Patrick Mahomes celebrates after the Chiefs beat the Bills in overtime to reach the AFC Championship Game. Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Chiefs knock off the Bills in OT thriller to reach AFC Championship Game

By Victor Barbosa | Last updated 1/23/22

One of the most dramatic divisional playoff weekends in recent NFL memory was capped off with arguably the greatest game of them all Sunday night, as the Kansas City Chiefs outlasted the Buffalo Bills 42-36 in overtime. No. 2 Kansas City will host the third-seeded Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship game at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday.

After both teams were able to score in the final 17 seconds of regulation, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes quickly led his team down the field on the only possession of overtime and hit tight end Travis Kelce with the game-winning touchdown pass from eight yards out.

MAHOMES TO KELCE.

THE @CHIEFS WIN THE GAME OF THE YEAR! #NFLPlayoffs #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/9eM2Ur15O0
— NFL (@NFL) January 24, 2022

Kansas City held a slim 23-21 lead going into the fourth quarter, and a Harrison Butker 28-yard field goal made it a five-point game midway through the frame. The score stayed 26-21 until the two-minute warning, when Bills signal-caller Josh Allen hit wideout Gabriel Davis on a 27-yard touchdown pass, which, coupled with a successful two-point conversion, made it 29-26 in favor of Buffalo.

Less than one minute of gameplay later, Mahomes hit Tyreek Hill on a 64-yard touchdown pass, and Butker's extra point made it 33-29. With just 13 seconds left in regulation, Allen found Davis for his NFL playoff record fourth touchdown reception of the contest to seemingly give the visitors the win.

A 19-yard toss from Mahomes to Hill and a 25-yard strike to Kelce put the victors in field-goal range, however, and Butker drilled a game-tying kick from 49 yards away as time expired in the fourth to send it to overtime.

In the loss, Allen finished 27-for-37 with 329 passing yards and four touchdowns, while Davis erupted for eight catches for 201 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Mahomes was 33-for-44 with 378 passing yards and three touchdowns -- adding seven carries for 69 yards and a touchdown as well -- while Hill finished with 11 receptions for 150 yards and a touchdown.

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