the past. In his career, Mahomes is 12-1-1 against the spread as an underdog. However, as ESPN's Field Yates pointed out, the last four times teams with 8+ wins met in Week 11 or earlier the home team won.

Bills-Chiefs will be broadcast on CBS and the NFL flexed its Week 11 schedule so that the game is the only one airing on CBS in the late window. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:25 from Highmark Stadium.

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