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Edwards, Bills carve up Chiefs

Nov 23, 2008 - 11:46 PM By Marc Bowman PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- The Buffalo Bills converted three second-quarter takeaways into 17 points on their way to a 54-31 rout over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

Trent Edwards ran for two touchdowns and completed 24-of-32 passes for 273 yards and two scores as the Bills (6-5) snapped a four-game losing streak.

Edwards also completed touchdown passes to Josh Reed and Derek Schouman in racking up the second-highest point total in the NFL this season and the most points by the Bills in over 42 years.

"Obviously, he performed very well," Bills coach Dick Jauron said of Edwards. "This is the guy that we believe in. There he is. No matter who you are at that position, no matter how many years you play, there are going to be ups and downs. He's just learning how to play and he played very well and handled everything very well today."

Trailing 14-13 midway through the second quarter, Buffalo grabbed a 20-14 lead when Leodis McKelvin picked off Tyler Thigpen and returned it 64 yards for a touchdown, one of five turnovers by Kansas City (1-10), which lost its seventh straight game.

"I was trying to make a play and get some turnovers," McKelvin said. "It was a cover-two zone. You go back to the beginning of the game when (Chiefs tight end) Tony Gonzalez caught a corner route, I was actually a little late. But this time I got back there and (Thigpen) threw the ball. I just went there and got it."

The teams traded field goals before McKelvin again picked off Thigpen, this time setting up a 15-yard touchdown run by Edwards as the Bills took a 30-17 lead into halftime.

"It's always disappointing when you lose," Thigpen said. "It really is. But, I put this one on my shoulders. I can't turn the ball over. I threw two picks and had a fumble and I can't do that. That's the bottom line. You can't win games when you do that."

Buffalo opened the second half with another touchdown run by Edwards, for 5 yards, then turned a Thigpen fumble into a 38-yard field goal by Rian Lindell for a 40-17 lead with 10:05 left in the third quarter.

"There were a couple of plays in (that drive) where we had a chance to get some extra yards if I ran," Edwards said. "The one at the end of the half was definitely a close call on my part. I needed to make sure I got into the end zone because we were out of timeouts. We were facing the same situation last week and we practiced this play all week. We were faced with the same situation and, unfortunately, no one was open, so I had a chance to run it in."

Marshawn Lynch had 79 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries, while Lee Evans caught five passes for 110 yards as the Bills ran up the most points ever allowed by the Chiefs.

"I'm disappointed, but when you coach a team like this you never take anything for granted," Kansas City head coach Herm Edwards said. "We've got to get out of it. They'll have to come back. They came back after the Tennessee game. We went on the road and played and had a chance to win a football game. They're going to have to learn that. It's part of the learning process."

Former Chiefs linebacker Kawika Mitchell received a rude welcome home on Kansas City's first drive, getting burned on a 36-yard touchdown pass from Thigpen to rookie Jamaal Charles for an early 7-0 lead.

The Bills answered quickly, shredding the Chiefs defense on four consecutive gains of 10 or more yards before Lynch capped the drive with a 1-yard plunge on fourth down to tie the score midway through the first period.

Following a three-and-out in which Thigpen was sacked and barely avoided a safety, Buffalo took advantage of excellent field position, driving from the Chiefs 40 to the 3 before the Kansas City defense stiffened, forcing a 21-yard field goal by Lindell for a 10-7 lead on the first play of the second quarter.

"We were getting good field position both with special teams and as a result of turnovers," Trent Edwards said. "Our defense was forcing some turnovers for us. We got our run game going, which set up a lot of our play-action passing."

On the next drive, Larry Johnson rambled 63 yards to set up Thigpen's 2-yard scoring strike to Tony Gonzalez as the Chiefs regained the lead, 14-10.

"We keep playing hard," Gonzalez said. "It's not OK to lose like we did today, but there is acceptance when you play hard. I don't think these guys understand how good they can be. The

season's not over yet. Our mission is to win the last five."

Johnson had 81 yards on seven carries while Gonzalez caught 10 passes for 113 yards and one touchdown. Thigpen completed 17-of-31 passes for 240 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions.