Late Collapse Costly for Kansas City
The Denver Broncos defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 28-24 on Sunday after a fourth quarter comeback. Kansas City went up by 11 points deep in the second half, but they failed to score a single point in the final quarter. Meanwhile, Denver scored 15 points on their final two possessions.
The result ended a strong record for quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Prior to Sunday, the Chiefs were 80-2, including the playoffs, when leading by 10 or more points in the fourth quarter with Mahomes as their starter.
Key Mistakes and Missed Kicks
Head coach Andy Reid made several conservative calls during the final quarter. He chose to punt on a fourth and inches snap near midfield early in the fourth quarter. Denver then marched 80 yards on nine plays to cut the lead to three points.
On the next drive, Mahomes was sacked by linebacker Alex Singleton for a six yard loss on third and 2 from the Denver 30 yard line. That pushed kicker Harrison Butker back to attempt a 54 yard field goal, which he missed wide right. Butker has now missed 16 kicks since the start of last season, which is the most by any kicker in the league over that stretch.
Defensive Troubles and Late Penalties
Denver took advantage of the momentum. Running back Jonah Coleman scored the go ahead touchdown on a 5 yard run, just one play after breaking free for a 51 yard catch and run. Kansas City struggled to pressure quarterback Bo Nix, forcing pressure on only two of his 34 dropbacks. Pass rusher Chris Jones pointed out after the game that the defensive line failed to win their one on one battles.
Penalties also proved costly for Kansas City. The team committed a season high 11 penalties for 105 yards. On fourth and goal from the 1 yard line with four seconds remaining, Mahomes threw a pass to Rashee Rice in the end zone. The play was called back due to a false start penalty on right tackle Jaylon Moore. On the next play, defensive end Malcolm Roach sacked Mahomes to finish the game.
Shift in the Division Race
With the win, the Broncos improved to 6-2 on the season, while the Chiefs fell to 5-2. The victory put Denver into the top spot in the AFC West division.
Mahomes expressed frustration after the game, explaining that the team must execute for the full 60 minutes. He acknowledged that Kansas City is now in a fight for the division title as they work to fix their errors.
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