Final exam: Here are our KC Chiefs grades after loss to Bengals in AFC Championship Game
The Chiefs’ hopes for another Super Bowl appearance came to a screeching halt on Sunday.
A sluggish second half — 83 total yards of offense — doomed the Chiefs in a 27-24 overtime loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium.
The Chiefs have nobody to blame but themselves after racing to a 21-3 lead in the first half. They now have their offseason months to contemplate what might have been had they sustained some momentum against the Bengals.
Cincinnati over the past month has snapped two of the Chiefs’ streaks. The first stop came in Week 17, when the Bengals’ 34-31 win snapped the Chiefs’ eight-game winning streak in the regular season.
But the one Sunday had deeper implications because it sent the Bengals, and not the Chiefs, to Super Bowl LVI.
Here are our grades for the Chiefs’ loss to the Bengals.
KC STAR OF THE GAME
Tight end Travis Kelce had a strong outing in the Chiefs’ loss and set a record along the way.
Kelce hauled in 10 catches for 95 yards on 11 targets — all were team-high marks — and caught a touchdown pass.
His 10 catches put him at 106 career postseason receptions, moving him past Rob Gronkowski (98) for most postseason catches by a tight end. Kelce is now 12 catches behind receiver Julian Edelman (118) for second-most playoff receptions.
Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice’s 151 receptions in the postseason are the most in league history.
REPORT CARD
Passing offense: C-
Patrick Mahomes completed 26 of 39 pass attempts for 275 yards and three touchdowns, which is good.
The bad: Mahomes’ two interceptions, including one in overtime in advance of the Bengals’ game-winning field goal, and inability to get the offense going in the second half.
Mahomes finished the first half with 220 passing yards but managed just 55 in the second half and overtime combined. He finished the game with a 91.3 passer rating.
Kelce led the team in receptions, while wide receiver Tyreek Hill hauled in seven catches for 78 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets. Mecole Hardman added 52 yards receiving and a touchdown on three catches, and Byron Pringle had two catches for 16 yards. Demarcus Robinson was targeted three times but didn’t record a catch.
The contributions from Kelce and Hill balance out the grade.
Rushing offense: A
The Chiefs receive a high grade for their running-back-by-committee effort against the Bengals.
Jerick McKinnon totaled 65 yards rushing on 12 carries (5.4 yards per carry) and 30 yards receiving on three catches. Clyde Edwards-Helaire chipped in 36 yards on six carries, while Mahomes scrambled for 19 yards on three carries. Hardman was involved on two designed runs and totaled 18 yards. Fullback Michael Burton converted a short-down situation with a 1-yard run for a first down.
As a team, the Chiefs totaled 139 yards rushing on 24 carries, averaging 5.8 yards per carry against a Bengals run defense that finished the regular season ranked fifth in the league (102.5 yards allowed per game).
Passing defense: C-
The Chiefs’ pass rush was virtually absent against a Bengals front five that had allowed nine sacks and 13 quarterback hits the week before.
With time to work, and showing an ability to escape pressure in a collapsing pocket, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow completed 23 of 38 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns with one interception. He was sacked once, courtesy of Chiefs defensive end Melvin Ingram.
Of note, the Chiefs did an excellent job of putting the clamps on rookie wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, who totaled six catches for 54 yards and a touchdown. Chase went off against the Chiefs in Week 17, with 11 catches for 266 yards and three touchdowns on 12 targets.
Rushing defense: B-
The Chiefs once again held their own against Bengals star running back Joe Mixon, limiting him to 88 yards on 21 carries. Mixon, though, was able to get going on the Bengals’ overtime drive, helping to set up the game-winning field goal with punishing runs. Burrow also had some timely runs, gaining 25 yards on five carries.
As a team, the Bengals finished with 116 yards on 27 carries, averaging 4.3 yards per attempt.
Special teams: A
Kicker Harrison Butker helped send the game to overtime with a 44-yard field goal, while Tommy Townsend had four punts for 209 total yards, averaging 41.8 yards per attempt. Pringle had two kickoff returns for 38 yards.
This story was originally published January 30, 2022 at 8:06 PM.
