Here’s what KC Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes saw on the final interception vs. Buffalo Bills

Patrick Mahomes wanted to throw to JuJu Smith-Schuster.

That’s the first thing you need to know about Buffalo’s game-clinching interception in the Bills’ 24-20 victory over the Chiefs on Sunday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

Mahomes, however, ended up trying to throw to Skyy Moore on a shallow cross on KC’s final possession with 51 seconds left when Taron Johnson picked it off.

This play for Buffalo though — like many in football — was the result of more than one player executing his assignment well.

The end zone view shows a good look at this through Mahomes’ eyes. He said after the game his initial read against the Bills’ zone coverage (to his right side, at least) was to aim for Smith-Schuster on a corner route.

That takes some time to develop. First, Smith-Schuster needed to get between the Bills’ shallow and deep defenders on the sideline, and before he could get there, Buffalo’s Von Miller pressured Mahomes with his predetermined inside rush.

“It was a great team play,” Miller said. “It feels good to go out there and do your job.”

With the inside move, Miller shifted Mahomes to his right, where Buffalo linebacker Matt Milano closed quickly while serving as a QB spy. Mahomes said he was still looking for Smith-Schuster — you can see Mahomes pump-fake that way on replay — but Milano was in the path of the throw, jumping up to try to deflect it.

Mahomes then lowered his eyes to Moore, who had a trailing defender because the Bills were playing man coverage to Moore’s side of the field (as detailed in an analysis video by The Ringer’s Benjamin Solak).

While trying to get a pass around Milano, Mahomes remained off-platform. That threw off his timing and gave him less oomph on his heave to Moore.

Playing in his zone area, Johnson made a break on the ball, leaping in front of Moore to snatch it for the Bills’ second pick of the day.

“I was running my shallow cross. I didn’t see him in my vision,” Moore said of Johnson. “I just tried to find space or whatever, but he made a good play on the ball.”

Mahomes credited Buffalo’s defense afterward, while Bills teammates also lauded Johnson’s instincts and closing speed.

“I told him that was one of the greatest plays that I have seen on the field,” Buffalo safety Jordan Poyer said. “The situation, the moment — that was just a hell of a play for this team.”

The interception was one of the game’s most significant moments; according to the advanced stats at rbsdm.com, Johnson’s pick was worth 19% win-probability added to Buffalo, making it the second-largest swing of any play in Sunday’s contest.

It wasn’t just an individual effort, though. Miller started the domino effect with his rush, capping off a day where he already had registered two sacks.

“You could feel him,” Buffalo coach Sean McDermott said of Miller. “Whether or not he was actually sacking Mahomes, he was affecting him.”

Milano and Johnson came through on the rest, ensuring that the ball never made it to its intended target.

And that Mahomes couldn’t go downfield to Smith-Schuster on his preliminary read.

“(Mahomes) was trying to make something happen. Normally, he does,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “That one, the guy made a nice play on it.”