KANSAS CITY, Mo. — You simply knew they had been moving to win. The Chiefs knew they had been moving to win. The lovers within Arrowhead Stadium knew it. Possibly many of the hundreds of thousands of community looking at “Sunday Night Football” on NBC did, too.
Whether or not you’re keen on them or dislike them — or are simply bored with them — the Chiefs gained, over again, in any other akin tournament that left their opponent, this presen the Los Angeles Chargers, shaking their heads.
The Chiefs are a high-wire circus employment. They don’t simply blast the trick of successful one-score tournament upcoming one-score tournament. Incorrect. They should build up the chance, snip their odds of a a hit touchdown and discover a untouched strategy to retirement embarrassment.
“As long as we have a chance to go out there and have the ball and make a play happen, I feel like we’re going to make it happen,” quarterback Patrick Mahomes mentioned.
Rather of a comfy, dominant win over a divisional rival, the Chiefs blew a 13-point manage in the second one part ahead of Mahomes was a expert within the tournament’s most crucial moments to as soon as once more manage his teammates to a dramatic comeback win, 19-17 over the Chargers.
Mahomes, even though, didn’t rating the game-winning issues. Lecturer Andy Reid made up our minds to have Mahomes, as soon as he drove the offense into the purple zone, kneel two times ahead of calling a timeout with one moment left at the clock to arrange a game-winning grassland purpose for Matthew Wright, the Chiefs’ third-string kicker. Next Reid made up our minds to not oversee Wright effort his 31-yard kick. Reid stored his face ahead as though staring right into a void. The joke was on Reid, who had to learn that the ball accident the interior of the left upright ahead of going thru. The past led initiation kicker Harrison Butker — out with a left knee trauma — to grin and chortle.
“I wanted it to go right down the middle, obviously,” Wright mentioned. “I’m just happy it went in. … I don’t like to think about hitting the upright.”
Unreal pic.twitter.com/Wx4a3YhaR1
— NFL (@NFL) December 9, 2024
Inside of mins of his game-winning doink, Wright was once at the grassland for NBC’s postgame interview later to Mahomes and cross rusher Chris Jones. Wright, who joined the Chiefs two weeks in the past, was once probably the most first avid gamers to don a sun-baked untouched lightless ballcap, the commemorative merchandise in honor of the staff being topped as champion of the AFC West for the 9th consecutive season.
The Chiefs entered Sunday with 14 consecutive victories in video games made up our minds by way of one rating, the longest streak in NFL historical past.
GO DEEPER
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However because the Chiefs struggle to seize an unheard of 1/3 immediately Tremendous Bowl victory, this season has been concerning the staff’s last-second victories, every one apparently more odd than the final. Together with Sunday, part of the Chiefs’ 12 victories this season were made up our minds at the ultimate play games — Ravens tight finish Isaiah Most likely’s proper obese toe being out of bounds in lieu of a landing as presen expired, Butker’s game-winning kick over the Bengals, operating again Kareem Hunt’s landing in time beyond regulation over the Buccaneers, linebacker Leo Chenal’s diving oppose within the win over the Broncos and kicker Spencer Shrader’s grassland purpose over the Panthers.
“I’d much rather it be like this — and win games and find new ways to win — than to be losing them,” tight finish Travis Kelce mentioned. “Looking at it from last year, one of the biggest things was being able to calm the storm that’s around us and focus on us and keep getting better. This is just another version of that, trying to find ways to win and keep finding ways to get better, so at the end of the season we’re playing our best ball.”
This “How ‘bout those Chiefs!” manner much more pic.twitter.com/huqt8s9QKh
— Kansas Town Chiefs (@Chiefs) December 9, 2024
The Chiefs offense nonetheless isn’t buzzing. For the second one consecutive era, the Chiefs scored just one landing. Placing veteran D.J. Humphries at left take on didn’t cure the offensive problems. Humphries did his best possible to aid stabilize the offensive order, however Mahomes was once accident a season-high 13 instances by way of the Chargers. Given the instances, Mahomes was once nonetheless elegant when important, particularly when he was once accident or about to get accident.
“We’ve played a lot of good defenses,” Mahomes mentioned. “That’s the one bad thing when you win the Super Bowl: You play the best schedule. We’ve played a lot of good defensive ends, defensive linemen. For myself, it’s just finding the soft spot in the pocket. On some of the early third downs, I was kind of running into (pressure). I thought I did better as the game went on.”
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The Chiefs’ ultimate force started with not up to 5 mins left. Mahomes was once put at a drawback: He could be compelled to cross the ball again and again and the Chargers knew they’d have enough of alternatives to hurry him in hopes of producing a damaging participant or a game-winning giveover.
Next Mahomes was once at his slippery best possible. On third-and-10 from the Chiefs’ 4o-yard order, Mahomes kept away from 3 defenders within the region, moved to his left and jumped to finish a 14-yard cross to rookie Xavier Reliable.
Mahomes issues pic.twitter.com/fFF1YhaamM
— NFL (@NFL) December 9, 2024
On third- and fourth-down performs this season, Mahomes has generated 50 general anticipated issues added, in line with TruMedia. Incorrect alternative quarterback has greater than 33 general anticipated issues added (Buffalo’s Josh Allen).
However upcoming the later snap, the trouble greater for Mahomes: Humphries left the sport with a hamstring trauma. He was once changed by way of Wanya Morris, a second-year participant who allowed 11 pressures on 48 pass-blocking snaps the former era within the Chiefs’ win over the Las Vegas Raiders.
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“I wanted to show why I was there in the first place and why this team trusted me,” Morris mentioned. “It’s definitely good to put last week behind me, but not to forget that embarrassment that I felt. I feel that’s very essential to me growing.”
Mahomes’ ultimate third-down snap started on the Chargers’ 20-yard order upcoming the two-minute blackmail. With the Chargers having exhausted their timeouts, some groups would’ve elected to run the ball to conserve the clock operating. Earlier than the Chiefs’ third-and-7 snap, Mahomes mentioned one sentence to Reid to aid persuade him to name a cross play games.
“I’ll make something happen,” Mahomes advised Reid.
When the play games must be made, 1⃣5⃣ makes the play games. pic.twitter.com/TIEKFwmPgk
— NFL (@NFL) December 9, 2024
Mahomes made positive the Chargers by no means were given the ball once more. He rolled to his proper and waited lengthy enough quantity — and heading off linebacker Daiyan Henley — to seek out Kelce for a 9-yard crowning glory.
“I thought the Chargers did a nice job,” Reid mentioned. “They zoned us off. That’s more of a (play against man-to-man coverage). They had been playing man up to that point. If they would’ve done that, it would’ve been a great call.”
Now not strangely, Mahomes was once assisted by way of his wild card of a teammate in Kelce, who improvised his course.
“He’s supposed to run a corner route,” Mahomes mentioned of Kelce with a uninhabited resonance. “It is what it is. I went through my reads. As I went to get ready to run, I just saw (No.) 87 just sitting right there in the middle of the field.”
Kelce didn’t divulge what led him to modify his course or how he did it to miracle the Chargers. Kelce did proportion that, not like Reid, he watched Wright construct the successful kick.
“Oh, yeah, I saw it hit the upright,” Kelce mentioned. “The bank is open on Sundays, man.”
(Photograph of Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce: Jamie Squire / Getty Pictures)
