Josh Allen: It’s just a Week 11 game for us

Sunday’s game between the Bills and Chiefs is just the fifth time that two teams with at least eight wins played in Week 11 or earlier in the regular season, but that’s not the only reason why it’s a marquee game on the schedule.

The recent history between the two teams has also amped up the anticipation for the matchup. The Chiefs have been the big dog in the AFC for the last five seasons and the Bills have been one of the teams trying in vain to knock them off that perch. That’s led to seven meetings since the start of the 2020 season and the nature of this weekend’s game means that the winner will likely be seen as the team to beat in the AFC this season.

Bills quarterback Josh Allen is resisting efforts to read too much into the result of this game, however.

“It’s a Week 11 game,” Allen said, via the team’s website. “It’s no bigger and no less than the last 10 games that we’ve had. I know the media perception and the fan perception of what this game means. But for us, it’s just a Week 11 for us.”

History says Allen is right about reading too much into what this game means in the big picture. Buffalo has won regular season games between the teams the last three seasons, but the Chiefs came back to beat them in the playoffs in two of those years. That means a win on Sunday is unlikely to have much bearing on how the Bills do when the stakes are higher.