This Chiefs unit earns F-bomb after series of special-teams flubs against the Broncos
It wasn’t easy. It never seems to be against the Denver Broncos these days.
But the Chiefs survived a 27-24 encounter on Sunday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Patrick Mahomes tossed three touchdown passes, two in the fourth quarter, to help the Chiefs improve to 13-3 and remain in the hunt for the AFC’s top seed in the NFL playoffs.
KC STAR OF THE GAME
Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed came up with his third interception of the season and his return in the fourth quarter set up the Chiefs in the red zone. The Chiefs needed the short-field touchdown because the Broncos answered with a touchdown of their own. Sneed appeared to hurt his left hip on the play but returned after missing one series.
Next: The Chiefs wrap up the regular season with a trip to the Las Vegas Raiders next weekend. A the end of Sunday’s game against the Broncos, that Chiefs-Raiders game’s time and date — it could be Saturday or Sunday — had not been determined. The Chiefs defeated the Raiders in Kansas City 30-29 in Week 5, overcoming a 17-0 deficit. Travis Kelce had four touchdown receptions in that game.
REPORT CARD
Passing offense: B
A first: Patrick Mahomes caught a pass. In the first quarter, he snared a ball that was batted back to him and turned it into a 6-yard gain. In 2020, Mahomes was targeted twice on trick plays, but neither was completed. Mahomes would love to have back his end zone interception. But his 6-yard touchdown pass to Jerick McKinnon was a beautiful call and execution.
McKinnon added his seventh receiving touchdown in five games in the fourth quarter. He’s the first running back in the Super Bowl era to have a receiving touchdown in five straight games. Mahomes’ three touchdown passes give him 40 this season, and his 328 passing yards give him 5,048 with one game remaining.
Rushing offense: C
Denver is better against the pass than the run, but the Chiefs couldn’t gain much traction on the ground, except for a terrific push on Isiah Pacheco’s 5-yard touchdown run up the gut to open the scoring. The Chiefs ran on 16 of their 58 snaps.
Passing defense: B
The Chiefs appeared to get a big break on an offensive pass interference call against Broncos wide receiver Cortland Sutton, who was working against Bryan Cook. The flag wiped out a long Denver gain in the third quarter. Russell Wilson’s next pass attempt was a poor throw that Sneed intercepted. Two penalties on rookie cornerback Joshua Williams, including on what would’ve been a fourth-down stop, kept alive a late Broncos touchdown drive.
Rushing defense: C
The Chiefs made several big plays, but what is it about Kansas City that seems to bring out the best in Denver’s offense? The Broncos’ top two games in terms of scoring this season have come against the Chiefs. The Broncos rushed for 117 yards and Wilson had two rushing touchdowns.
Special teams: F
Fielding a punt, receiver Kadarius Toney held the ball in his left hand and returned to the right. That left the ball exposed and Alex Singleton knocked in it out. The Broncos recovered and scored a touchdown on their next play.
And oh, the kicking adventures. On the Chiefs’ first extra-point attempt, holder Tommy Townsend muffed the snap, picked up the ball and tried to run it in, but he was tackled well short of the goal line. Extra-point attempts have been especially cruel to the Chiefs this season: That was their sixth blown PAT try.
The Chiefs’ defense and offense did their job. A forced turnover and a long completion gave the home team a field-goal attempt at the end of the half. But it was no good. It appeared a Broncos defender got a hand on the ball.
This story was originally published January 1, 2023 at 3:35 PM.