KC Chiefs’ report card vs. Bengals: This specific aspect doomed Kansas City on Sunday
The Chiefs saw an eight-game winning streak snapped Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium.
Numerous mistakes, including 10 penalties for 83 yards, spelled a 34-31 defeat .
Now 11-5, the Chiefs are looking up at the AFC’s No. 1 seed. The Tennessee Titans are in the driver’s seat for that first-round bye and homefield advantage with one game remaining in the regular season. The Chiefs and Titans could each finish 12-5, but Tennessee holds the tiebreaker, having beaten the Chiefs in November.
Before looking ahead to next weekend’s regular-season finale, here are this week’s report-card grades from the Chiefs’ loss to the Bengals.
KC STAR OF THE GAME
Running back Darrel Williams enjoyed a career day in a losing effort.
Williams, who started the game with Clyde Edwards-Helaire (shoulder) inactive, rushed for a career-best 88 yards. He did it on 12 carries, averaging 6.3 yards per attempt, and scored twice, giving him another career-high: six touchdowns in a single season.
He finished Sunday’s game with 107 total yards (19 receiving).
REPORT CARD
Passing offense: B+
Patrick Mahomes completed 26 of 35 yards for 259 yards and two touchdowns for a 113.9 passer rating, connecting with 10 different receivers. A critical drop by Tyreek Hill came back to haunt the Chiefs, however. Mahomes threw a deep, 64-yard pass to him near the end of the first half, but Hill couldn’t haul it in. That play could’ve set up a scoring opportunity.
Hill led the Chiefs in receiving with six catches for 40 yards on 10 targets, while tight end Travis Kelce hauled in five catches for 25 yards and a touchdown. Mahomes’ other touchdown pass went to wide receiver Demarcus Robinson.
Rushing offense: A
Williams paced the Chiefs’ ground attack with 88 yards, while Derrick Gore chipped in 37 on three carries. As a team, the Chiefs gained 155 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 23 carries, averaging a healthy 6.7 yards per carry.
Making the accomplishment even more notable was the defense the Chiefs were facing. The Bengals came in ranked fourth against the run, allowing just 92.1 yards on average.
Passing defense: F
OK, the Chiefs’ pass rush accounted secured four sacks — Chris Jones had a team-high two — and 10 quarterback hits. But their overall pass defense is arguably the single biggest reason the Chiefs lost Sunday’s game.
Joe Burrow torched the Chiefs for 446 yards and four touchdowns through the air. The Chiefs’ defensive backs had no answer for Burrow’s favorite target, rookie Ja’Marr Chase, who put on a show against anyone covering him. Chase finished with 11 catches for 266 yards and three touchdowns on 12 targets. He scored on a 69-yard effort and a 72-yard play.
Burrow and Chase also connected for a 30-yard gain on a third-and-27 play. Penalties against the Chiefs’ secondary, particularly cornerback Rashad Fenton, also hurt their grade.
Rushing defense: A
The Chiefs did a good job of holding Bengals star running back Joe Mixon to 46 yards on 12 carries (3.8 yards per attempt). The Chiefs also stuffed multiple runs inside the 1-yard line with the game on the line before an illegal use of hands infraction against Chiefs cornerback L’Jarius Sneed gave the Bengals a fresh set of downs with less than a minute remaining.
As a team, Cincinnati rushed for 60 yards on 19 carries, averaging 3.2 yards per attempt.
Special teams: B+
Kicker Harrison Butker was good on four extra-point attempts and drilled a 34-yard field goal. Punter Tommy Townsend punted three times for 108 total yards, pinning one inside the Bengals’ 20-yard line. Wide receiver Mecole Hardman had a 29-yard punt return, while Byron Pringle had four kickoff returns for 96 yards.
The Chiefs would have a solid A as a grade, but an undisciplined holding penalty by safety Zayne Anderson on a long kickoff return by Pringle wiped out what would’ve been a touchdown.
This story was originally published January 2, 2022 at 5:35 PM.
