Chiefs Vs. Bills: NFL's Highest-Rated Game in Years — And Taylor Swift Wasn't There
Sunday's Week 11 NFL matchup between the Bills and Chiefs was a game made for the fans. And they tuned in by the tens of millions.
The Kansas City Chiefs' visit to Highmark Stadium, losing to the Bills, proved to be a highlight for the league — drawing in the season's biggest TV audience for a single game. The game averaged 31.2 million viewers on CBS, as relayed by Awful Announcing.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. - Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills celebrates his rushing touchdown with teammates Khalil Shakir #10 Dawson Knox #88 against the Kansas City Chiefs during the fourth quarter at Highmark Stadium on November 17, 2024. (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images)
As a cherry on top, the highly rated game was not derailed by any Taylor Swift hype, as the pop star was unable to travel to Buffalo. According to Page Six, Taylor skipped the game in Buffalo for "security reasons."
It was a win-win for NFL fans; not so much for Swifties and Chiefs Kingdom.
With KC hanging onto an undefeated season in Week 11, Patrick Mahomes — whose record is 4-4 against the Bills all-time — and the Chiefs fell to an MVP performance put on by the Bills' QB, Josh Allen.
Josh Allen was the star of the event.
Allen sent Highmark into a frenzy in the fourth quarter after scrambling for a 26-yard touchdown, the go-ahead score in Buffalo's 30-21 win. He led Buffalo in passing and rushing, as well as scoring for that matter.
He completed 27 of 40 passes for 262 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Allen rushed 12 times for 56 yards and another score.
Patrick Mahomes failed to muster any chemistry with his wideouts all game. He threw the most completions to Xavier Worthy (4) and tossed two interceptions. Still, Mahomes kept KC in the game. He completed 23-of-33 for 196 yards, three touchdowns and two turnovers.
The heavyweight fight between Allen and Mahomes did not disappoint.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. - Josh Allen of the Buffalo Bills warms up before the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Highmark Stadium on November 17, 2024. (Photo by Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images)
Taylor Swift. (Photo by Erika Goldring/TAS24/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
READ: Going Undefeated 'Not Our Ultimate Goal' For Chiefs But Overcoming Bills Might Be Part Of It
The NFL's previous high mark dates back to Week 1's face-off between Kansas City and the Baltimore Ravens, averaging 29.2 million viewers. As Awful noted, Sunday's game between the Bills and Chiefs was the NFL's highest-rated, regular season and non-holiday game since Week 9 of the 2007 NFL season.
NFL fans can only hope that networks pay attention to the big numbers and break up with the Taylor Swift obsession, which is so 2023.
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