Buffalo defense shines in Taylor-made victory

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Tyrod Taylor did exactly what he spent the first half of the season doing, back when the Buffalo Bills were off to a hot start and his job was never in question.

Taylor threw for 183 yards and a touchdown. He kept plays alive with his feet. He made sure to avoid interceptions.

Taylor’s steady performance against Kansas City yesterday dovetailed nicely with a stellar game by the Buffalo defense, capped off by Tre’Davious White’s interception with about a minute remaining that clinched a much-needed 16-10 victory against Alex Smith and the Chiefs.

“I just thought overall today we played good team offense,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “We ran the ball well at times. Tyrod used his feet well at times. We had some critical third-down conversions on drives, so there were some good things going on there. It wasn’t just one guy.”

Zay Jones had the touchdown reception and Stephen Hauschka kicked three field goals for the Bills (6-5), whose defense held Kansas City (6-5) to 236 yards of total offense.

“I think the three-game losing streak that we had has brought us closer and closer together than we already were,” White said, “the character of the guys we have in the locker room.”

Smith threw for 199 yards and a touchdown, but even the Chiefs’ lone score came on a catch-and-run by Albert Wilson. They were unable to complete much downfield, and with a ground game going nowhere, were ushered along to their fifth loss in six games.

The boos rang out when White stepped in front of Smith’s pass with 1:11 left and the Chiefs at the Buffalo 35. White nearly returned it for a touchdown before Smith finally tracked him down.

“A little shock there, no doubt,” Smith said. “Felt like we were going to bounce back, come back and get back into rhythm on offense. From the get-go, we didn’t do that.”

It was an especially gratifying win for McDermott, who spent 10-plus seasons working for Chiefs counterpart Andy Reid with the Philadelphia Eagles. And it was even more so considering the heat McDermott had been under after his questionable quarterback change last week.

Taylor wasn’t spectacular against Kansas City. But he was better than Nathan Peterman was against the Los Angeles Chargers, when he threw five picks in his first 14 attempts.

“This just shows the resiliency that this team has, and the type of character we have,” Jones said. “All of our goals are still insight. We see the big picture. Sometimes you lose games but that doesn’t define you. I’m really proud of this team for getting a win on the road.”