Chiefs unable to muster any last-second heroics in loss to Packers

For the Kansas City Chiefs, the road trip to Lambeau presented another opportunity to shine in primetime. For the Green Bay Packers, Week 13 gave the NFL's youngest team a rare chance to showcase their roster in front of a national audience. It was the home team who seized the brass ring on Sunday Night Football.

From a night to remember from Jordan Love to a final drive filled with insane non-calls. let's recap the primetime victory for the Packers over the Chiefs.

What We'll Likely Remember from Chiefs-Packers

The ensuing weeks for the Chiefs will likely force them to remember the numerous injuries from this game, especially on defense. There's more on that below.

This felt like an uninspired game against an opponent who looked like they were far hungrier for a victory than the visitors. That's likely true given how young this Packers' roster is and how much this time in the primetime spotlight meant to them against such a celebrated opponent. Simply put, this was a Super Bowl of sorts for the Packers and they played like it. The same could not be said of the Chiefs.

Beyond all of that, the game's final drive was filled with calls that should not have been made, others that should have been made, an ejection for Isiah Pacheco for throwing a punch at a Packers defensive back, and a failed Hail Mary attempt from Patrick Mahomes. Wait, maybe we'll want to forget that one. Speaking of...

What We'll Want to Forget from Chiefs-Packers

Nearly everything. The Chiefs were laughable in the red zone in the first half of the game, and by now we've learned that these Chiefs have little margin for error. Silly penalties on Travis Kelce and Jawaan Taylor cost them as well as breakdowns in pass protection that forced Mahomes to take three sacks from the Packers in the first half with the goal line in view of all of them. Even into the second half, there was Mahomes' interception, more injuries, more penalties, and further lack of chemistry with receivers.

Three Key Stats from Chiefs-Packers

1. Matt LaFleur, head coach for the Packers, came into the game unbeaten in the month of December. That's not just a small sample size. Rather, that's a 15-0 record for the month, which was quite an achievement. On Sunday, he put up another big win over the Chiefs to make that 16-0. That's a helluva run.

2. The big difference-maker in this game was the Packers red-zone defense. In the first half, Green Bay came up with three sacks of Mahomes on two appearances short of the goal line. Rashan Gary, Preston Smith, and Lukas Van Ness all came up with sacks and each pushed the Chiefs back enough to force field goal attempts instead. That point differential of 3 versus 7 on each drive was the ball game.

3. For those wondering how Jordan Love would respond to a tougher opponent after putting up better numbers against thinner secondaries, the Packers' young quarterback deserves a ton of credit for completing 25 of 36 pass attempts for 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions on the night. His passer rating against the Chiefs was 118.6. Love deserves a lot of credit for his night.

Highlight of the Game from Chiefs-Packers

For a Chiefs team looking for any sort of edge all night against a surprising Packers team, Mike Danna's ability to come up with a third-down sack in the red zone for the Chiefs in the fourth quarter gave K.C. the chance they were hoping for.

It was almost one of the few times that the team's front line made its presence felt against a strong night from Green Bay's offensive line. Another big play for Danna, it was sack number 6.5 for the former Michigan product. Unfortunately, the Chiefs immediately turned the ball over on the next play when Patrick Mahomes was intercepted by Keisean Nixon.

Chiefs Injury Update from Week 13

The Chiefs' training staff was busy for the entire evening in Green Bay, unfortunately. The Chiefs suffered a significant loss on defense in both halves of this game along with a few other smaller injuries that arose.

First, it was linebacker Drue Tranquill who was placed in the team's concussion protocol just a handful of plays into the entire game. From there, Jack Cochrane was calling plays in the heart of the defense with Nick Bolton out as well, and the Chiefs defense was greatly affected.

In the second half, safety Bryan Cook went down with a lower-leg injury that looked very serious and required a medical cart to remove him from the field of play. More details to come, but it didn't look good for the long term in the moment.

Beyond that, left tackle Donovan Smith was in and out and designated as questionable to return with a neck injury. The team's other starting safety Justin Reid also sought medical attention at one point along with running back Isiah Pacheco. Suffice it to say, there's going to be a lot of questions this week about the Chiefs' injury list before Week 14.

Chiefs vs Packers Final Score

After a hard-fought battle on both sides that featured a close game going into the final seconds, the Packers held on for a 27-19 win after a long Hail Mary from Mahomes was deflected and fell to the ground in the end zone.

What's Next for the Chiefs?

After a two-game road trip, the Chiefs head home for Week 14 for one of the most anticipated games of the year for fans of AFC teams. While the stakes aren't as high as most likely predicted, a visit from Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills is still must-watch television against Patrick Mahomes and company and it should be a big game, especially for a Buffalo team on the ropes.