The Kansas City Chiefs came into Sunday’s game as the favorites to head to their third consecutive Super Bowl. The Cincinnati Bengals were having none of it.
In what will be known as one of the single biggest postseason implosions in team history, the Chiefs lost to the visiting Bengals in overtime by a final score of 27-24 in a game in which they were up 21-10 with the ball at the one-yard line with first-and-goal to go before halftime. Even now, it still seems unbelievable.
The Bengals were on the ropes for the entire first half in a game that looked like it was going to be the rout that many predicted it would be with the Chiefs rolling on offense and doing enough on defense to keep Joe Burrow and Cincinnati at bay. Yet somehow, the entire second half was an alternate universe (don’t worry, we will get there) for Patrick Mahomes and everything we’ve come to know about this team. It was as if the same roster that defined the first seven games came back to play the second half.
In the end, the Bengals are now headed to the Super Bowl for the first time since the 1700s or so while the Chiefs missed out on a chance to really cement their dynasty. They are, of course, still going to be favored in years to come to make the Super Bowl, but this sort of complete meltdown will only bolster opponents going forward.
Let’s look at some key takeaways from the devastating loss to the Bengals.
The two sides of Patrick Mahomes
We’re not exactly sure what to make of the day that Patrick Mahomes had.
On the one hand, at this point, we’re okay saying that Patrick Mahomes has no equal—none. That’s not intended as a slight to other quarterbacks. Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady are veteran legends and Hall of Famers themselves capable of putting together MVP numbers, to be sure. Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, and even the losing quarterback from Sunday, Joe Burrow, are all young gunslingers worthy of mentioning in any conversation for the league’s top quarterbacks.
All that said, Mahomes is clearly the best—until he’s not.
We already watched his postseason greatness just a week ago as he rose like a phoenix and engineered the game-tying drive in 13 seconds only to then elevate the Chiefs to an overtime win over the Buffalo Bills. This week, Mahomes dominated the Bengals early with three touchdown drives to start the game and put K.C. on top for good.
If you want to know a single play that separates Mahomes from the rest, the end zone toss to Travis Kelce is a great example.
https://twitter.com/Chiefs/status/1487889059070582785
But then we all saw the meltdown. After failing to score from 1st-and-goal before halftime, here are the drives put together by Mahomes and the Chiefs offense:
- Punt
- Punt
- Interception
- Punt
- Punt
- Field Goal
- Interception
There were even throws in there that could have been intercepted that weren’t. Of course, there were other miscues (see below) but much of this was undoubtedly on Mahomes.
It wasn’t just a tale of two halves. It was a tale of two quarterbacks. One was confident and full of moxie and magic. The other was timid, succumbed to pressure, and couldn’t seem to get much of anything moving. A lot of questions will be asked about this performance in the days to come.
The Chiefs remain their own worst enemy
Yes, the Bengals did enough to win the game. They took advantage of key moments. They played smart football. They made the requisite adjustments, and they’re certainly a very talented team—all of which is why they were in this position in the first place. But what was true all season long proved true again on Sunday in that the Chiefs are their own worst enemy.
During the first third of the season (or more), the Chiefs found themselves mired in the basement of the AFC West for weeks due to their own sloppy play. The tackling was atrocious. The pass rush was non-existent. They took poor angles in pursuit. The offense wasn’t that much better with plenty of drops and lots of giveaways. As for penalties, both sides did their part.
On Sunday, the Chiefs came into the third quarter in the same way. First was the weird first-and-goal from their own 1-yard line in which they came away with ZERO points heading into halftime. Then came successive drops by Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce to stall the first drive of the third quarter. From there, the Chiefs sputtered and ultimately stalled, even as Mahomes threw multiple interceptions (and others that could have been).
Suddenly the Chiefs went from that first-and-goal scenario with a chance to go up by 18 before halftime to down by three in the fourth quarter. They came back to tie the game and send it to overtime but the Bengals intercepted Mahomes there and moved the chains close enough for Evan McPherson to end the game with a short field goal. Just like that, the meltdown was complete.
Joe Burrow is very, very good
Just as much as we need to discuss the Chiefs’ ability to implode, we also need a serious conversation about the greatness of Joe Burrow. The second-year quarterback is a true leader of men and showcased several impressive traits on Sunday that should have fans very very excited for years to come.
First, it was important to note just how admirable it was for the Bengals to stay competitive as they did for four full quarters (and more) The team didn’t get their heads down at all even late in the second quarter when all of the momenta belonged to the Chiefs. They stopped K.C. from scoring before halftime and came out and slowly and steadily climbed back into the game. A lot of that is on the demeanor and performance of Burrow under center.
In addition to the confidence, Burrow also was able to make several incredible throws to give his team the lead after getting back into it. Then there were the insane scrambles that kept alive a critical drive upon which the Bengals tied the game.
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1487917162194825217
These sorts of plays are the ones generally made by Mahomes that make opponents flip out. It felt odd to watch that from the outside perspective, but Burrow has that same sort of magic available to him at times. It’s the difference between having an elite option or not and the Bengals should feel good that they have one. Next Burrow will try to do the same thing on the biggest stage of all.
A wasted effort by the backfield
One sad element of the loss is that an effective game by the backfield has been lost and will remain overlooked due to the bigger (and more depressing) picture.
The Chiefs were able to bring back Darrel Williams before the game from a toe injury that could have kept him inactive, but it turns out the tandem that’s currently working so well for the Chiefs did what they could to keep the chains moving on Sunday.
Jerick McKinnon has been a postseason hero for the Chiefs so far this winter and he put up another strong performance on Sunday with 12 carries for 65 yards and 3 catches for 30 yards through the air—good for 95 total yards from scrimmage. Not to be outdone, Clyde Edwards-Helaire made the most of his appearances, too, and had 6 carries for 36 yards on the ground, good for a 6 yards/carry average.
McKinnon was electric from the word go and was instrumental in the team’s opening drive that led to a 7-0 lead. Giving extra effort on every single run or run-after-the-catch, McKinnon became a fan favorite late in the year for his grit and effort that works so well with his natural athleticism.
Unfortunately, despite their best efforts, the backfield and the rest of the Chiefs offense came up short for the entire second half of the AFC Championship.