Buffalo Bills Madden Sim: Chiefs hold off Bills on Sunday Night Football

It was a tough loss for the Buffalo Bills on Sunday as they fell to the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs 27-24. The loss drops the Bills back to .500 on the season at 2-2. It was a mixed bag for the Bills who had some great moments and some incredibly frustrating moments throughout the game. Here are some takeaways from Sundays loss to the Chiefs.

Offensive play-calling

The biggest criticism that many fans had about Sundays game was the play-calling by offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. The Bills were incredibly run heavy throughout the game, and in particular the first half. Although the game plan may have been to run the ball, it seemed excessive on many occasions. In particular there were two or three straight offensive series for the Bills were they went three and out and ran the football all three plays. The Bills tried to run several delays and draw plays, but had little success, yet they continued to run these kind of plays. By the middle of the second quarter Josh Allen had only three passing attempts, which is far too little.

Third down defense

The Bills defense played a solid first quarter, holding the Chiefs to just ten points at halftime. The second half was a different story. They allowed the Chiefs to score 17 points, but more importantly the Chiefs owned time of possession. This was largely in part to the Bills inability to get off the field on third down. Kansas City finished the game 9/14 on third down conversions which is way too high. Not to mention, many of the Chiefs third downs were a short distance, as the Bills defense was equally as bad on second down. It was frustrating game for Sean McDermott’s defense.

Mahomes lights it up

One of my keys for this game for the Bills was containing Patrick Mahomes and on Sunday they failed to do that. Mahomes had a huge game going 32/36 for 335 yards and three touchdowns. Mecole Hardman went for over 100 yards and Travis Kelce had two touchdowns. The Bills slowed down the Legion of Zoom and Mahomes for a half, but ultimately the Chiefs offense got the better of the Bills defense.

Zack Moss flashes yet disappears

Zack Moss had a very good game for the Bills. He had seven carries for 78 yards and a touchdown, along with five receptions for 38 yards. Most of his production came in the first half. For whatever reason, Moss rarely got the ball in the second half. He was the best offensive player for the Bills in the first half and it was strange to see how little he was used.

A trend that seems to be forming

Through four games one thing seems to dictate whether the Bills will win or lose, and that is Josh Allen. More specifically the balance between throwing the ball and the run game. In the Bills two wins Allen threw for over 400 yards as the Bills let Allen go out and throw the ball all over the field. In the Bills two losses there was more emphasis on running the ball and having Allen be more of a game manager. This doesn’t mean that the Bills should abandon the run, but rather a shift must happen with the offense. They must become a pass first offense instead of a, “ground and pound” offense. Allen seems poised and ready to be the engine for the Bills offense and McDermott and Daboll have to fully embrace this clear shift in the offense.

The Bills have their bye week this week, so next Sunday it will be week 6. They will be at home on Sunday Night Football again as they take on the (2-3) Seattle Seahawks.

Mitch Broder is a contributor for The Buffalo Fanatics. To contact him, email him at mitchell.broder@gmail.com or on Twitter @mitchell_broder