Josh Allen flexingBuffalo Bills photo

Get ready for more Patrick Mahomes against Josh Allen. Even if they don’t meet again in the AFC playoffs, they’re likely to continue their rivalry well into the future.

Over their next three visits, Mahomes and the Chiefs will get a unique timelapse view of the new Highmark Stadium, under construction across the street from where they’ll meet the Bills in an AFC showdown this week. That’s because after the Chiefs depart the current Highmark Stadium on Sunday, they’re likely headed back to Buffalo each of the next two seasons.

The NFL’s 2025 schedule matrix has slotted the team that finishes this season first in the AFC West to visit the team that finishes first in the AFC East. With eight games to play, Kansas City (9-0) enters Sunday’s contest (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS) with a three-game lead in its division. Buffalo (8-2) has a 4½ game lead in the AFC East with seven games remaining.

The following year, when Buffalo’s new stadium is expected to open in 2026, Kansas City’s trip to Western New York is already set in stone. Regardless of where the Chiefs and Bills finish in their respective 2025 division races, Buffalo’s first year in its new $1.7 billion stadium will feature the Chiefs, Chargers, Bears and Lions, in addition to the three other AFC East teams and a to-be-determined opponent from the AFC North.

That’s great news for anyone with an interest in the NFL. For starters, Sunday’s game between Mahomes and Allen is historic. Since 1970, when the Chiefs and Bills joined eight other AFL teams in merging with the established NFL, only four other games have matched teams with eight-or-more wins in Week 11 or before. And none of those prior four games have failed to produce an eventual Super Bowl team.

Buffalo might be playing Sunday for the opportunity to host Kansas City again in the AFC playoffs. The Bills possibly represent the AFC’s last hope to keep the Chiefs from securing homefield advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. After Sunday, the undefeated Chiefs have the Panthers (3-7), Raiders (2-7), Chargers (6-3) and Browns (2-7).

For more information on the Bills and Chiefs, visit the Buffalo and Kansas City team pages at ProFootballPost.com.


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By Zak Gilbert

Since his freshman year at the University of Colorado, Zak Gilbert has worked 30 years in sports, including 18 NFL seasons. He's spent time with four NFL teams, serving as head of communications for both the Raiders and Browns. A veteran of nine Super Bowls, he most recently worked six seasons in the NFL's New York league office.

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