Five things that stood out about the Chiefs’ crushing loss to the Broncos
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Chiefs 0-5 in one-score games this season; Broncos own a three-game AFC West lead.
- Chiefs reached the red zone four times but produced only six points amid penalties.
- Travis Kelce stayed primary target with nine catches; other receivers produced little.
The 2024 magic has transformed into the 2025 nightmare.
The Broncos beat the Chiefs 22-19 on Sunday, and what ought to stand out to you is not only the final result, but its margin.
The Chiefs are 0-5 in one-score games this season, one year after putting up a 12-0 record in games decided by 8 points or fewer.
The Broncos now have a stranglehold atop the AFC West and a three-game lead on the Chiefs in the loss column. The Chiefs (5-5) are a game out of the playoff picture.
Here are five observations from immediately after the game:
1. The one-score margin
Let’s start there. Why can’t the Chiefs win a game decided by one score?
Well, just look at the final moments.
They possessed the ball with a three-point lead in the fourth quarter and again in a tie game. Those drives:
Three-and-out.
Three-and-out.
Matt Araiza still pinned the Broncos deep into their own territory, and the defense moved them even farther back, setting up a 3rd-and-15.
Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo elected against bringing pressure, and Bo Nix had more than enough time to find Courtland Sutton for 20 yards. It’s a call he’s probably going to want back.
But the Chiefs had several plays they ought to want back.
Here’s what pops: The one-score transformation is so great that Bo Nix outplayed Patrick Mahomes in the fourth quarter.
Yikes.
2. The flags. And flags. And flags.
The scoreboard didn’t show it, but Chiefs moved the ball pretty well over the middle quarters. Four drives reached the red zone.
The result of their initial three trips is what you saw on the scoreboard: Six points.
That end result wasn’t the only theme. The reason was too.
On each trip — literally all three — the Chiefs were flagged for a penalty on either first or second down immediately after reaching the red zone. A JuJu Smith-Schuster holding, Josh Simmons holding and Jawaan Taylor illegal formation put the Chiefs behind the sticks.
It’s hard enough to overcome holding penalties, but that difficulty is only magnified in the red zone. Those three flags — on a flag-happy day — turned a potential 21 points into just six.
Well, and Patrick Mahomes turned three into zero. On third-and-low, he threw back late for running back Elijah Mitchell and got picked off — a desperation heave that, mind you, might not have been necessary if not for a first-down flag.
It’s just sloppy football, and one-play mistakes are why you lose one-score games.
3. The downfield shots
Tyquan Thornton bailed out the offense with a 61-yard reception to set up their only touchdown drive.
At last, the Chiefs had a downfield shot.
A footnote in the result.
The headline? The ones they missed.
Mahomes missed Xavier Worthy and Tyquan Thornton deep on the opening series, a drive in which the Chiefs didn’t score.
The Broncos ramped up the pressure after halftime — they tend to do that, as the NFL’s leaders in pressure rate — but Mahomes operated with a fairly clean pocket in the first half, all things considered, and never could find a groove.
4. The un-special teams
It’s time to have a conversation about the special teams.
OK, it’s probably past time to have a conversation about the special teams.
Harrison Butker missed yet another extra point late in the game, keeping it a 3-point margin rather than four. Well, it was blocked, and the Chiefs didn’t protect it particularly well.
But there’s no doubt these two are on Butker: He booted the initial kickoff into the end zone for a touchback to put the ball at the 35-yard-line, and he missed the landing zone on his second kickoff.
But the header here isn’t exclusive to Butker.
The Chiefs allowed Marvin Mims a 70-yard punt return to put the ball up at the 11. So on a drive in which they gained only five yards, the Broncos secured three points — you know, the same as the final margin.
I’ll offer one exception to an otherwise discouraging special teams day, which also included plenty of flags: Araiza bombed the ball, averaging 60 yards per kick on four tries.
5. Travis Kelce
A 36-year-old is having a bounce-back year.
That doesn’t happen in sports.
Kelce gave the Chiefs the lead in the fourth quarter with a 21-yard touchdown catch and run on a third-down snap. But it’s the path to the end zone that stands out.
He broke a tackle. Again.
A year ago, the downslope of Kelce’s career showed up most in that area: He forced only three missed tackles the entire regular season, per PFF.
His total this year: 8.
He’s on pace to nearly quadruple last year’s total.
On Sunday, it became obvious that Mahomes felt most comfortable looking toward Kelce, who caught nine passes for 91 yards.
That’s a positive for Kelce.
For the rest of the receivers? Well, not so much. They need more.
This story was originally published November 16, 2025 at 6:50 PM.