NFL 2020: Kansas City Chiefs bounce back with Week 6 win over Buffalo Bills
The defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs put last week's loss behind them in a Monday night matchup with the suddenly-struggling Bills.
The Buffalo Bills insisted on making the Kansas City Chiefs beat them on the ground, designing their defense so that reigning Super Bowl MVP quarterback Patrick Mahomes couldn't dissect them through the air.
The Chiefs was kind enough to oblige. Kansas City's rushing attack led the way in a 26-17 victory over the Bills on Monday night to cap a long Week 6 for both teams.
This game was played on Monday night, but it wasn't "Monday Night Football." That TV slot went to the Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals. The Chiefs-Bills game was a rescheduled affair that was pushed back due to COVID-19 complications, a recurring theme in the NFL this season.
The Bills were playing their second game in six days, having played another postponed game last Tuesday against the Tennessee Titans. They were blown out in that one, 42-16. The Chiefs were coming off perhaps the biggest upset loss of this NFL season, falling to the Las Vegas Raiders last week.
According to Mahomes, the Bills' defensive strategy was to take away the pass and allow KC the run.
"Once we saw how deep their linebackers and safeties and corners were playing, we knew that we had the run game," Mahomes was quoted by ESPN. "So we really just stayed with it, and if teams are going to play us like this, you're going to see us run the football, and we have the guys that can do it.''
Rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire had 161 yards on 26 carries for the Chiefs. Mahomes added 36 yards on 10 carries, and running back Darrel Williams ran in a 13-yard touchdown that put the Chiefs up by 10 points in the third quarter.
ESPN Stats & Information said that the Chiefs' 46 rushing attempts tied for the most in a game by an Andy Reid team in his career as a head coach.
The dynamic of the Chiefs' running game will get even more interesting in coming weeks. For starters, the team just signed former All-Pro running back Le'Veon Bell, who was released by the New York Jets. What kind of role will Reid find for the multi-talented Bell?
Also, Kansas City is hurting along its offensive line. Starting guard Kelechi Osemele missed Monday's game with knee injuries, and starting tackle Mitchell Schwartz left Monday's game with a back injury and didn't return.
It's not like Mahomes didn't have any success throwing the ball. He still completed 21 of 26 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. He played well, he just didn't blow anyone away like he tends to do. It was Mahomes' lowest yardage output since Week 1 against the Houston Texans.
The Chiefs bounced back from the Las Vegas loss, improving to 5-1. The Bills fell to 4-2 and have now lost consecutive games after a 4-0 start.