Kansas City Chiefs Game Recaps

Mon, Feb 1, 2021
By The Associated Press

Game 1
CHIEFS 34, TEXANS 20

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Just about the only thing that looked familiar about the NFL's long-awaited return Thursday night was the sight of Patrick Mahomes effortlessly leading the Kansas City Chiefs up and down the field.

The Super Bowl MVP threw for 211 yards and three touchdowns, Clyde Edwards-Helaire ran through the rain for 138 yards and another score, and the Chiefs began defense of their first championship in 50 years by beating the Houston Texans 34-20 on Thursday night before a socially distanced crowd of about 17,000 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Travis Kelce, Sammy Watkins and Tyreek Hill each caught TD passes for the Chiefs. They have won 10 straight dating to last season. That run includes a come-from-behind 51-31 victory over the Texans in the divisional round of the playoffs.

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Game 2
CHIEFS 23, CHARGERS 20, OT

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Harrison Butker kicked a 58-yard field goal with 1:55 remaining in overtime, and the Chiefs survived a superlative first start by rookie Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.

Butker's winner was his third field goal of the day and his second from 58 yards, which tied a Chiefs record for distance. He nailed a 30-yarder on the final play of regulation.

In overtime, Butker sent the ball through the uprights from 53 yards, but KC was called for a false start. Then the Chargers called timeout, giving him a rehearsal kick from 58 that he also made before the one that counted.

Patrick Mahomes completed less than half of his passes in the first half for only the third time in his career but rallied to finish 27 of 47 for 302 yards and two touchdowns. Tyreek Hill (five catches, 99 yards) and Travis Kelce (nine receptions, 90 yards) each had TD receptions.

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Game 3
CHIEFS 34, RAVENS 20

BALTIMORE (AP) - It wasn't just that Patrick Mahomes threw for a ton of yards and four touchdowns. Most impressive was how he did it.

Mahomes juked, danced, and jumped in and out of the pocket. Sometimes he just dropped back and fired pinpoint throws downfield. He tossed shovel passes and flung it sidearmed.

The common thread was that just about everything he did worked for the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, who rolled past the Baltimore Ravens 34-20 on Monday night.

Mahomes put on a scintillating show while outperforming Lamar Jackson, who's 0-3 against the Chiefs and 21-1 against the rest of the NFL as a regular-season starting quarterback.

With Mahomes leading the way, the Chiefs (3-0) emphatically ended the Ravens' 14-game regular-season winning streak while extending their own run to 12 games (including playoffs). Mahomes went 31 for 42 for 385 yards and averaged 6.5 yards on his four rushing attempts.

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Game 4
CHIEFS 26, PATRIOTS 10

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - It's hard enough to slow down Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs under the best of circumstances.

Try doing it with your star quarterback shelved by COVID-19, a 34-year-old journeyman taking his place, your top running back headed to injured reserve and a flight that didn't land in Kansas City until shortly before kickoff.

Yet the New England Patriots still managed to give the Chiefs fits for most of the way Monday night, hanging within a field goal of the Super Bowl champs until late in the third quarter. It wasn't until Tyrann Mathieu took an interception back for a touchdown in the fourth that Kansas City clinched its 26-10 victory at Arrowhead Stadium.

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Game 5
Las Vegas 40, Kansas City 32

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Derek Carr threw for 347 yards and three touchdowns, outplaying Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes along the way, and the Las Vegas Raiders nearly shut out the potent Kansas City offense in the second half to rally for a 40-32 victory Sunday that ended the Chiefs' franchise-record 13-game winning streak.

Josh Jacobs scored the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter, Daniel Carlson added a field goal a few minutes later, and Mahomes was intercepted on fourth down to set up another touchdown by Jacobs that made it 40-24 with 5:26 left. Mahomes led the Chiefs quickly downfield, hitting Travis Kelce for a touchdown and Darrel Williams for the 2-point try to make it a one-possession game.

But after the Raiders (3-2) recovered the squib quick, Jacobs rumbled for a first down as the Chiefs (4-1) used up their timeouts, and Carr sneaked for a first down on fourth-and-1 near midfield with 2 minutes left to allow Las Vegas to end its five-game skid against Kansas City.

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Game 6
CHIEFS 26, BILLS 17

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) - Patrick Mahomes didn't mind taking a back seat to rookie Clyde Edwards-Helaire and the Kansas City Chiefs' running attack.

With the Buffalo Bills working hard to limit deep throws by the strong-armed Mahomes, he gladly kept handing off the ball, and Kansas City beat Buffalo 26-17 on Monday night in a game that was originally scheduled for last Thursday. Led by Edwards-Helaire's 161 yards rushing, the Chiefs finished with 245 the most since Mahomes took over as starter in 2017. Kansas City's 46 rushing attempts were also the most in eight years under coach Andy Reid, and that was with newly signed Le'Veon Bell waiting to make his debut after signing with the Chiefs last Thursday.

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Game 7
CHIEFS 43, BRONCOS 16

DENVER (AP) - Kansas City didn't need the usual heroics from Patrick Mahomes to rout Denver for its 10th straight win over its AFC West rival.

The Chiefs (6-1) found other ways to dominate Denver (2-4) on a snowy afternoon that began with a temperature of 14 degrees at kickoff.

Kansas City took a 24-9 halftime lead even though Mahomes completed just one pass in the second quarter, a 5-yarder, and had just 99 yards through the air in the first half.

Mahomes finally extended his NFL-leading streak to 17 consecutive games with a touchdown throw when he hit Tyreek Hill from 10 yards with 11 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. That made it 37-9.

Mahomes' TD throw to Hill followed the Chiefs' fourth takeaway, an interception by Tyrann Mathieu when rookie KJ Hamler let Drew Lock's pass bounce off him and right into the arms of the Chiefs' star safety.

Mahomes finished a methodical 15 of 23 for 200 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions and four sacks.

In the first half, the Chiefs scored touchdowns on Byron Pringle's 102-yard kickoff return and Daniel Sorensen's 50-yard interception return to go with Clyde Edwards-Helaire's 11-yard run in which he broke five tackles.

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Game 8
CHIEFS 35, JETS 9

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Patrick Mahomes threw for 416 yards and five touchdowns, the Kansas City defense shut down Sam Darnold and the inept Jets offense.

Tyreek Hill had 98 yards receiving and two touchdowns, Travis Kelce finished with 109 yards and another score, and Mecole Hardman and Demarcus Robinson also reached the end zone. The Chiefs (7-1) gave Andy Reid his 229th win to move into a tie with Hall of Fame coach Curly Lambeau for fifth most in NFL history.

Le'Veon Bell, getting a crack at the Jets just a few weeks after they released him, was held to 7 yards rushing with three catches for another 31 yards though it wasn't as if Kansas City needed him.

Darnold, who was without top receivers Jamison Crowder and Breshad Perriman because of injuries, was 18 of 30 for 133 yards as the Jets fell to 0-8 for the first time since the 1996 team of Rich Kotite that went 1-15.

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Game 9
CHIEFS 33, PANTHERS 31

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Patrick Mahomes threw for 372 yards and four touchdowns, Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill each went over 100 yards receiving, and Kansas City held on to beat Carolina when Joey Slye missed a 67-yard field-goal attempt wide right on the final play.

The Chiefs (8-1) were left clinging to the lead when Christian McCaffrey, just back from his ankle injury, scored from a yard out with 1:26 to go. The Panthers' onside kick was recovered by Kansas City, but they used their three timeouts to get the ball back, and Teddy Bridgewater's 23-yard pass to Curtis Samuel with 9 seconds remaining gave them hope.

Carolina (3-6) tried to get a bit closer with a pass to McCaffrey, but the incompletion brought on Slye, who had plenty of leg with the wind behind him. His kick dropped just outside the uprights, though, allowing the Chiefs to escape.

Slye also missed a 65-yard attempt late in a 27-24 loss to New Orleans in Week 7.

McCaffrey finished with 18 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown while catching 10 passes for 82 yards and another score. Bridgewater threw for 310 yards and two TDs with Samuel catching nine balls for 105 yards and the other score.

Kelce had 10 catches for 159 yards and Hill had nine for 113 and a pair of scores, helping the pass-happy Chiefs climb out of an early 14-3 hole and head into their bye with a bunch of new milestones and a big surge of momentum.

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Game 10
CHIEFS 35, RAIDERS 31

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Patrick Mahomes threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to Travis Kelce with 28 seconds to play, and the Kansas City Chiefs avenged their only loss in the last 12 months with a 35-31 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday night.

Mahomes passed for 348 yards and led two go-ahead scoring drives in the frantic fourth quarter for the defending Super Bowl champions, who split their season series with Las Vegas (6-4) in dramatic fashion.

Kelce caught eight passes for 127 yards for the Chiefs (9-1), who are in firm control of the race for their fifth straight AFC West title but only after another thrilling comeback led by their Super Bowl MVP, who bounced back from his second interception of the season late in the first half.

The Raiders led 24-21 on Darren Waller's TD catch on the first play of the fourth quarter, but Mahomes led a 91-yard scoring drive midway through the period capped by Le'Veon Bell's first TD for Kansas City.

Derek Carr and the Raiders replied with a crisp drive ending on Jason Witten's 1-yard TD catch with 1:43 left.

But the Chiefs' powerhouse offense needed only 75 seconds to go 75 yards for another score, with Mahomes going 6 of 7 on the drive. Kelce got open across the middle for the go-ahead score.

Daniel Sorensen then picked off a heave to midfield by Carr with 19 seconds left, and the Chiefs kneeled out their 18th win in the last 19 games since Nov. 10, 2019.

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Game 11
CHIEFS 27, BUCCANEERS 24

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - Patrick Mahomes threw for 462 yards and three touchdowns to outplay Tom Brady and lead Kansas City past Tampa Bay.

Tyreek Hill scored on receptions of 75, 44 and 20 yards, backflipping into the end zone on his second TD, and finishing with 13 catches for 269 yards the last an 8-yard catch on third-and-7 to give Mahomes an opportunity to run out the clock.

The Chiefs (10-1) won their sixth straight game and clinched their seventh 10-win season in eight years under coach Andy Reid.

The reigning Super Bowl champions improved to 6-0 on the road and have won nine straight away from home going back to last year.

Brady was 27 of 41 for 345 yards, three touchdowns and a pair of second-half interceptions in falling to 2-2 in four career meetings against Mahomes, who built an early 17-0 lead and also had the Chiefs up by 17 entering the fourth quarter.

Brady responded with TD passes of 31 and 7 yards to Mike Evans, the latter trimming Tampa Bay's deficit to 27-24 with 4:10 remaining.

The Bucs never got the ball back.

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Game 12
CHIEFS 22, BRONCOS 16

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Patrick Mahomes threw for 318 yards and a touchdown, Harrison Butker was perfect on five field goals, and Kansas City overcame some red-zone woes and big mistakes that cost them two more scores to hold off Denver.

Travis Kelce had eight receptions for 136 yards and the go-ahead TD grab late in the third quarter, and Tyrann Mathieu twice picked off Broncos quarterback Drew Lock the second with 24 seconds left to seal the win as the Chiefs clinched a playoff berth by improving to 11-1 for the second time in franchise history.

Lock finished with 151 yards passing and two touchdown throws to Tim Patrick, while Melvin Gordon ran for 131 yards on just 15 carries for the Broncos (4-8) .

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Game 13
CHIEFS 33, DOLPHINS 27

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. (AP) - Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs overcame a 30-yard sack, four turnovers and a 10-point deficit Sunday to clinch their fifth consecutive AFC West title by beating Miami 33-27 on Sunday.

Mahomes was picked off three times, his first multi-interception game in more than two years, but threw for 393 yards and two scores to help the Chiefs (12-1) earn their eighth consecutive victory.

Tyreek Hill ran through the Dolphins' secondary and behind it, scoring on a 32-yard run and a 44-yard reception when Mahomes hit him in stride at the goal line.

Travis Kelce had eight catches for 136 yards and a touchdown, Mecole Hardman scored untouched on a 67-yard punt return, and Kansas City's defense was stout against Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins' injury-riddled offense. Chris Jones sacked the rookie for a safety for a 30-10 lead.

Kansas City reached 12 wins for the third consecutive season, the longest streak in club history, and has the best 13-game record in franchise history. The Chiefs set a team record with their 10th road win in a row.

Pittsburgh earned a playoff berth with the Miami loss.

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Game 14
CHIEFS 32, SAINTS 29

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - Patrick Mahomes had his full repertoire of side-arm throws, basketball-style push passes and underhanded flips on display while passing for 254 yards and three touchdowns, and Kansas City extended its winning streak to nine games.

The Kansas City defense did its part to spoil Drew Brees' return from rib fractures and a punctured lung that had kept the record-setting passer out four games.

While Brees passed for 234 yards and three TDs, he completed less than half of his passes and was intercepted for just the fourth time this season.

The victory kept the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs (13-1) in pole position to capture the AFC's lone playoff bye as a No. 1 seed. The Saints (10-4), meanwhile, missed a chance to clinch the NFC South for a second straight week and now are longshots to capture the NFC's top seed.

Mahomes' scoring passes went for 5 yards each to Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman, the latter coming as the Chiefs' agile QB back-peddled toward the left sideline to avoid pressure and released a throw to the back corner of the end zone, where Hardman was able to snag it in traffic while narrowly getting two feet inbounds.

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Game 15
CHIEFS 17, FALCONS 14

KANSAS CITY (AP) - Kansas City clinched the top seed in the AFC and the only playoff bye when Patrick Mahomes threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Demarcus Robinson with just under two minutes for a 17-14 win over Atlanta on Sunday.

The Chiefs had to watch as Pro Bowl kicker Younghoe Koo missed a tying field-goal attempt with 9 seconds left to escape.

The Chiefs (14-1) won their NFL-record seventh straight one-possession game and matched a franchise record with their 10th straight win. They took any seeding drama out of games involving Pittsburgh and Buffalo and will have that coveted first-round AFC bye when the postseason begins in two weeks.

The Falcons (4-11) took the lead when Matt Ryan hit Laquon Treadwell for a 5-yard touchdown with 4:33 to go. But Mahomes kept finding Travis Kelce who had a record-setting game of his own to set up the TD pass to Robinson. And when the Falcons marched the other way in the closing seconds, Kansas City's defense forced Koo's 39-yard kick.

Instead of heading to overtime, the Falcons headed home with their seventh loss by six points or less this season.

Mahomes finished with 278 yards passing and two touchdowns along with an interception. Kelce had seven catches for 98 yards and a score, giving him 1,426 yards for the season, breaking George Kittle's record for an NFL tight end.

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Game 16
CHARGERS 38, CHIEFS 21

KANSAS CITY (AP) - Justin Herbert threw for 302 yards and accounted for four touchdowns against a team of mostly Kansas City backups, and the Chargers rolled to a victory as the Chiefs turned their attention to the postseason and Los Angeles to the precarious future of coach Anthony Lynn.

The Chiefs (14-2) already had wrapped up the No. 1 seed and the AFC's lone first-round bye, so coach Andy Reid chose rest over reps by sitting quarterback Patrick Mahomes, safety Tyrann Mathieu and several of his best players.

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Divisional Playoffs
CHIEFS 22, BROWNS 17

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Kansas City had lost Patrick Mahomes to a concussion and was in danger of losing the game. Then the Chiefs defense and Chad Henne kept their Super Bowl hopes alive with a 22-17 victory over the Cleveland Browns that advanced them to the AFC championship game.

Henne, Mahomes' 35-year-old backup, showed some moxie with a long third-down scramble and fourth-down completion to Tyreek Hill when audacious Andy Reid decided to go for it with just over a minute left, giving the Chiefs a first down and allowing them to run out the clock.

Mahomes hadn't played in 21 days, since the Chiefs clinched the AFC's top seed in Week 16, but he hardly missed a beat before leaving midway through the third quarter. He finished 21 of 30 for 255 yards and touchdowns passing and running.

Harrison Butker added three field goals for the Chiefs, who nearly blew a 19-3 lead but held on to become the first AFC team to host three consecutive conference championship games. Baker Mayfield threw for 204 yards with a touchdown and an interception for the Browns, who were coming off their first playoff win since the 1994 season.

But their inability to drive for the winning touchdown they punted with 4:23 left in the game kept them from winning two playoff games in a season for the first time since 1950.

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AFC Championship
CHIEFS 38, BILLS 24

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Showing no lingering effects from his concussion, Patrick Mahomes sliced up Buffalo's secondary with ruthless efficiency, helping Kansas City roll over Josh Allen and the Bills in the AFC championship game.

The reigning Super Bowl MVP finished with 325 yards passing and three touchdowns, most of it to favorite playmakers Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill, who complemented their star quarterback with a record-setting night of their own. The Chiefs will face a familiar foe Tom Brady and the NFC champ Buccaneers in two weeks in Tampa, Florida.

Kelce finished with 13 catches for 118 yards and two touchdowns, and Hill added nine catches for 172 yards, becoming the first duo in NFL history with consecutive games of at least 100 yards receiving each in a single postseason.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Darrel Williams added short TD runs for the Chiefs, who will try to become the eighth franchise and first team since the Brady-led New England Patriots in 2003 and '04 to defend the Lombardi Trophy.

Allen, who had his worst game of the season in a Week 6 loss to the Chiefs, again struggled against the blitzing Kansas City defense. He finished with 287 yards passing with two touchdowns and an interception, but a big chunk of his numbers came as the Bills tried to rally from a 38-15 deficit in the final minutes.