As temperatures drop in Kansas City and the city braces for a deep freeze, Chiefs fans might find the perfect way to warm up this weekend: reliving some of the unforgettable playoff moments from the Patrick Mahomes era.
There’s no shortage of options. You’ve got three Super Bowl victories to choose from, including the most recent title runs that have cemented this team’s dynasty status.
There’s the jaw-dropping 51-31 comeback win over the Texans in the Divisional Round - a game that turned into an offensive avalanche after a 24-0 deficit. And of course, there’s the AFC Championship win over the Bengals, a gritty, hard-fought battle that helped secure another trip to the big stage.
But if you’re talking about pure drama, emotional swings, and legacy-defining moments, one game stands alone: the “13 Seconds” game against the Buffalo Bills.
Four years ago to the day, the Chiefs and Bills played a postseason classic that still echoes through the NFL. Kansas City pulled off a 42-36 overtime win that felt more like a Hollywood script than a football game. And it wasn’t just the final score - it was how it happened.
With just 13 seconds left in regulation, down by three, Mahomes and the Chiefs somehow managed to get into field goal range and force overtime. Two quick completions - one to Tyreek Hill, another to Travis Kelce - and Harrison Butker nailed the game-tying kick.
Then in overtime, the Chiefs won the toss, Mahomes marched down the field, and just like that, the game was over. Buffalo never touched the ball again.
For Chiefs fans, it was a moment of euphoria. For the Bills, it was something else entirely.
Buffalo hasn’t reached a Super Bowl in the Josh Allen era, and the shadow of that game has loomed large ever since. This week, the Bills made a major move by firing head coach Sean McDermott - a decision that’s stirred plenty of debate in Western New York and beyond.
Tyler Dunne, founder of the “Go Long” platform, spoke about the long-term impact of that loss during an appearance on The Colin Cowherd Podcast. Dunne believes that “13 seconds” wasn’t just a heartbreaking defeat - it was a psychological turning point for the franchise.
According to Dunne, McDermott overruled his special teams coordinator on the final kickoff, opting for a touchback instead of a squib. That decision gave Mahomes the full field to work with - and as we know now, 13 seconds was more than enough. In the locker room afterward, Dunne says McDermott deflected blame, pointing fingers at his staff and suggesting the offense had left too much time on the clock.
It was a moment that, in Dunne’s view, should’ve been the catalyst for change. “If you could rewrite history,” he said, “that would have been a moment to move on to a new coach right then. Upgrade while you’re on the rise, after ‘13 seconds.’”
Whether or not you agree with that take, it’s hard to ignore the ripple effects. The Bills have remained contenders, but they haven’t been able to get over the hump. And now, they’re starting over at the top.
And they’re not alone.
This week also saw the Ravens part ways with longtime head coach John Harbaugh, despite another strong regular season. And while Baltimore’s postseason exit wasn’t as dramatic as Buffalo’s infamous night at Arrowhead, the reasoning behind both moves might have more in common than you’d think.
Michael Silver of The Athletic offered a blunt assessment: blame Mahomes.
In a recent column, Silver argued that both the Bills and Ravens are victims of their own high standards - standards shaped in large part by the presence of No. 15 in Kansas City. As Silver put it, “Both owners got tired of waiting. And, significantly, they got tired of living in the shadow of Patrick Mahomes.”
Mahomes, of course, wasn’t part of this year’s playoff picture. A torn ACL cut his season short, and for the first time in a long time, the AFC playoffs didn’t run through Kansas City. That opened the door - at least in theory - for Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen to finally break through.
But the door slammed shut just as quickly.
Jackson and the Ravens fell short. Allen and the Bills came up short again. And even in his absence, Mahomes remains the measuring stick - the player who defines what it means to win in this league.
So as Kansas City hunkers down this weekend, maybe it’s worth revisiting that wild January night in 2022. Watch the “13 Seconds” game.
Relive the magic. Because in a league where windows close fast and legacies are fragile, that moment didn’t just define a game - it helped define an era.
And for the Chiefs, it was just another chapter in the Mahomes story. For the Bills? It might’ve been the moment that changed everything.