Three stunning stats highlight just how bad Chiefs’ second-half collapse was Sunday
For 10-plus quarters, the Chiefs’ offense was humming along smoothly in the postseason.
Then came halftime of Sunday’s AFC Championship Game. The Bengals rallied from an 18-point deficit (and down 11 at the half) and beat the Chiefs 27-24 in overtime at Arrowhead Stadium.
That Chiefs offense that looked unstoppable in the playoffs got stuck in the mud or had blown a rod in the motor.
Fox Sports’ Geoff Schwartz, the former Chiefs’ offensive lineman, wrapped up Sunday’s game well.
“This game sums up the Chiefs season,” he wrote. “Could be unstoppable and then look totally mediocre in the same game. Hope they figure out why heading into next season.”
These three stats highlight how bad things were in the second half for the Chiefs.
1. Quarterback rating
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ quarterback rating in the first half of Sunday’s game was 149.9. In the second half, it was 34.0 and in overtime was 0.0.
ESPN’s Quarterback Rating stats show Mahomes had the largest gap “by half in the playoffs since QBR tracking began in 2006.” QBR has a zero to 100 rating, and Mahomes got a 98.0 in the first half. In the second half that rating was 1.4.
2. The raw numbers
Here’s how the Chiefs offense performed by half in its three playoff games. This highlights how bad the half was compared to the other five in the postseason.
Wild card game vs. Steelers
First half: 302 yards, 21 points in eight drives
Second half: 176 yards, 21 points in four drives
Divisional playoff game vs. Bills
First half: 199 yards, 14 points in four drives
Second half/OT: 353 yards, 28 points in seven drives
AFC Championship Game vs. Bengals
First half: 292 yards, 21 points in four drives
Second half/OT: 83 yards, 3 points in seven drives
3. The analytics
The Athletic’s Sheil Kapadia noted the Chiefs had their worst EPA after halftime of Sunday’s game in the Mahomes’ era. EPA is “expected points added,” which aims to determine how well a team performs on offense compared to what is expected.
In fact, it was the worst of any half since coach Andy Reid took over as Chiefs coach.
What did the Bengals do to frustrate Mahomes? The NFL’s Next Gen Stats said they dropped eight into coverage on more than one-third of the Chiefs’ snaps, and Mahomes’ stats took a hit.
