The Buffalo Bills gambled and lost on a critical fourth-down play late in Sunday’s AFC championship game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The play involved a controversial spot that was upheld on replay review.
With Buffalo holding a 22-21 lead and 13:01 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Bills went for it on fourth-and-1 at the Kansas City 41-yard line. They called a quarterback sneak for Josh Allen. The Chiefs stood Allen up near the line of scrimmage, but Allen appeared to gain just enough ground to reach the line of gain at the 40-yard line.
Sideline angles appeared to show that the ball just reached the 40-yard line, but a clear view of the ball was blocked on both angles that didn’t provide a definitive view.
Officials ruled Allen short on the field, then reviewed the play on replay. After review, referee Clete Blakeman announced the the ruling on the field would stand. The Bills turned the ball over on downs.
The Chiefs almost immediately cashed in on the turnover. Five plays later, Patrick Mahomes scrambled for a 10-yard touchdown. He followed up with a successful 2-point conversion pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster to give the Chiefs a 29-22 lead with 10:14 remaining.
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