How cruel is the Chiefs’ dynasty? Look at how the Bills have suffered.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the fourth time in five Januarys, the scary movie ended with the same scene. Josh Allen stood in front of a microphone, beaten and bothered, after a playoff loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

The quarterback stayed in his white Buffalo Bills uniform, as if hoping the officials would call him back onto the field for one more play, one more chance to prove he’s more than the greatest victim of the Patrick Mahomes era. With grass stains on both shoulders, Allen’s No. 17 jersey made you think he had been trampled.

It probably would’ve felt better if he had.

Instead, he felt a piercing, emotional pain. He spoke in short sentences. Every word sounded heavy, unbearable. The anguish was too familiar. Allen had come so close again, only to realize how far the Bills remain from being on the same level as the Chiefs. If not for Kansas City, Buffalo might own the NFL. Then again, if not for Kansas City, the Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers and, yes, the Philadelphia Eagles – who are about to face the Chiefs for the second time in three Super Bowls – might not have lonely ring fingers, either. They are the most prominent teams to challenge these Chiefs for NFL supremacy. All of them have been forced to trudge into the background. All of them have had to shake their heads and bow to greatness.

“They’re the best,” Allen said. “We just want to get it done, and we haven’t been able to.”

Buffalo’s latest round of misery came during a 32-29 setback in the AFC championship game. The Chiefs are headed to their fifth Super Bowl with Mahomes as their quarterback. They will try to add a fourth title to their dynasty and become the first team in history to win three straight Super Bowls. And on the other side, the Bills have done something unprecedented, too. They’re the first franchise to lose in the playoffs to the same team four times in a span of five seasons. Allen can’t beat Mahomes, his nemesis. Coach Sean McDermott can’t beat Andy Reid, his former boss. The last three of those games have been decided by 12 total points, including a 42-36 overtime display of flawless quarterbacking three years ago.

They can be so cruel, those merciless Chiefs. What did the Bills ever do to them? Nothing, besides dream. Oh, the nerve of the Bills, to think the Chiefs would leave room another aspiring team.

Kansas City doesn’t share championship ambitions with anyone, especially not the most worthy contenders. To be an NFL dynasty, you must pillage. There’s no way to collect trophies peacefully in a league designed to reject hoarders. To get theirs, the Chiefs have to take yours in the most soul-crushing manner. The Bills know the demoralizing feeling too well.

“It’s not fun,” Allen said. “But to be the champs, you’ve got to beat the champs. We just didn’t do it.”

They didn’t do it Sunday. They didn’t do it during a 27-24 divisional round loss last season. They didn’t do it in that overtime classic three years ago. They didn’t do it four years ago, during an AFC title game that they led 9-0 before falling apart in a 38-24 defeat. Buffalo has made the postseason and won at least one playoff game in each of the past five seasons. It has a 61-22 regular season record during that span, second only to Kansas City’s 66-18 mark. The Bills have outscored opponents by 786 points during this run, an average of more than nine points per game. Nevertheless, they can’t overcome the Chiefs when the stakes are highest.

In the regular season, Allen is 4-1 against Kansas City. But we only remember the four playoff setbacks. In nine total matchups, the score is 245-240 in Allen’s favor. But we only remember the torment.

No team is more equipped than the Chiefs to win by any means necessary. They have won a record 17 straight games decided by one possession. They’ve lost their ego about everything, except for winning. That makes them the sports version of a villain, but don’t blame the Chiefs for exploiting an opportunity.

The NFL is full of teams that know how to lose. It’s rare to find one that knows how to win – and won’t regret whatever happens in the future.

“We’ve got to keep working to get over that hump,” McDermott said. “There’s no doubt about it. … This is, obviously a challenge for us. We’ll figure it out.”

Or maybe they won’t, without significant change.

But why should a really good team risk altering itself too much just to beat one team?

The Bills lost this one by an inch here and a play there. Early in the fourth quarter, with Buffalo leading 22-21, Allen couldn’t convert a tush-push play on fourth down and inches at the Kansas City 41-yard line. Officials ruled him short, even though one crew member seemed to object. The play was reviewed, but there wasn’t sufficient evidence to overturn the call. Needing only 59 yards to score after the stop, Kansas City raced into the end zone in five plays, with Mahomes darting through the defense for a 10-yard touchdown run. After a successful two-point conversion attempt, the Chiefs led 29-22.

“It looked like he got to it,” McDermott said of Allen’s fourth-down run.

Said Reid: “This came down to an inch, literally. That’s what the stop was.”

However, Allen wouldn’t relent. He led the Bills down the field for a game-tying touchdown, finding Curtis Samuel in the back of the end zone to knot the score at 29 with 6:15 remaining. Early in the game, they climbed out of a 21-10 hole. Now, they had erased a 29-22 deficit. Allen, who threw for 237 yards and two touchdowns, seemed ready to win a shootout when the Bills regained possession with 3½ minutes remaining after holding the Chiefs to a field goal. Kansas City led 32-29, but this was Buffalo’s moment. To be frank, it was Allen’s moment.

“We’re down three with the ball in Josh’s hands,” McDermott said. “I felt good about our chances.”

But just after the two-minute warning, the Bills faced fourth down. Kansas City blitzed, and Allen tried to lob a pass to tight end Dalton Kincaid. It hung in the air like a night. Kincaid dove to catch the pass, but it slipped through his hands. The Chiefs were about to outlast the Bills again.

“That Buffalo team was as good as we had ever played,” Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce said.

Yet the Bills didn’t have enough to end the torture. Mahomes threw for 245 yards and accounted for three touchdowns, two of which came on the ground. He used his legs again and again to make key plays. For the 12th time this season, the Chiefs triumphed in a one-score game, and they did it despite being outgained slightly and losing the turnover battle.

Just when you think Kansas City is running out of ways to win close games, it summons more determination.

“We’re not done,” Reid said. “We’re not done.”

They’re only done with Buffalo. Now comes a Super Bowl rematch with Philadelphia, a hungry team with more top-end talent. There are many reasons to believe that this is the Eagles’ time. Except the Chiefs don’t share. They feast on the worthy.

As Allen walked to the locker room Sunday night, he could hear Kansas City still celebrating on the field. The crowd roared. Muffled voices gave speeches. The music vibrated through the bowels of the stadium. The quarterback remained stoic, staring straight ahead.

The locker room door flung open, and Allen trudged toward privacy. Five minutes later, the Chiefs brushed confetti off their shoulders and left the field, looking as giddy and vicious as ever.