Kansas City, Mo. ? After chasing Rich Gannon and Jeff Garcia around in Kansas City’s two previous games, Eric Hicks will be almost glad to see heavy-footed Drew Bledsoe.

Almost.

The rifle-armed Bledsoe may not dart and scamper as elusively as the last two quarterbacks the Chiefs faced. But Buffalo’s 10-year veteran, a pure pocket passer who rarely runs, presents special problems of his own.

“It’s nice for a change not to have to chase somebody. But he’s 6-5, so he can get that ball off out there,” said Hicks, the Chiefs’ sacks leader at left defensive end.

“You can go after him, but you also have to be disciplined. And you have to hit him with extreme prejudice when you do get to him because he’s just as big as us. I’ve seen guys bounce off of him. Big guys.”

The Chiefs (4-5), coming off a 17-13 loss to Garcia’s San Francisco 49ers, were three-point favorites over the Bills (5-4), who took their bye week after a 38-7 loss to New England :quot; the first time all year their prolific offense failed to score at least 23.

The Bills come into the game tied with the Patriots and Miami atop the AFC East and, according to Bledsoe, fully refreshed.

“The bye week came at a good time for us,” said Bledsoe, who’s thrown for more yards (2,802) than any other Bills quarterback after nine games.

“We had a few guys banged up who needed to get healthy. We went for a long stretch there with games every week and took a constant pounding. From a physical standpoint the bye week came at a good time.”

This one is crucial to both teams’ playoff hopes. The Chiefs trail everybody in the competitive AFC West and are entering a four-game span where they play three at home. A win is almost a must.

Using recent history as a gauge, it’ll be high-scoring and very, very close.

Between them, the Bills and Chiefs have played five overtime games. Seven of the Chiefs’ nine games have been decided by one touchdown or less. All but three of Buffalo’s have been equally close.

“I’m sure it will come down to the wire,” said Chiefs safety Greg Wesley. “All our games seem to.”

Wesley and his colleagues in the secondary will be hoping Hicks and his pals up front can get consistent pressure on Bledsoe and take a little heat off the downfield coverage.

Along with a different kind of passer, the Chiefs may also see a different kind of scheme. They’ve been dealing of late with teams that try to “dink and dunk the ball downfield,” as Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil calls it.

But Bledsoe loves to tee it high and let it fly.

Averaging almost 285 yards passing a game, the Bills are second in the NFL, and in Eric Moulds (853 yards receiving) and Peerless Price (838), they sport the most productive wide receiver tandem in the league.

The Bills can also run. Travis Henry’s 748 yards have him on pace to become the team’s first 1,000-yard rusher since 1998.

While Bledsoe and his coaches talked this week about the need to be more patient on offense, it may be tempting to keep trying to chuck it deep. Ranked 32nd, the Chiefs’ pass defense is giving up more than 306 yards every game.

“The Chiefs’ defense has been playing a bunch better in the last couple of weeks,” said Bledsoe.

He’s right. The Chiefs shut out Garcia and the dangerous 49ers in the second half and held Gannon and the Raiders to just one touchdown.

“They’ve limited some good offenses to not many point,” Bledsoe said. “In spite of what their statistical standing might be in the league, we know that they have been playing better in recent weeks and it’s showing up.”

An inconsistent Buffalo defense could have problems of its own with a potent Kansas City attack averaging more than 30 points a game. Priest Holmes, last year’s NFL rushing champ, was held to a season-low 51 yards last week. Three-time Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez had just one catch.

“You just have to focus on the discipline of your own defense, because they have so many weapons,” said linebacker London Fletcher, the Bills’ leading tackler.

“Tony Gonzalez, he’s probably the best tight end in the game of football right now. Priest Holmes, he’s very close to Marshall Faulk in terms of being the top running backs in the league. And their offensive line is maybe the best we’ve faced all year.”