Season Review: Chiefs thrive despite obstacles

Worst Loss: Week 2 vs. Denver

The expectations and hopes started high with a great performance from the Chiefs in week one. Travis Kelce had truly emerged and the defense was back to its ball hawking ways. The concern from that first game was that the Chiefs struggled in the second half and took their foot off the gas. This allowed the Texans to come within 7 points at the end and make then win look less dominating than it was. It would be an unfortunate trend in the weeks to come.

The Denver game opened with a flash of excitement as Jamaal Charles and Marcus Peters showed just how dominant they could be. Peters returned a Manning interception for a touchdown while Charles took a 30-yard gallop to the end zone. Then Denver found out about Jamell Fleming. The fourth-year defensive back was playing the slot receiver as Philip Gaines was covering for suspended Sean Smith. This put him in position to cover Denver’s Emmanuel Sanders, something Chiefs’ fans lamented that he could not do well. In the end it was Fleming who allowed Sanders past him on a post route to tie the game with just seconds left on the clock. The Chiefs seemed knocked woozy by the blow and decided to pick a play in between going for overtime and going for the win; they ran the ball with Charles.

The rest is history that everyone knows and hates. Charles fumbled and the Broncos ran it across the goal line for a winning touchdown. This game messed with the Chiefs’ heads. Had they won or even lost in a more usual fashion, they may have gone to Green Bay with more fight in them. But unable to get away from that Denver loss, the Chiefs struggled in all phases for the next four games. They could not generate any amount of respectable offense and they could not stop any other offense the league had to offer.

The Denver game messed with a lot the Chiefs were trying to do this season and getting out of the funk proved to be a five game job.

Best Win – Wild Card Week at Houston

We have to go with the playoff shutout of the Houston Texans. The Chiefs came into the game riding a 10-game winning streak but there was still the 22 year curse that seemed to permeate the fan base like a bad stink. Fans were nervous about the playoff match-up that put defense against defense on the road. But they came to support their team and by the final whistle had taken over the majority of NRG Stadium.

The game was a mix of great running from Smith, West, and Ware and dominant, turnover defense. The Chiefs forced Texans quarterback Brian Hoyer into mistake after mistake. The only chance the Texans had to score in the entire game was highlighted by the excellent play of Dontari Poe and Josh Mauga. It seemed that everyone got in on the party as Kelce ran rough-shod over the formidable secondary and Albert Wilson reeled in short pass after short pass.

The only down point of the game came from Jeremy Maclin as he was helped to the sideline in tears. The injury proved to be relatively minor but costly enough to keep him out of most of the following game. If the Chiefs’ defense can pick apart a quarterback like they did on that day, then the future looks bright indeed.

Next: Cheers and Jeers