Relieved Jason Kelce admits Eagles kicker Jake Elliott ‘bailed me out pretty big’ by hitting 59-yard game-tying field goal vs. Bills after star center was flagged for TWO false start penalties

No one was happier to see Jake Elliott’s game-tying 59-yard field goal at the end of regulation time in Philadelphia on Sunday than his Eagles teammate Jason Kelce.

Trailing the visiting Buffalo Bills 31–28, Elliott helped push the game into overtime with the long-range kick before Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts sealed the victory in the extra frame with a 12-yard touchdown run.

But Elliott’s kick wouldn’t have been nearly as difficult if not for a pair of false start penalties against Kelce — a normally reliable veteran who ranks among the best centers in football after being named to five Pro Bowls.

In total, the two penalties added ten yards to the penalty, but as Kelce noted, Elliott “saved me quite a bit.”

“I think we’re all pretty confident even though it’s a hard kick,” Kelce said. “Jake has been as good as anyone, especially on the stretch that has had some meaning behind it since he’s been here. Jake the Make, whatever you want to call him. He’s been huge for us and I think even though it’s a tough kick, everyone was pretty confident in his ability to go out there and get it done for us.”

Eagles coach Nick Sirianni echoed that sentiment after the 37-34 overtime victory.

“There’s no one I’d rather have in the NFL than Jake Elliott,” Sirianni said. “Shoot, to me he’s the best kicker in the NFL. He’s so tight.’

While Kelce showed no regrets after Elliott’s kick, the Bills wondered how they could have let the win slip through their fingers on Sunday.

Josh Allen took a knee instead of taking a shot in the end zone to end the fourth quarter. He threw a pick that led to the Eagles’ go-ahead goal. The mistakes piled up for Buffalo: ten penalties in the first half, two missed field goals, a missed pass in the end zone.

Buffalo’s path to the postseason is as bleak as the weather in Philly when the teams struggled.

Allen was sensational in his rushes with two passing touchdowns and two rushing scores, but the end result was a 37-34 overtime loss to the Eagles on Sunday.

Was this the end of Buffalo’s playoff hopes?

The three-time defending AFC East champion Bills (6-6) have a week off to regroup from a demoralizing loss, but upcoming games against Kansas City and Dallas only complicate their path to the playoffs.

Buffalo has dropped four of six to get into this predicament: 2 1/2 games behind division leader Miami and trailing several teams in the wild-card race.

“I have a ton of confidence in our guys, the guys we have in our locker room,” Allen said.

They couldn’t show and change for 60 minutes – leading 17-7 at the half, 24-14 through three and 34-31 in OT.

Buffalo simply made too many mistakes, the kind that don’t show up in the box score.

Elliott then kicked his 59-yard field goal for the Eagles, tying the score at 31 with 20 seconds left. Now that there might be time for an act of desperation, Allen got down on his knee.

Buffalo fans cried on social media. Allen took a more diplomatic approach to the decision.

“That was the right decision,” he said.

In OT, Buffalo suffered a glaring miscommunication when Allen seemingly had wide receiver Gabe Davis for an open TD catch. Davis may have run the wrong route and the ball fell to the ground. The Bills settled for a field goal.

“I had a chance there to win the game and put it away,” Bills coach Sean McDermott said. “They made the plays that needed to be made, and we didn’t.”

Davis finished with six catches for 105 yards.

The Bills finished with a total of 505 yards and 13 third-down conversions. But they were just the latest team to discover that it takes so much more to beat the NFC champion Eagles, especially in Philly.

“We understand where we stand,” Allen said. “We’ve got to get things moving.”

They have plenty to clean up to get back to the postseason.

With McDermott refusing to address the referee, the Bills were whistled for 10 penalties in the first half and for 85 total yards. Tyler Bass had a field goal attempt blocked late in the first half and missed a 48-yarder early in the third.

Allen, who was 29 of 51 for 339 yards, ran and threw for a score in the first half. He added a 16-yard run in the third quarter, extending the lead to 24-14. If not for James Cook’s loss in the first quarter, he could have gotten one more TD pass.

Allen’s lone interception was memorable. He was picked off by James Bradbury in the fourth quarter, setting up Jalen Hurts’ 29-yard TD pass to Olamide Zaccheaus for a 28-24 Eagles lead.

Allen’s play and the offense’s struggles in general led to the firing of offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey and the promotion of quarterbacks coach Joe Brady before the Bills’ 32-6 defeat of the Jets last Sunday.

Brady and Allen were in sync again against the Eagles. But the defense couldn’t stop Hurts — he accounted for five career touchdowns — and special teams cost Buffalo at least six points.

Allen had his eighth rushing and passing game this season and the seventh multi-rushing TD game of his career. He tried valiantly to foot the bill – but it will take more than one man’s effort to move forward.

“We have to attack for the rest of the season,” he said.