The Chiefs left Denver with a 28-24 loss, and the most revealing part of the aftermath came from Andy Reid himself.
On Monday, Reid pointed to the same theme that kept surfacing throughout the defeat: Kansas City did a lot of the damage to itself.
“When we stalled,” he said, “we normally had something that was self-inflicted that stalled us and not necessarily what they did.”
That line lands as the cleanest summary of a game that turned on mistakes, not just Broncos execution. The Chiefs are now staring at a second straight loss after opening 5-0, and this one came with a very different feel than the one in Seattle. Still, the common thread is hard to miss.
The Chiefs know how to self-correct. That has been part of their identity through the Patrick Mahomes era, when they reached seven straight AFC Championship Games and made five Super Bowls in six seasons, winning three of them.
But that was then. After last season’s 6-11 collapse, nothing about this year gets the benefit of the doubt.
Reid called it a work in progress Monday. The question is whether the progress actually comes.
There are plenty of places the Chiefs can improve: clock management, pass rush, separation in the passing game, ball security, offensive line play, even routine field goals. But Sunday’s most obvious self-inflicted wound was discipline. Kansas City was flagged 11 times for 105 yards, and the penalties kept feeding Denver drives.
The final one was the most painful. Jaylon Moore’s illegal procedure wiped out what would have been a game-winning touchdown pass from Mahomes to Rashee Rice. Reid said the call was legitimate, noting that Moore “rocked back, and his leg flinched.”
That penalty fit a broader problem. The offense entered the season with discipline as a point of emphasis, and the return of Eric Bieniemy as offensive coordinator was supposed to help reinforce that. Instead, the Chiefs hurt themselves before the ball was even snapped.
The defense wasn’t any cleaner. Seventeen of Denver’s points came on drives directly helped by Chiefs penalties.
On the Broncos’ opening possession, Kansas City committed two penalties for 33 yards, helping Denver get a field goal. On Denver’s first touchdown drive, the Chiefs drew two more, including a facemask on Drue Tranquill and Alohi Gilman’s pass interference at the goal line, though that play may have been a touchdown anyway.
Gilman also drew an unnecessary roughness penalty after a 22-yard pass, a sequence that changed the feel of the game and helped Denver trim the margin to 24-21.
Travis Kelce didn’t hide his frustration. He had an illegal procedure early in the game himself, and he said, “We’re going backwards instead of going forwards, and this all before the ball’s even snapped,” adding, “It’s inexcusable, especially from somebody that’s been in the league as long as me.”
That’s the tension hanging over the Chiefs now: excuses versus reasons. Reid made clear he wants the reasons fixed.
“Every (penalty) is important. The attention to detail on that’s important,” he said. “We’ve got to go back and … make sure we refocus ourselves on making sure we’re doing the right things fundamentally.”
When asked about common denominators, Reid said he was “a big equal opportunity guy” and also wanted the games officiated “the same way for both sides.” But he didn’t dodge the main issue.
“I don’t like penalties. Do they upset me?
Yeah, they upset me. You want to make sure that you’re not taking things away from yourself.
“The games are too close and too hard, and (that’s) no more obvious than yesterday.”
Reid also noted that the Chiefs are among the youngest teams in the NFL, third overall early in the season. But several of the penalties that mattered most came from veterans, which only sharpens the bigger questions.
Is this a messaging issue? A reach issue?
Or just a bad stretch that can still be cleaned up?
For now, Reid sees the Denver loss as a warning.
“This is a great example,” he said, “of how it can cost you a game.”
Whether it becomes a turning point or just another sign of what this season is becoming is up to the Chiefs.
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