Buffalo Bills cornerback Christian Benford was ruled out of the AFC title game against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night with a concussion.

Benford was carted from the field after a helmet-to-helmet hit with teammate Damar Hamlin while trying to make a tackle in the first quarter.

Benford, who spent the week in the concussion protocol before getting cleared in time for the game, was ruled out just moments after he was driven up the tunnel in the corner of Arrowhead Stadium.

Benford was chasing Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy near the Bills sideline when he clashed helmets with Hamlin, who wears a Guardian Cap on his own.

Benford was shaky while standing up and tried to return to the field, but Bills cornerback Rasul Douglas stopped him in his tracks and made sure Buffalo trainers checked on him.

Referees warn team they can ‘award a score’

The Washington Commanders jumped offsides four times in a sequence of five plays while trying to stop Philadelphia’s vaunted tush push — earning them a warning from the referee that he could award the Eagles a touchdown if the Commanders did it again.

The Eagles had a first-and-goal in the fourth quarter as they tried to stretch their lead in Sunday’s NFC championship game.

The Commanders’ Jonathan Allen was whistled for lining up in the neutral zone. That was the first penalty. After Washington stopped Jalen Hurts once, linebacker Frankie Luvu jumped over the Eagles’ offensive line on second down and was penalized for encroachment. Second-and-goal again. Luvu leaped over the line and was flagged again. Repeat second-and-goal. This time, Allen was flagged for encroachment.

At that point, referee Shaun Hochuli had seen enough.

“Washington has been advised that referees can award a score if this type of behavior happens again,” he told the crowd.

After the game, Hochuli explained to a pool reporter what would have prompted him to award a TD.

“Simply put, a team can’t commit multiple fouls in an effort to prevent the score. So, No. 4 (Luvu) jumped the ball a couple of times, that was when the warning came in,” he said. “Again, if it’s meant to prevent a score, we can essentially award the score.”

Seahawks hire Kubiak as offensive coordinator

The Seattle Seahawks hired Klint Kubiak as their offensive coordinator on Sunday.

Kubiak’s hiring ends a nearly three-week search for Seattle, which fired coordinator Ryan Grubb on Jan. 6 after the Seahawks finished 28th in the league in rushing under Grubb’s pass-happy attack.

Kubiak spent 2024 as the New Orleans Saints’ offensive coordinator. After the Saints fired coach Dennis Allen in early November, Kubiak stayed on under interim coach Darren Rizzi, but was free to leave for another job as the Saints have yet to hire a head coach.

The Saints’ offense struggled after losing several key players to injuries, finishing 21st in the league in total offense, 23rd in passing, 14th in rushing and 24th in scoring.

Kubiak, a son of former NFL quarterback and Super Bowl-winning coach Gary Kubiak, was the Minnesota Vikings’ offensive coordinator in 2021. He spent 2022 as the Denver Broncos’ passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach, and 2023 as the passing game coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers.

He began his coaching career at Texas A&M in 2011. He had earlier stints as an assistant with both the Vikings and Broncos.