What we learned as Chiefs scrape past Atlanta Falcons, secure coveted AFC playoff bye
The Chiefs have made games interesting this season despite their winning record, so why should Sunday’s matchup against the Atlanta Falcons have been any different?
Kansas City faced a Falcons squad that was ready to play, and the home team had to dig deep with the game very much in doubt until the very end.
The Chiefs withstood the Falcons’ best blows and emerged with a 17-14 win, improving to 14-1 and securing the AFC’s No. 1 overall seed and homefield advantage in the postseason.
“I’m proud of the guys,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said after the game. “14-1 is nothing to shake your head at.”
Sunday’s game, like many for the Chiefs in recent weeks, was far from easy. It was their seventh straight one-possession win. Atlanta’s defense stifled the Chiefs’ explosive offense and the visitors held a 14-10 lead with less than four minutes remaining.
But that was too much time on the clock for Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Mahomes engineered a nine-play, 75-yard drive capped with a 25-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Demarcus Robinson to give the Chiefs the lead for good, although they had to weather the Falcons’ final and frantic late-game drive — and a missed 39-yard field-goal attempt that would’ve sent it to overtime.
Here’s what stood out from Sunday’s matchup.
MAHOMES IN THE CLUTCH
The Chiefs’ signal-caller is one of the NFL’s top erasers, meaning his big-play and clutch abilities are enough to compensate for mistakes.
Mahomes was certainly needed in Sunday’s close game. He saved his best for the final quarter, passing for 83 yards and a touchdown to energize his team to victory.
As for his early-game struggles, Mahomes absorbed responsibility for a sluggish performance, which included reads, protection calls and misfires to open receivers.
“I think it was just a bad day for the offense, starting with me,” he said. “I think the offense will figure it out.”
He finished the game completing 24 of 44 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns with an interception for a 79.5 passer rating.
PLAYING DOWN TO THE COMPETITION?
The Chiefs entered Sunday’s game as 10-point favorites and had a juicy matchup facing an Atlanta defense ranked at or near the bottom of the league in numerous statistical categories, including 31st against the pass.
The Chiefs’ offense, however, looked lethargic through three quarters. Mahomes didn’t top the 200-yard mark until the final period. The offense also converted a woeful five of 13 third-down opportunities.
The Kansas City defense did its job despite being down starting linebackers Damien Wilson and Anthony Hitchens, limiting the Falcons to 367 total yards.
“The defense played their tail off to keep us in the game to give us a chance and the offense found a way to score a touchdown when we needed to,” Mahomes said. “That’s the championship swagger, as (safety) Tyrann (Mathieu) would say, of knowing how to win a game even when you’re not playing well.”
Give credit to the Falcons for having a good defensive game plan. But the Chiefs’ offense should’ve had its way against a 4-10 team, especially coming off a game in which the Chiefs dropped 32 points on one of the Falcons’ divisional foes.
The Chiefs didn’t want this kind of game as a tuneup with the postseason on the horizon, but tight end Travis Kelce offered a reminder on the competition level in the NFL.
“This league, it can get very confusing to a lot of people,” Kelce said. “They think since we have the best quarterback, two great receivers and a defensive line, Sack Nation, they think that we should go out there and just dominate every single game, every single play and that’s not reality.
“The reality is these guys on other teams and all these teams are coming in here knowing that they’re going against a good football team. So, they get geared up, they get fired up and their attention, alertness is that much more locked in. It’s playing ball.”
COMMITTEE APPROACH
The Chiefs were without rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who was inactive with an ankle injury, so they utilized a running back-by-committee approach featuring Le’Veon Bell and Darrel Williams.
Of the two, Williams looked the best, especially in the second quarter, when he totaled 46 yards (27 receiving) on six touches. He finished with a team-high 46 yards rushing on 10 carries to Bell’s 30 on seven.
Reid complimented Williams’ effort.
“He stepped in and did a heck of a job,” Reid said. “Took advantage of the opportunity, so that’s a real plus for him.”
As a team, the Chiefs rushed for 117 yards on 21 carries.
HUSTLE PLAY
A lot of focus will fall on Mahomes making a bad decision with his interception at the goal line, but the spotlight should also shine on wide receiver Tyreek Hill, who arguably saved the pick from becoming a pick-6.
After picking off Mahomes, Falcons linebacker Foyesade Oluokun appeared to have a clear lane to the end zone with blockers in front of him. Hill, however, came out of nowhere to run down Oluokun from behind. Hill also punched loose the ball, but it landed out of bounds at the Chiefs’ 27-yard line.
The Chiefs’ defense held, sacking Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan on back-to-back plays — once each by Frank Clark and Chris Jones — for a combined loss of 12 yards. More importantly, those sacks pushed the Falcons out of field-goal range and the possession resulted in a punt.
Atlanta’s inability to make something of Mahomes’ turnover is directly attributable to Hill’s hustle play.
“He made a great effort to get the ball,” Reid said. “Tyreek’s done that before; he did it again.”
SACK NATION
Kansas City’s pass rushers made their presence felt against Ryan throughout the game, recording four sacks and 11 quarterback hits.
Jones, Clark, cornerback L’Jarius Sneed and defensive end Alex Okafor each recorded a sack, but it was Jones who applied consistent pressure on Ryan, evidenced by his team-high four quarterback hits.
GLIMPSE OF FUTURE
A pair of Chiefs rookies — Willie Gay Jr. and Sneed — showed out against the Falcons.
Gay saw extensive duty at linebacker and he didn’t disappoint. He totaled a career-high nine tackles with a forced fumble and provided a hint of what was to come in the second quarter. He tallied back-to-back tackles on the Falcons’ third possession, a drive on which Sneed’s second sack in as many games dropped Ryan for a 10-yard loss.
“It was a lot of fun being out there and play as much as I did,” Gay said. “We were building on this week. It wasn’t perfect for me, but we came out with the win and I had a lot of fun. We had fun and it was a great feeling.”
Sneed recorded seven tackles, the sack and two quarterback hits.
“Sneed, another young guy, flying around and making plays,” Reid said.
NOTABLE
Kelce, who recently became the first tight end in NFL history to record five straight 1,000-yard seasons, now has 1,416 yards receiving with one game to go, setting a new league record for most receiving yards by a tight end in a single season, breaking George Kittle’s mark of 1,377 set in 2018 with the 49ers.
Kelce finished the game with seven catches for 98 yards, giving him 105 receptions this season. He also becomes the first tight end in NFL history to record multiple 100-catch seasons. He recorded 103 catches in 2018.
The Pro Bowl tight, however, doesn’t have his sights on historical individual accomplishments.
“The real record I’m proud of right now is it’s the first time the Chiefs have ever been 14-1,” Kelce said. “We’re going to try and make it 15-1 next week.
“I really don’t get caught up in personal accolades. I work my tail off to just try and be the best teammate, the best player I can be for this organization on and off the field.”
While he downplayed Sunday’s historical day, there’s little doubt that Kecle continues to make a strong case for the NFL Offensive Player of the Year award.
INJURIES
Linebacker Ben Niemann suffered a hamstring injury in the second quarter and did not return to the game. Wide receiver Sammy Watkins suffered a calf injury in the fourth quarter.
UP NEXT
The Chiefs close out the regular season in Week 17 against the Los Angeles Chargers at Arrowhead Stadium.
This story was originally published December 27, 2020 at 3:45 PM.
