By The Numbers: Chiefs, Bills face off in fourth playoff meeting between Allen, Mahomes

For the fourth time in the past five seasons, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs will take on Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills in the playoffs.

Mahomes looks to lead the Chiefs to a third consecutive Super Bowl win, while Allen attempts to get the Bills over the hump and reach the Super Bowl for the first time in his career.

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The Chiefs hold a 3-0 advantage over the Bills in the playoffs, most recently winning 27-24 in last season’s AFC Divisional Round matchup in Buffalo. 

Allen and Mahomes Head-to-Head

Tom Brady and Peyton Manning (five times) are the only two quarterbacks to have met in the playoffs more than Mahomes and Allen.

The two quarterbacks are 4-4 lifetime against each other, including the playoffs. Allen and the Bills hold a 4-1 record against Mahomes in the regular season, including a 30-21 win back on Nov. 17 to hand the Chiefs their first loss of the season.

Statistically, Allen has been the more effective quarterback over their eight meetings, leading his team to more offensive yards per game and touchdowns while turning the ball over fewer times.

The numbers are much closer during their playoff matchups, with Allen and the Bills holding a small advantage in total offence (343.3 vs. 337) while Mahomes has yet to turn the ball over in the playoffs against the Bills. 

Mahomes and Allen have combined for 18 offensive touchdowns head-to-head in the playoffs, the most combined TDs between any two quarterbacks in playoff history. Only Brady and Manning have combined for more total yards (2,649). With 191 total points in three matchups, Allen and Mahomes only trail Brady-Manning (213) and Brady - Joe Flacco  (197) for the most combined points between two quarterbacks in the playoffs.

Mahomes and Allen have a combined average of 63.7 points per game, 5.0 more than any other quarterback matchup in the playoffs since 1950. Dan Marino and Jim Kelly averaged the second-most PPG in their three matchups at 58.7.

Mahomes is looking to become the first quarterback to defeat another four times in the playoffs. As it stands, the Mahomes-Allen matchup is one of seven matchups where one QB holds three wins over another: Brady over Philip Rivers, Manning over Brady, Brett Favre over Steve Young, Troy Aikman over Favre, Jim Kelly over Dan Marino, John Elway over Bernie Kosar.

Allen is 7-2 in his playoff career against teams other than the Chiefs, with his only losses coming to the Houston Texans in 2020 and the Cincinnati Bengals in 2023. The 28-year-old will also look to win his first road playoff game, having gone 0-3 thus far in his career with two of those losses coming at Arrowhead Stadium.

Mahomes on the cusp of history 

With a win on Sunday, Mahomes would become the third quarterback to start five Super Bowls, joining Brady (10) and John Elway (5). However, Mahomes would become the first to start five Super Bowls before age 30 as Brady was 34 and Elway was 38 when they started their fifth Super Bowls.

With Mahomes at the helm, the Chiefs have reached the AFC Championship game in seven consecutive seasons. The only team with a longer streak is the New England Patriots, who made eight straight AFC Championship games from 2011-18 with Brady at the helm.

The 29-year-old has won eight consecutive playoff games, the second longest streak by a quarterback in the Super Bowl era, trailing Brady’s 10-game streak, and is currently tied with Joe Montana for the second-most playoff wins by a QB in NFL history. 

If the Chiefs were to advance and win their third consecutive Super Bowl, Mahomes would become the fourth quarterback in NFL history with four or more Super Bowl victories, joining Brady (7), Joe Montana (4), and Terry Bradshaw (4). 

Mahomes has brought his game to another level since the Chiefs’ loss to Allen and the Bills in Week 11, throwing 12 touchdowns and no interceptions, while leading the Chiefs to a 7-0 record as a starter.

Bills on a roll

Despite losing top wide receiver Stefon Diggs in the off-season, Allen has led the Bills to one of the best offensive seasons in NFL history. Buffalo scored 30+ points in 12 games this season, second most all-time. 

The Bills led the NFL with 32 rush touchdowns this season and were the first team in NFL history with 30+ rushing and 30+ passing touchdowns in a season. 

The Bills were the first team in the Super Bowl era to allow fewer than 15 sacks and commit fewer than 15 giveaways in the same season. They are the third team in the Super Bowl era to allow the fewest sacks and fewest giveaways in the same season. The 1974 Arizona Cardinals lost in the Divisional Round and the 1998 Dallas Cowboys lost in the Wild Card Round.

Allen was sacked just 14 times in 2024, the fewest in the NFL and the second-fewest sacks allowed in Bills history (12 in the strike-shortened 1982 season).

The Bills offensive line was elite this season, becoming the first unit in the Super Bowl era to allow fewer than one sack per game. At 0.82 per game, Buffalo’s offensive line allowed the fewest sacks per game since the 2009 Indianapolis Colts (0.81).