“Don’t Pat Yourself on the Back”: Veteran Analyst Delivers Reality Check to the Bills After Chiefs Win

When it comes to the regular season, the Buffalo Bills really seem to have the Kansas City Chiefs’ number. They beat them again this past Sunday, 28-21, improving Buffalo’s regular-season record against K.C. in the Josh Allen era to 5-1. Still, that’s not something to get overly excited about.

In stark contrast, the Chiefs have taken down the Bills four times in the playoffs over the last five years. That pattern of regular-season triumphs followed by postseason heartbreak is precisely why FS1’s Colin Cowherd urged Bills fans to temper their celebrations after that Week 9 win.

Aside from that brutal playoff record, Cowherd believes the Chiefs are still the better team even after losing to Buffalo. As he sees it, the Chiefs have all the horses they need. They’re just not all healthy right now. But they will be.

“Trade deadline tomorrow, Buffalo needs to go out and upgrade. This was an instructive win. Kansas City is probably just going to get healthier up front. They’re gonna cross their fingers a little. Buffalo’s got a hole. They got a hole,” Cowherd said on his show, The Herd.

What Cowherd is referring to here is Kansas City’s sudden depth issues at tackle, a crucial position considering the Chiefs are 1-3 this year when Patrick Mahomes is hit 7+ times. First-round rookie left tackle Josh Simmons has been away from the team for the past few weeks due to a personal matter. And then they lost their right tackle, Jawaan Taylor, to an ankle injury during the Buffalo game. Both, however, could be back any day.

Buffalo, meanwhile, has a “hole” at wide receiver. Khalil Shakir has been great out of the slot, with 399 yards and three TDs on 38 receptions. But their outside receivers, Keon Coleman and Josh Palmer, who both have fewer than 300 yards, have not been cutting it.

“So Buffalo, don’t pat yourself on the back. Howie Roseman’s already made a move. Go upgrade wide receiver. Go upgrade wide receiver. You beat em, it doesn’t mean you’re gonna beat em in January.”

The trade deadline comes up later this afternoon, and while there have been a lot more significant trades than usual, the Bills have not taken part in any of them. And there have been multiple significant wide receiver trades as well.

Jakobi Meyers was shipped to the Jaguars, and Rashid Shaheed is headed to the Seahawks. Young wideouts with potential like Ja’Lynn Polk and Adonai Mitchell have also moved to the Saints and Jets, respectively. But still not a sniff from the Bills.