Joe Thuney injury update: Chiefs win over Bills may have come at cost

The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Buffalo Bills, 27-24, in a thrilling AFC Divisional Round matchup on Sunday night. Andy Reid and company will now advance to the conference championship game for the sixth straight season, facing the No. 1 seed Baltimore Ravens next Sunday, Jan. 28, at 3:00 PM E.T.

It's a historic accomplishment for the Chiefs and a bitter disappointment for the Bills, who hoped to finally gain the advantage at home. Kansas City will face another difficult road test a week from now, but the challenge could be even greater than expected after the team received bad injury news.

All-Pro guard Joe Thuney, a three-time Super Bowl champ, will undergo an MRI for an injury to his right pectoral muscle. Thuney appeared to suffer the injury in the fourth quarter of Kansas City's win.

Chiefs' Joe Thuney to undergo MRI ahead of AFC championship game

This would be a massive loss for the Chiefs. Thuney's impact is perfectly encapsulated by one stat from Sunday's game. In 13 matchups with Buffalo's star defensive tackle Ed Oliver, Thuney allowed zero pressures. He has been arguably the best guard in the NFL this season. It gets much harder to execute on offense without Thuney's blanketing presence in the trenches.

It's often difficult to quantify the contributions of offensive linemen, but Thuney helped pave the way for a productive night from Kansas City's stars. Patrick Mahomes was comfortable in the pocket all game, completing 17-of-23 passes (73.9 percent) for 215 yards and two scores. Isiah Pacheco was dominant on the ground, recording 15 carries for 97 yards and a touchdown.

If Thuney is unable to suit up, the Chiefs will turn to Nick Allegretti, a five-year NFL vet and the Chiefs' seventh-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Thuney was listed as "questionable" to return at the time of the injury, so there's still hope he can suit up for the Ravens game. Kansas City's offensive line deserves more credit for the sustained success of this unit. All of Mahomes' free-styling brilliance doesn't work without time to make his reads and work his magic.

Few stars have been more dependable for Kansas City over the years than Thuney. The 31-year-old started all 17 regular season games for the Chiefs. One has to imagine he will do everything in his power to play if it's possible.