As NFL Week 9 approaches, fans are getting ready for what can be the game of the season. The Buffalo Bills will host the Kansas City Chiefs at Highmark Stadium in a blockbuster SNF clash. Both teams have emerged as some of the best over recent years. This time around, the Chiefs have an incredible opportunity to improve their regular-season record against the Bills thanks to their strong defense. Buffalo’s 4-1 record over Kansas City may not hold if the Chiefs exploit the Bills’ biggest offensive issue, which experts say has haunted them all year.

Through the 2025-26 NFL season, QB Josh Allen and the Bills have been vulnerable against defenses that constantly blitz. Addressing this issue ahead of the Chiefs’ game on the One Bills Live show, Senior NFL analyst Greg Cosell highlighted, “There have been too many free rushers, free hitters at Josh this year. So, I don’t know if that’s on Josh or on the protection.”

The Bills faced similar issues against the Carolina Panthers in Week 8. Explaining how the Chiefs could exploit this weakness, Cosell spoke about their defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, and his unique blitz style.

The NFL analyst said, “There were a couple of clear protection mistakes last week, but that’s something that has to be cleaned up because Spags is not necessarily a high percentage blitzer, but he’s a situational blitzer and he’s really, really good at it.”

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Buffalo’s inconsistency in pass protection against complex pressure schemes has left Josh Allen open to being sacked. This was prominently evident against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 6, where Allen was sacked four times. Of these four sacks, three were during a blitz. The Bills will need to be extra cautious against Kansas and secure a win. That task may have gotten for Josh Allen.

Josh Allen handed unfortunate news ahead of Chiefs’ clash

After the Week 7 bye, Josh Allen led the Buffalo Bills to their most dominant win of the season against the Carolina Panthers. The 40-9 triumph was crucial in ending the Bills’ two-game losing streak. Running back James Cook III was the best performer against Carolina, thanks to his 19 carries for 216 yards and two scores. However, the Bills won despite the absence of their best-performing wide receiver, Joshua Palmer.

Unfortunately for Buffalo, Palmer has also been ruled out against the Kansas City Chiefs. As confirmed in the Bills’ injury report, “Palmer did not practice on Wednesday and was a limited participant for Thursday’s practice.” The third-round pick from the 2021 NFL Draft has quickly become a dependable target for Josh Allen, giving the Bills much-needed depth and reliability in the passing game.

Through six games in the 2025-26 season, Palmer emerged as a top option for Josh Allen with 14 catches for 234 yards. But against the Falcons, the former Tennessee Volunteers WR suffered an ankle injury, keeping him out over the bye week and against the Panthers. Now with the Chiefs breathing down their necks on Sunday, Josh Allen and Co. will need an impressive performance to get the win.