The Kansas City Chiefs held on for the road win in what proved to be a wild fourth quarter of the AFC divisional round matchup with the Buffalo Bills. But the home fans had a parting gift ready and waiting for quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Following a missed 44-yard field goal attempt by kicker Tyler Bass, the Chiefs were able to run out the clock for a 27-24 victory. But as Mahomes took off to begin the celebration, he did so while dodging a barrage of snowballs from Bills fans. The Chiefs quarterback was running toward the stands to give one Chiefs fan a souvenir when he found himself playing dodgeball to get there.
Mahomes ducking snowballs from angry Bills fans lol pic.twitter.com/otRlGsqGOU
— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) January 22, 2024
Impressive moves from Mahomes, who had to duck and cover once he made it to the stands. Unfortunately, he had a bit more work to do while attempting to make it back to the locker room without being pelted by more snowballs, and it appears he did so successfully for a second a time.
#Bills fans are throwing snowballs at Mahomes as he leaves…pic.twitter.com/MjUGqT8Ugh https://t.co/MYCR85Yeon
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) January 22, 2024
While the scene of Mahomes attempting to navigate the sidelines/exit the field was pretty wild, it wasn’t the most noteworthy aspect of what proved to be a chaotic fourth quarter between the two teams. After the Bills attempted and failed a fake punt from their 30-yard line, the Chiefs needed one play to find themselves just one yard out from extending the lead to double-digits.
But instead of handing the ball off to running back Isiah Pacheco or targeting Kelce, Kansas City opted to call a play for wide receiver Mecole Hardman, who fumbled out of the end zone, resulting in the ball returning to Buffalo. The Bills had a chance to either take the lead or tie the game up, but after Bass’s field goal attempt sailed wide with 1:47 remaining, Mahomes and company picked up one first down and ran out the clock for the win.
Mahomes finished the night with 215 passing yards and two touchdowns, both of which went to tight end Travis Kelce, who totaled five catches for 75 yards in the win. Pacheco dominated on the ground, tallying 97 rushing yards with one touchdown on 15 carries for an impressive 6.5 yards per attempt.