Bills @ Chiefs
Final Score: Bills 20, Chiefs 17
Writer: Christian Otteman (@COttemanPL on Twitter/X)
In the modern NFL, few matchups generate more buzz than when Josh Allen and the Bills square up against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. Two of the NFL’s premier players, both QBs would be the first to admit they’ve underwhelmed this year, with Allen struggling with turnovers and Mahomes scoring at a much lower-than-usual rate. Nevertheless, the two star QBs delivered another classic game with plenty of memorable moments that saw the visiting Bills emerge victorious. After taking a lead with a late field goal, the Bills stymied the Chiefs on the last drive after a brilliant play from Travis Kelce to Kadarius Toney was called back when the latter was called for lining up in the neutral zone. The Bills march away from Arrowhead with a much-needed win to get to 7-6 along with about a dozen other AFC teams, while the Chiefs fall to 8-5, just a game ahead of the surging Broncos. While neither team looked to be at their best in this one, both teams remain squarely in the playoff (and Super Bowl) conversation heading into Week 15, where the Chiefs will face the lowly Patriots and the Bills travel back home to Buffalo for a must-see matchup against the Cowboys.
Three Up
- James Cook – the second-year back continued his torrid stretch in Week 14, functioning as both the team’s leading rusher and receiver en route to 141 total yards and a score. Any anxiety regarding the signing of Leonard Fournette is out the window–this is Cook’s backfield for the rest of the season.
- Rashee Rice – Rice has somewhat been overshadowed by other explosive rookies such as Puka Nacua this season but was at his best tonight as he added another impressive game to his rookie campaign. Rice is the best of the non-Kelce receiving options in Kansas City and has become a fairly consistent WR3/FLEX.
- Dalton Kincaid – the stat line is not impressive, but it’s worth noting that Dalton Kincaid was still second on the team in targets in the game that saw Dawson Knox return from IR. This marks 7 straight games with at least 6 targets for the rookie first-rounder, showing that he will stay involved whether or not Knox is active.
Two Down
- Bills WRs – it was a tough day all around for this receiving group in a game where the Chiefs’ secondary played lockdown defense all day. Stefon Diggs only had 24 yards and hasn’t had 100 in a game since Week 6. Gabe Davis put up his third donut in five games. As for the rest? No more than two targets for any of them. Let’s hope this group can rebound next week.
- Chiefs RBs – neither Clyde Edwards-Helaire nor Jerick McKinnon had a particularly good or bad day in the absence of Isiah Pacheco, meaning that this is a murky backfield to dive into during the fantasy playoffs. Unless Pacheco is healthy, it’s best to leave Chiefs RBs on your bench for now.
Buffalo Bills
Quarterback
Josh Allen: 23/42, 233 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT | 10 carries, 32 yards, 1 TD
Far from Allen’s best 2024 performance, Allen still produced a respectable 20ish points thanks to a pair of scores. His rushing TD was one where he was met right away by Chiefs defenders, but he kept his legs churning while his entire offensive line helped him cross the plane:
JOSH ALLEN
📺: #BUFvsKC on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/pWMED8SAQa pic.twitter.com/bhaVIfqCNL— NFL (@NFL) December 10, 2023
Allen’s explosive offense and rushing ability mean he’s both a safe option and one that can go nuclear during the fantasy playoffs. Even in an up-and-down year, he’s a top 3 option every week.
Running Back
James Cook: 10 carries, 58 yards | 5/5 receiving, 83 yards, 1 TD
Whether it was on the ground or through the air, the Bills relied on James Cook to keep them moving for much of the afternoon, resulting in his fourth straight game reaching 100 yards from scrimmage. Cook looked explosive all afternoon and scored on a perfectly drawn-up play where he was wide open for the receiving score:
James Cookin' up a TD
📺: #BUFvsKC on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/pWMED8S30C pic.twitter.com/tx2ri0c6hn— NFL (@NFL) December 10, 2023
Just like his touchdown, Cook is flying high heading into the fantasy playoffs and deserves your full trust heading into a likely shootout against the Cowboys in Week 15.
Ty Johnson: 5 carries, 19 yards | 2/2 receiving, 2 yards
Johnson gets a handful of touches every week as a change-of-pace back, but it’s not a large enough share to be a useful fantasy asset. Even if James Cook were to miss time, Leonard Fournette would likely be called up from the practice squad and muddy the waters of opportunity.
Latavius Murray: 3 carries, 9 yards | 1/1 receiving, 21 yards
Latavius Murray‘s stat line was not impressive in this game, nor was his involvement in the Bills’ offensive game plan. However, his lone reception on the day is absolutely noteworthy due to how improbable the play was. It’s one you have to see to believe:
Chaos! Bills ball!
📺: #BUFvsKC on CBS
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/pWMED8S30C pic.twitter.com/V1nct4acJB— NFL (@NFL) December 11, 2023
While you’ll see Murray’s number called a few times each week, his opportunity share is too small and his upside too low to trust him in the fantasy playoffs.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Dawson Knox: 3/3 receiving, 36 yards
Though it was nice to see Knox get some looks in his first action back from IR, it was pretty clear he’s been surpassed by Dalton Kincaid in the pecking order on this offense. Knox is still a decent dart throw TE if you need one, but he’s definitely in the TD-dependent tier moving forward.
Deonte Harty: 1/1 receiving, 25 yards
Harty only had one catch on the night, but it came on a crucial 3rd down to keep the chains moving during the Bills’ game-winning drive. He doesn’t take enough snaps or get enough looks to be a fantasy-relevant option.
Stefon Diggs: 4/11 receiving, 24 yards
The Bills tried to go to Stefon Diggs at several times during the night, but the coverage by L’Jarius Snead was too much for the star to overcome, though he certainly didn’t help himself by dropping a couple of passes. Diggs has been in somewhat of an extended slump as of late, scoring fewer than 7 points in three of his last four games. Still, as we’ve seen with Diggs several times this season, he has a ceiling that few other receivers in the league possess. He’ll aim to get things back on track in Week 15 against the Cowboys.
Dalton Kincaid: 5/8 receiving, 21 yards
Kincaid was second on the team in targets this week, even with Dawson Knox returning to action. While Knox’s availability caps Kincaid’s upside at least a bit, it’s clear the Bills will still give the rookie plenty of chances. He can be started with confidence in your first playoff matchup.
Khalil Shakir: 1/1 receiving, 12 yards
Operating as the Bills’ WR3, Shakir hasn’t done enough yet to establish himself as a reliable fantasy option. However, his 2023 has been a strong improvement from his rookie campaign, making him an intriguing stash in Dynasty leagues if you can afford the roster space.
Trent Sherfield: 1/2 receiving, 9 yards
See Harty, Deonte.
Gabe Davis: 0/2 receiving, 0 yards
The Gabe Davis ExperienceTM continues the Euthanasia Coaster ride of the 2024 season with his third 0.0 in as many weeks, which is a number that looks like the face I make whenever I’m risky enough to start him. Davis is a perfect late-round Best Ball dart throw for 2024, but you simply can’t trust the most extreme boom-or-bust option in the league during the fantasy playoffs.
Kansas City Chiefs
Quarterback
Patrick Mahomes II: 25/43, 271 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT | 1 carry, 8 yards
It’s been a bit of a down year for Mahomes from a fantasy perspective, and this game was another underwhelming outing for the face of the NFL. This was Mahomes’ fifth time this season he has failed to record multiple touchdown passes, thanks at least in part to the underwhelming group of pass-catchers on the roster. Mahomes was uncharacteristically flustered near the end of this one after a certain trick play was called back due to a penalty (more on that later), going so far as to voice his complaints to Josh Allen when they met at midfield after the game. Mahomes is still a must-start but has been far from the sure thing we’re used to seeing from the superstar QB.
Running Back
Clyde Edwards-Helaire: 11 carries, 39 yards | 2/4 receiving, 29 yards
With Isiah Pacheco nursing a bruised shoulder, CEH was the preferred option for the Chiefs in this game, getting much of the early-down work on Sunday. Edwards-Helaire was even involved in the passing game, an area normally dominated by Jerick McKinnon. Unfortunately, McKinnon did get the lone rushing score of the day for Kansas City, showing that this is a murky committee backfield with little certainty in terms of future roles. Hopefully, Pacheco can get healthy soon so we can get back to watching him annihilate his arch-nemesis (the ground).
Jerick McKinnon: 4 carries, 19 yards, 1 TD | 3/3 receiving, 18 yards
As many will remember, McKinnon was a fantasy superstar in the 2022 playoffs, finishing as the RB1 over the last five weeks of the season. History did not repeat itself in Week 14 of this season, with McKinnon only getting seven touches even in a negative game script. McKinnon managed to salvage his day with a rushing score, but he doesn’t appear to be the same waiver wire jackpot he was in 2022.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Travis Kelce: 6/10 receiving, 83 yards
No Taylor Swift references here, I promise–just me saying that there’s nothing I can say about Travis Kelce that hasn’t been said before. He’s maybe lost a bit of a step in his age-34 season, but he’s still the biggest advantage at a single position for players not named Christian McCaffrey. There’s not much more I can say–his Reputation precedes him (shoot–well, we almost made it).
Rashee Rice: 7/10 receiving, 72 yards, 1 TD, 1 fumble lost
Rashee Rice now sits at 663 receiving yards on the season, giving him an outside chance to crack 1000 yards in his rookie campaign. Rice also scored his 6th touchdown of the season, the most among Chiefs pass-catchers (including Kelce!). He’s earned the trust of his quarterback and is a solid option moving forward for the fantasy playoffs.
Kadarius Toney: 3/4 receiving, 25 yards | 2 carries, 16 yards
Let’s start with the reason everyone’s talking about Kadarius Toney tonight:
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1734009284986565086?s=20
In the season’s best play that didn’t count, Toney was both the hero and the villain as he caught a backward pass from Travis Kelce to score, only to have the play called back because Toney lined up offsides. The headlines surrounding Toney have never been good this season, with his frequent drop issues putting him at a disadvantage to earn playing time. He’s nothing more than a just-in-case Dynasty stash at this point, and shouldn’t be in lineups for the rest of this season.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling: 2/4 receiving, 22 yards
MVS has finished as a top-50 PPR wide receiver just once this season. He should be left on waivers.
Justin Watson: 1/1 receiving, 18 yards
The passing offense runs through Kelce and Rice. Watson is in virtually the same situation as MVS.
Richie James: 1/2 receiving, 4 yards
This was Richie James‘ third reception this season. He displayed some potential during his time with the Giants but hasn’t displayed the same upside in Kansas City.
Skyy Moore: 0/1 receiving, 0 yards
Rashee Rice is what we all wanted Skyy Moore to be. It’s time to move on if you’re still holding on to him, even in Dynasty leagues.