ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — Yes, the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs are sure to produce a memorable game, as they always do, in Week 11.
And yes, they are both legit Super Bowl contenders with all-world quarterbacks, stingy defenses, and in general, a winning culture to match.
But there's no way to ignore the hype that will come with Taylor Swift possibly making her second appearance at Highmark Stadium this calendar year, when the Bills host the Chiefs at 4:25 p.m. next Sunday.
Swift, as you might have heard, is dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. She attended 13 games last season, with the Chiefs going 10-3. That included a playoff victory in Orchard Park weeks before Kansas City repeated as Super Bowl champions back in February.
Swift, at least this season, has stayed close to home. She's been to five games, all at Arrowhead Stadium, as her "Eras Tour" cross-crosses North America. Up next is three shows this week and another three next week in Toronto.
Her tour dates, sandwiched around this Chiefs-Bills showdown in Week 11, led to some conspiracy theories when the NFL released the schedule back in May. In fact, top NFL officials felt the need to address it.
"I saw a lot of conspiracy theorists talking about Kansas City at Buffalo middle of the season, right when Taylor’s playing Toronto. That one definitely did not hit our radar screen," Mike North, the NFL's vice president for broadcast planning, told the Associated Press less than 24 hours after the NFL schedule was released.