Buffalo Bills kicker Tyler Bass missed what would have been a game-tying field goal late in his team’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night, and it appears he is trying to avoid as much of the backlash as he can.
The Bills were trailing 27-24 with 1:47 left in their Divisional Round playoff game against the Chiefs at Highmark Stadium. Bass attempted a 44-yard field goal that would have tied the game, but he pushed it badly wide right.
Kansas City took over and quickly picked up a first down, which allowed them to kneel out the rest of the clock and advance to the AFC Championship Game for the sixth consecutive year. The loss was Buffalo’s third straight in the Divisional Round.
After the game, Bass said the blame for the loss should be placed solely on him.
“Ultimately, it’s completely on me. I’ve got to do a better job of getting through to my target,” Bass said, via ESPN’s Alaina Getzenberg. “I’ve got to do a better job of playing it a little bit more left when you have a left-to-right [wind]. I’ve been here long enough to know that you have to do that. … I feel terrible, you know? I love this team and it hurts. This one hurts bad. Yeah, I’ve got to do a better job. Totally on me.”
Bass later deactivated all of his social media pages.
https://twitter.com/nojumper/status/1749443531658178783
While the Bills certainly would have had a better chance to win if Bass converted the field goal, there was plenty of blame to go around for the loss. Stefon Diggs had a deep pass go right off his hands in the fourth quarter on a play that would have set up a potential score. Buffalo’s offense missed plenty of other opportunities throughout the game as well.
Plus, the Chiefs would have had plenty of time remaining in a 27-27 game even if Bass made the field goal. There is no guarantee the Bills’ defense would have stopped Patrick Mahomes, who played very well in the second half.
Bills fans all had the same reaction to Bass’ miss. The tortured franchise has had many similar moments throughout the years, which is why they are still searching for their first ever Super Bowl win.
