ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The Kansas City Chiefs overcame a slow start to keep pace in the AFC playoff race.

Quarterback Alex Smith and running back Jamaal Charles rushed for fourth-quarter touchdowns to lead the Chiefs in a 17-13 comeback victory over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.

Kansas City (6-3) trailed 13-3 heading into the fourth quarter but overcame a double-digit deficit for the first time this season to win for the sixth time in its last seven games.

“You’re not going to play games where you always have success and things are always going well,” Smith said. “Sometimes I like that. These wins are different for sure. There’s a different type of confidence you get when you win games like this.”

Smith scored the go-ahead touchdown on an 8-yard option run with just under nine minutes to play, giving the Chiefs their first lead of the game. He finished 17-of-29 passing for 177 yards, with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

“He’s a phenomenal leader and he’s dirty tough,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid said. “He’s like a coach on the field there.”

Charles sustained a neck stinger in the second quarter but returned to rush for 69 of his 98 yards in the second half. He made the game’s biggest play, converting a fourth-and-1 on an outside pitch then cutting back inside for a 39-yard touchdown run that made it 13-10 with 13:30 remaining. Charles also had an 18-yard run to set up Kansas City’s go-ahead touchdown.

“Once I saw the defensive end crash and I saw the O-line in front of me and I saw one free safety, all I had to do is make a move and I saw the end zone,” Charles said.

The Bills threatened to retake the lead late, starting a drive on the Kansas City 25 following Leodis McKelvin’s 23-yard punt return. But Buffalo stalled at the 15 as quarterback Kyle Orton threw four straight incompletions to turn the ball over on downs with 2:31 remaining. Chiefs cornerback Ron Parker broke up three of the passes.

McKelvin’s fumble on a previous punt return set up the Chiefs’ go-ahead score. While Albert Wilson was tackling McKelvin, Anthony Sherman knocked the ball loose and recovered it at the Buffalo 25.

“We’re supposed to be getting over the hump or whatever and I feel like we’re a great team,” McKelvin said. “We just have to minimize our mistakes.”

The Bills (5-4) had won two straight coming in and were tied with Kansas City in the AFC wild-card race. Now they face a quick turnaround before Thursday night’s game at AFC East rival Miami.

“We made mistakes and then didn’t take advantage of (our) opportunities,” Bills coach Doug Marrone said. “We had an opportunity to get to 6-3. Now we’re going to have to fight our way back and come back and find a way to win our next game.”

The Bills gained 144 yards and held the ball for 10:15 of the third quarter, but could only turn it into three points. After driving 73 yards, the Bills stalled in the red zone and settled for a 21-yard field goal from Dan Carpenter that made it 13-3 with 3:06 left in the third quarter.

What the Chiefs said:

“There are games you are going to have like this where everything is not pretty and you’ve got to play through it. Guys showed real grit there in the second half. Nobody hung their heads, nobody was pointing fingers, they were all positive and you had that feeling that things were going to happen.” — Coach Andy Reid

What the Bills said:

“It’s a tough one. It’s one of 16 and we’ve got to bounce back quick. There’s still a lot of football left. We can’t get too down from it. Obviously this one hurts, but we’ve got to bounce back quick.” — C Eric Wood

What we learned about the Chiefs:

1. RB Jamaal Charles is a game-changer. When he left the game for a series in the first half due to a neck stinger, his backup, Knile Davis, fumbled. Early in the fourth quarter, with the Chiefs trailing 13-3 and sputtering on offense, coach Andy Reid called upon Charles to pick up a fourth-and-1 at the 39. Charles got the first down, then sliced upfield for a momentum-swinging touchdown.

2. The Chiefs are battle-tested. Having come from behind to win in Buffalo last season, they didn’t flinch when the offense sputtered in the first half and the Bills built a 10-point lead after three quarters. “We’ve been prepared for this the whole year,” left tackle Eric Fisher said. “You get so many different situations, and this situation will pop up again. When you face adversity, you can’t panic.”

–WR Dwayne Bowe had season-highs in targets (12), catches (8) and yards (93). He caught four passes for 45 yards on the Chiefs first touchdown drive of the fourth quarter. “He just gobbles everything up that’s near him and our quarterback appreciates that,” coach Andy Reid said.

–DB Ron Parker defended three passes in the end zone when the Bills were trying to score a go-ahead touchdown in the final three minutes. Parker also forced a fumble near the Chiefs’ goal line that turned into a touchback. “I’ve got to point at Parker and the job that he did,” coach Andy Reid said. “We’ve asked that kid to play everywhere and he’s such a competitor.”

–TE Travis Kelce had his least productive game of the season, catching two passes for 19 yards and no touchdowns. Through the first eight games, Kelce had 30 receptions for 400 yards and four touchdowns.

What we learned about the Bills:

1. The Bills came up short in their bid to get to 6-3 for the first time since 1999, the last season in which they made the playoffs. Now the Bills travel to play a Thursday night game in Miami, needing a win to stay in the thick of the AFC playoff race.

2. QB Kyle Orton can’t bring the Bills back every time. Orton, now 3-2 as the Bills starter, had two fourth-quarter comebacks already this season, but failed in his third effort. Orton went for the touchdown on four straight passes from the 15 inside the final 13 minutes, but couldn’t complete any of them. “We were knocking on the door and I really thought we’d get it done,” Orton said.

–DT Marcell Dareus recorded three of the Bills’ six sacks and was also credited with a fourth quarterback hit. Dareus now his 10 sacks on the season, exceeding his previous career-high of 7.5 set last year. “He’s a physical freak,” said DE Jerry Hughes, who had two sacks. “He’s a beast. He’s going to do whatever he can to impose his will and we love it.”

–WR Sammy Watkins played through a groin injury that kept him out of practice all week but did not look like the same player that had been making a strong case for Offensive Rookie of the Year through the season’s first half. Watkins caught four of the 10 passes thrown his way for a total of 27 yards.

–RB Bryce Brown gained 100 yards from scrimmage in his second game on the active roster. He rushed seven times for 35 yards and caught six passes for 65 yards. Brown, however, lost a fumble near the goal line when the Bills were on the cusp of building on their 10-3 halftime lead.