Chiefs survive injuries, similarities to wild-card loss, topple Colts 30-14

INDIANAPOLIS Maybe it’s the hard playing surface at Lucas Oil Stadium. Maybe it’s the Indianapolis Colts, who always seem to be in position to deliver a big blow to a sliding Chief on any given play. Or maybe it’s just dumb, stupid, plain-old bad luck.

Whatever the reason, the Chiefs simply cannot seem to play a “normal” game in Indianapolis. They cannot avoid injuries — specifically concussions — nor can they dodge a confluence of big, momentum-turning plays.

But on Sunday, the Chiefs — the same team that allowed weird events to devolve into a devastating wild-card loss here three years ago — were mentally tough enough to survive and beat the Colts 30-14 to improve to 5-2.

They did it despite losing their starting quarterback (Alex Smith) and running back (Spencer Ware) to head injuries and their starting left guard (Parker Ehinger) to a knee injury.

The unsettling developments started early. On the Chiefs’ ninth offensive play, Smith scrambled and slid to his right and was met by Colts linebacker Edwin Jackson, who hit him so hard that his head slammed off the turf.

Smith wobbled to his feet and was removed from the game to be evaluated for a concussion. The Chiefs said he passed the NFL’s concussion protocol, and he eventually returned to the game. But that hit occurred just 10 yards away from the spot where star running back Jamaal Charles was hit (and subsequently removed from the game with a concussion) on the Chiefs’ opening drive of their wild-card loss.

Dead serious.

“That’s crazy,” safety Eric Berry said when told of the coincidence. “That’s crazy.”

No one on the Chiefs’ sideline looked comfortable when they took a 3-0 lead on a Cairo Santos field goal. They added to their lead when Smith’s replacement, Nick Foles, fired a 14-yard strike to tight end Travis Kelce (seven catches, 101 yards), but the Colts, 3-5, responded with an Andrew Luck touchdown pass to Frank Gore, and Indy was back in business.

A Colts mistake — and a big play by KC cornerback Phillip Gaines — helped the Chiefs create some distance before halftime. Gaines intercepted Luck in his own territory, and a few plays later, Smith — who had re-entered the game by that point — fired a gorgeous 13-yard pass to receiver Jeremy Maclin for a fade-ball touchdown that put the Chiefs ahead 17-7 at halftime.

But more shades of 2014 awaited the Chiefs. Shortly after halftime, the team announced that Ware would not return to the game. And on their second offensive play of the third quarter, Ehinger was lost with a knee injury.

Two plays later, the Chiefs lost their starting quarterback for the rest of the game. Smith, curiously sent on a read-option run, had his head slammed to the turf by Colts safety Clayton Geathers, who used his left arm to strike Smith’s head (he said afterward that it was unintentional). Smith lay on the ground for several seconds before walking off under his own power.

“If we had any concern, we would not put him back in — period,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said when asked why he’d call a run-pass option for a shaken quarterback. “I would never do that. Whether it’s run, pass, option or not, there is just no way that he goes back in the game. Bottom line. For him to get back in there, it has to be a clean slate.”

In another bit of interesting irony, Geathers is a cousin of former Cincinnati defensive end Robert Geathers, whose late hit concussed then-Chiefs quarterback Trent Green in 2006.

The Chiefs bounced back quickly behind Foles, who finished 16 of 22 for 223 yards and two touchdowns. A few plays after entering the game, he spotted Tyreek Hill running down the left sideline and hit him in stride for a 34-yard touchdown that put the Chiefs ahead 24-7 midway through the third quarter.

This, outside linebacker Tamba Hali said, was when things started to feel familiar to the Chiefs’ 28-point, second-half collapse during the playoffs.

“We were like, ‘Man, we’ve been here before,’” Hali said.

And the Colts, true to form, would not stay down long. Luck, who finished 19 of 35 for 210 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, led a 10-play, 75-yard drive that he punctuated with a 3-yard touchdown pass to receiver Donte Moncrief.

Throughout the second half, Chiefs players reminded each other to not let up. They knew what Luck could do and were determined to prevent it from happening again.

“I was trying to keep everybody locked in,” Berry said. “When you start paying attention to that, that’s when you start slipping behind. At the end of the day, it’s a distraction.”

The Chiefs’ defense forced a three-and-out, and after a dynamic 28-yard punt return by Hill, their offense marched 46 yards in 10 plays before stalling at the Colts’ 4.

Santos, who had missed a 28-yard attempt earlier in the game, redeemed himself with a 22-yarder that put the Chiefs ahead by 13 with eight minutes left.

The Chiefs’ defense, which unquestionably stepped up in the second half, forced a three-and-out, and Santos again connected, this time from 44 yards.

The game was basically over at that point and fans started streaming out. But nothing comes easily for the Chiefs in this place, and Luck found Moncrief for an apparent 45-yard touchdown with a little under two minutes left. But the play was nullified because of a holding call on Indy.

That was the final break the Chiefs needed to bury the Colts and ease those memories of 2014.

Next week, the Chiefs play host to Jacksonville as they continue what they hope will be a Super Bowl run.

“(We remembered) what happened previously when we came here,” Berry said. “But at the same time, we’re getting ready for down the road. We’re just trying to create that (finishing) habit now, so it won’t be a surprise.”

This story was originally published October 30, 2016 at 3:38 PM with the headline "Chiefs survive injuries, similarities to wild-card loss, topple Colts 30-14."