Evaluating Travis Kelce's Matchup Against Buffalo

Kelce Faces Tough, But Not Unbeatable, Defense

In what essentially many people believe is the de facto AFC Championship game this weekend, the Buffalo Bills will travel to Kansas City to take on the Chiefs. This is going to be an exciting matchup that could be full of fireworks or could be a defensive showdown. That's what makes this matchup so great, we don't know exactly what version of these teams we are going to get. In that case, I would look at the most recent games the teams have played to determine what they are for this game. Kansas City had a below-average passing offense for the first half of the season, ranking just 16th, but turned on the gas in the second half to vault all the way up to No. 1 in the league. Mahomes and company have lit it up lately.

Travis Kelce is one of, if not the best, tight ends in football. He's the ultimate security blanket for his QB, with sure hands and the ability to break things wide open in the middle of the field. When these two teams faced off earlier this season, Kelce finished with 6 catches for 57 yards and a TD. Those are some pretty good numbers, especially against a Bills defense that was one of the better ones in the league against tight ends.

Flash forward to now though, and you see a Buffalo defense that hasn't been nearly as good as it had been earlier in the year. They rank just 16th over the second half of the season against the run, which is scary when thinking about what Mahomes can do off of play action if Buffalo can't stop their running attack. The Bills will bring linebackers and safeties up towards the line of scrimmage to help the struggling run defense, which allows Kelce to get open over the middle.

Giving Props: Travis Kelce O/U 5.5 Receptions

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This is a tough one to bet, and the number seems spot on to me. Something tells me that Kelce will have a good game, however, and with the Buffalo defense having some tough games down the stretch of the season, I think he shows out at home in front of Chiefs Kingdom. Buffalo doesn't play as well on the road generally as they do at home, and the Chiefs passing attack has been the best in football over the latter half of the season.

Give me the over here for Kelce, as I'm going to make Buffalo prove it to me that they can stop him and Kansas City. Maybe they will, maybe they won't, but keep an eye out as always for injury information and line movement that could influence this pick.

Also, check out my full preview and prediction for this game!

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