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alaina getzenbergESPN
ORCHARD PARK, NY — The Buffalo Bills return to Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, where the team’s hopes of a back-to-back AFC Championship Game appearance fell short last season in one of the biggest playoff games ever. action packed all time. . But for the latest installment of Bills-Chiefs (Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET, CBS), Buffalo is bouncing back at just the right time with several starters returning to the lineup after missing last week’s 38-3 win. against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
On the defensive end, safety Jordan Poyer (ribs), linebacker Tremaine Edmunds (hamstring) and rookie cornerback Christian Benford (hand) are all listed with no injury designations. Poyer practiced fully Friday for the first time since Week 2. He suffered the rib injury while catching the second of two fourth-quarter interceptions in the Bills’ 23-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4.
Edmunds missed last week’s game against the Steelers, while Benford returns after breaking his hand, an injury that required surgery, in Week 3 against the Dolphins. Fellow rookie cornerback Kaiir Elam has started in his place. The two had been rotating to the corner opposite Dane Jackson when all three were healthy. This game will be a true test for the young Bills cornerbacks against quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who leads the league in touchdown passes (15).
“I am very happy that [Elam’s] we’ve been able to get some exposure, get some work that we can coach from a coaching standpoint,” defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier said. “Get some tape that we can look at, see where we need to grow, especially this time of year. in October. This is good for him, it’s also good for us to see the things we need to do to continue to carry him.”
The Bills also opened 2019 All-Pro cornerback Tre’Davious White’s 21-day practice window on Wednesday, but he remains on the reserve/physically unable to perform list as he recovers from a torn ACL. Coach Sean McDermott ruled White out against the Chiefs earlier in the week.
The only Bills players with injury designations are wide receiver Jake Kumerow, who is ruled out with an ankle injury, and defensive tackle Jordan Phillips, who is questionable with a hamstring injury.
Despite Kumerow’s absence, quarterback Josh Allen will regain some of his receiving options with tight end Dawson Knox (foot/hamstring) and starting wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie (concussion) returning to the lineup. after both missed last week’s game. Knox had a big game against the Chiefs in the Bills’ regular-season win last year, catching three passes for 117 yards and a touchdown.
Wide receiver Gabe Davis, who caught four touchdown passes in the postseason matchup in January, has dealt with an ankle injury for several weeks but is getting back on his feet. He put in a historic performance against the Steelers, finishing with 171 yards and two touchdowns on three receptions.
“I know [Davis had] I’ve been dealing with a little bit of an ankle and missed a game, but the more we can get him involved on offense and the ability he has, he’s second to none for blowing up the top of a defense,” Allen said. But again, you see him in the running game, you see him getting dirty, you see him blocking his receivers on the rim. He just does whatever you ask him to do and he just keeps making plays. So, I love what he brings to our offense. I love the person that he is and how he carries himself, how hard he works. He is a special cat.”
Expectations are high with the Bills favored 2.5 over the Chiefs, according to Caesars Sportsbook, which would end Mahomes’ 41-game streak, including the playoffs, of being favored in home games as a starter, the longest streak as home favorite to start a run in the Super Bowl era.