NFL Standings, Week 12: Despite loss, Kansas City Chiefs remain atop AFC

The Kansas City Chiefs lost a hard fought battle against the L.A. Rams, but remain in control of the AFC. Let’s look at the rest of the NFL standings.

On a Monday night to remember, the AFC West-leading Kansas City Chiefs and the NFC West-leading Los Angeles Rams played perhaps the best game of the year. The game went down to the wire, but, ultimately, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes tried to force a couple passes that ended in interceptions and a Rams victory.

Elsewhere in the division, the Oakland Raiders took on the Arizona Cardinals and barely snuck away with a win. The Los Angeles Chargers hosted the Denver Broncos and lost as time expired.

Though the Chiefs lost, K.C.’s fans should not be worried. The Chiefs turned the ball over five times, with Patrick Mahomes throwing three interceptions and losing two fumbles. Two of these turnovers were taken back for touchdowns and two of these turnovers were prayers that Mahomes tried to force at the end of the game.

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Mahomes ended the game with an amazing stat line: 33/46 completions for 478 yards, 6 touchdowns, and 3 interceptions. But again, two of those interceptions were forced attempts that hold little value compared to his effort throughout the game.

On the receiving end of his passes, wide receiver Tyreek Hill and tight end Travis Kelce led the way. Hill caught 10 passes for 215 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Kelce caught 10 passes for 127 yards and 1 touchdown. Kelce did, however, have two crucial drops that could’ve changed the outcome of the game. Another receiver to note was Chris Conley, who caught 7 passes for 74 yards and 2 touchdowns. Fellow wide receiver Sammy Watkins hardly played with his foot injury and was limited to just one catch for 4 yards.

The Chiefs didn’t get running back Kareem Hunt going very well, as he only rushed 14 times for 70 yards and caught 3 passes for 41 yards. However, the Chiefs defense did a great job containing Rams running back Todd Gurley and limiting him to less than 100 yards from scrimmage. Despite turning the ball over five times and missing big opportunities on offense (not to mention the clearly biased referees) the Chiefs still put up 51 against the Rams defense. Ultimately, the Chiefs lost a close one 54-51.

Surprisingly, the Raiders pulled out a victory over the Arizona Cardinals despite the absence of starting wide receivers Jordy Nelson and Martavis Bryant due to injury. Heading into this game, the Raiders’ only win had come against the Cleveland Browns in an overtime game. Raiders quarterback Derek Carr threw 31 times with 19 completions for 192 yards and 2 touchdowns. Though they won, the Raiders lost wide receiver Brandon LaFell for the season with a torn Achilles and lost running back Doug Martin to a minor ankle injury. In the end, they barely won the game, 23-21.

Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa played in his first game back from a foot injury he suffered during training camp. While he didn’t make much of an impact other than one tackle, it was definitely encouraging for the Chargers to see him back on the field.

Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers completed 28 of 43 passes for 401 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. He spread the ball out relatively evenly, with wide receiver Keenan Allen catching 9 passes for 89 yards and 1 touchdown, running back Melvin Gordon catching 6 passes for 87 yards, and tight end Antonio Gates catching 5 passes for 80 yards and 1 touchdown. In the end, the Chargers came up short and lost 23-22 on a last-second field goal.

After starting the year by throwing an interception in eight straight games, Broncos quarterback Case Keenum has now gone without an interception in his last two games. He completed 19 of 32 passes for 205 yards. Running back Phillip Lindsay continues to have a great season, with 11 carries for 79 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Broncos were able to march downfield and, as time expired in the fourth quarter, kick a field goal to beat the division rival Chargers 23-22.

Here are the NFL standings around the league:

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