KC Chiefs win a weird one over a bad Broncos team

The Kansas City Chiefs go up 27 points, implode for two quarters, but ultimately eke by an inept division rival to hold their position in a tight AFC playoff picture.

The Kansas City Chiefs defense will shoulder the lion’s share of the blame for the product the team put on the field Sunday. In fairness, they did surrender 28 points to a Denver Broncos offense that had averaged just 13.8 points per game on the season. Denver posted 320 yards of total offense for just the second time over the past month. There’s clearly work left for defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo to do with this unit, but sans context, the defense may take a more significant portion of the blame than necessary.

Patrick Mahomes played perhaps his worst game of the season today, tossing a trio of avoidable interceptions. The Broncos turned two of those interceptions into touchdowns. Both picks of the first two picks created short-field situations for a Broncos unit that had been held scoreless to that point in the game. On five drives, the Broncos punted four times, and Wilson gifted linebacker Willie Gay with an interception that went 47 yards the other way for a touchdown. On Kansas City’s next offensive possession, Broncos linebacker Josey Jewell appeared to have baited Mahomes into an interception in the middle of Denver’s defense. The Broncos immediately took advantage of excellent starting field position, from KC’s 42-yard line, going six plays for their first score of the game.

Mahomes would make another questionable choice on the next drive, again making a throw that landed in the arms of a Denver defender (Pat Surtain II). In similar fashion, the Broncos went down the field again and found Jerry Jeudy for the second time to cut Kansas City’s lead to 13. After winning the toss and deferring, Denver was able to double-dip with a third touchdown to start the third quarter. The Chiefs’ offensive blunders resulted in a Broncos 24-0 run in the middle two quarters. The rest of the game would prove to be a dogfight for Kansas City.

Few will ask, but why does Patrick Mahomes have 42 pass attempts in a game where the Chiefs never trailed? Rookie Isiah Pacheco averaged nearly 5.5 yards per carry, but after Mahomes’ first interception, the Chiefs came back out and attempted five-straight passes. This refusal to bring his unit into balance is starting to put this football team in precarious situations. We all remember how the AFC title game ended in January. At some point, there will be a reckoning for Kansas City’s inability to run when necessary.

Steve Spagnuolo’s an easy target, but it’s time to ask serious questions about how often Andy Reid’s offense is turning the ball over. There have been a paltry few games where they haven’t given extra possessions to their opponent. That has to be cleaned up as the regular season draws to a close. Kansas City has a prohibitive lead in the AFC West, but they’re still trailing Buffalo for the No. 1 seed. This might not be the year to have to play three to earn a trip to the Super Bowl. A better team might’ve capitalized on a three-turnover day from Mahomes. A better team is coming in a couple of weeks (Seattle).

It’s time for Kansas City to start modeling the brand of football the Chiefs will need to play to return to Phoenix, the site of Super Bowl LVII. That starts with Andy Reid and trickles down to the team’s elite signal caller. The Chiefs cannot afford a slip to one of the league’s worst teams. That nearly happened today and hopefully, it serves as a warning for them to clean up their act.