Chiefs report card: Big plays get the A’s as KC finishes regular season in style
Here’s the report card from the Chiefs 31-21 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium.
KC Star of the Game
Mecole Hardman. The Chiefs had just delivered their worst sequence of the game, a Patrick Mahomes interception that led to a Chargers go-ahead touchdown, when Hardman returned the ensuing kickoff 104 yards for a touchdown. The Chiefs thus scored their first touchdown on a punt or kickoff return this season, the first since Tyreek Hill took back a free kick at Denver in 2016. And Hardman’s kickoff return was the third-longest in regular-season Chiefs history, too. Knile Davis returned one 108 yards against the Broncos in 2013 and Nolan Smith had a 106-yarder against the Broncos in 1967.
Reason to hope: The Chiefs have consecutive seasons of at least 12 victories for the first time in franchise history. Not bad. Neither is their remarkable 27-3 record against AFC West opponents since 2015.
Reason to mope: Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes was good when he needed to be, but the offense sputtered early in both halves.
Next: The Chiefs are in the playoffs for the fifth straight year, and as the No. 2 seed thanks to the Dolphins’ upset of the Patriots, they’ll get this week to rest.
Report Card
Passing offense: C
The Chargers did a nice job on Mahomes in the regular season, holding him under 200 yards both times they faced him. Miscommunication between Mahomes and Hill led to the interception that opened the second half. Mahomes was at his best on the Chiefs’ first touchdown drive, when he fired a 30-yarder to Hardman and a 24-yard strike to Demarcus Robinson for the score on successive plays. And his 47-yarder to Hill on third down late in the game was a gutsy call well executed.
Rushing offense: A
Damien Williams’ 84-yard touchdown run was one of two huge plays for him this season. Remember his 91-yarder against the Vikings? Williams also picked up some tough yards to finish with 124 on the ground, and he ran through contact on his 7-yard TD. Rookie Darwin Thompson was the only other running back who got attempts Sunday.
Passing defense: B
Rivers, who flung four interceptions against the Chiefs in their first regular-season meeting of 2019, was picked off by Tyrann Mathieu in the end zone to end a scoring threat just before halftime. Terrell Suggs’ first sack with the Chiefs was No. 139 for his career, pushing him past DeMarcus Ware (138.5) for the eighth most in NFL history. Frank Clark and Chris Jones added sacks. And just like in Mexico City, Daniel Sorensen came up with an interception on Rivers’ final attempt. But Rivers didn’t go down without a battle. He threw two touchdown passes and put is team in position to challenge in the fourth quarter.
Rushing defense: B
It wasn’t quite a goal-line stand, but the Chiefs stopped a fourth-and-1 from the 5 at the end of the third quarter. Should the Chargers, trailing by 10, have attempted a chip-shot field goal there? Probably. With the Chiefs striking quickly after halftime, the Chiefs spent most of the half on the field but held their own.
Special teams: A
Hardman’s kickoff return is the Chiefs’ special-teams play of season. Throw in a Dustin Colquitt 63-yard punt and Harrison Butker’s 40-yard field goal in a swirling breeze, and this was the Chiefs’ most complete special teams game of 2019.
Coaching: A
Good move not to try to score at the end of the half when the Chiefs got possession with 28 seconds remaining and all three timeouts left. Great call on the Mahomes-to-Hill 47-yard pass that set up the game-clinching touchdown.
This story was originally published December 29, 2019 at 3:48 PM.