Two Bills Drive

‘The Chiefs have the lowest-ranked defense in the NFL.’

‘Despite a 5-4 record and a piece of first place in the AFC East, the Bills’ 2-4 conference record is the worst of the 14 contenders, matched only by Jacksonville.’

‘Like tackling a running back at full speed, it is Gray who feels every one. And like other players who traded in their pads for a coach’s whistle, he has discovered that doing it yourself on the field is a lot easier than getting others to do it for you.’

‘”Some people just have a way with people,” Fletcher said. “He’s compassionate. He’s loyal. He’s a guy who’s tough but fair. We had tough practices. We’d be out there 3 1/2 hours sometimes, but he was also a fair person. Once you were one of his guys it was tough to fall out of his favor. He would go to bat for you. He was a guy players had a special relationship with.”‘

‘”It has been inconsistent, very inconsistent,” Vermeil said. “I treat the punter like I have in the past with a kicker, and that’s you stay with him until he punts himself out of a slump. Otherwise, you get somebody else and you don’t know what you’re going to get.”‘

‘For the season, opponents have converted 51 of 116 (44 percent) of third downs. That ranks 26th in the NFL.’

‘”We tick ’em off one week at a time,” Gilbride mused. “That’s the key: Don’t keep them ticked off for too long, just a week at a time.”‘

‘”I have always wanted to experience life in another country,” Ahanotu says. “So I said, ‘Well, if I’m in Buffalo I’m too close not to do it.'”‘

Gray has been under fire all season long for his defense’s poor play, and it seems that Williams is growing tired of the defense’s performance. Williams was visibly angry at Gray on the sideline after the Bills gave up a 45-yard TD to Kevin Faulk. With two weeks to prepare because of the bye week, the Bills’ game vs. Kansas City could be perceived as a yardstick game for both coaches’ futures.

Tony Gonzalez has not caught more than four passes in five of the Chiefs’ nine games. He’s been thrown to only 53 times (34 catches) — a woeful 20 percent of Trent Green’s passes. Is he under quarantine?

Bills 31, Chiefs 24

The Chiefs are excellent on the run, the Bills live by the pass, and each team has problems on defense against those strengths. A 21-17 victor in ’00, Buffalo has taken four of its last five from K.C.

8. The Music City Miracle

1999 wild card playoff game. Titans vs. Bills. Buffalo takes a 16-15 lead with 16 seconds remaining. Desperate Titans coach Jeff Fisher calls a trick play for the kickoff return, the "Home-Run Throwback." It works — Lorenzo Neal catches the ball and hands it to TE Frank Wycheck, who throws an overhand lateral cross-field to Kevin Dyson, who scampers 75 yards for the winning TD. He crosses the goal line with three seconds left. On the replay, the toss — which looks about as close to a perfectly sideways pass as can be — is ruled a legal lateral.

6. Buffalo Bills at KC Chiefs: For the past couple of games involving the Chiefs, everyone expected tons of points. That didn’t happen against the Raiders and 49ers because each team used ball-possession offenses that kept the Chiefs offense on the sidelines. Well, that might not happen this week. The Bills are giving up 29.9 points a game. They aren’t good at stopping teams with good offenses.

Starting free safety Pierson Prioleau will join Shout! reporters Mike Doser and Lary Bump in the Bills’ chat room Monday, Nov. 18, at 8 p.m. ET. Prioleau will take fans’ questions for an hour

‘”If they have a weakness,” Vermeil said, “they, too, have had a problem in giving up big plays, just like we have. They’ve given up 42 plays of 20 yards or more. Hopefully, we can take advantage of that as they will try to take advantage of our problems to date."’