How the Chargers beat the Chiefs — and the bigger question that looms
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Chargers beat Chiefs 16-13, handing Kansas City a third straight loss.
- Defenses dominated, with only two touchdowns and a 16-13 final score.
- Chiefs drove to L.A. 17 late in the game, stirring bigger questions.
The Kansas City Chiefs dropped their third straight game, a 16-13 Week 15 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Kansas City is now 6-8 in the 2025 NFL season.
Here are some immediate observations about KC’s loss:
Turning point: An early fourth-quarter pick gave L.A. control
Kansas City and Los Angeles were in the midst of a defensive slugfest — with only two touchdowns on the board all day.
The Chargers led 16-13, but the Chiefs were driving inside the red zone at the L.A. 17-yard line.
Facing third-and-12 with three receivers to his left, Patrick Mahomes snapped it out of the shotgun. The Chargers’ front created instant pressure, and Mahomes looked only to his right, with Kareem Hunt breaking down the field on a wheel route well covered by linebacker Daiyan Henley.
Mahomes lofted it up anyway, and Hunt lost the one-on-one, with Henley coming away with a diving interception. That gave the Chargers control of the game too late, creating an all-too-familiar scenario it what’s become a middling 2025 Chiefs season.
Rapid reaction: Mahomes’ status is bigger than anything to come from the game
The scoreboard struck triple-zeros and Los Angeles walked away with its 16-13 win, effectively ending a 10-year streak of postseason football in Kansas City.
The Chiefs came into the afternoon with a pipe dream — and for it to happen, they would need to play perfect football. But Sunday against the Chargers looked a lot like many of the Chiefs’ previous games in the season, where one problem would only be compounded by the next.
Kansas City’s playoff hopes are over. But more critical to anything in the future is the status of Mahomes and the days to come following what looked to be a brutal knee injury. How serious is it? What is the timeline?
The Chiefs already had many questions entering this offseason. The quarterback’s status just became No. 1.
Critical stat: Red-zone woes
As has been the case all season, the Chiefs weren’t good in the red zone, scoring a touchdown on just one of three trips.
This story was originally published December 14, 2025 at 3:36 PM.
