The Chiefs walked out of Denver with more than a loss. They left with the AFC West lead, too.
Kansas City’s 27-24 defeat to the Broncos on Sunday flipped the top of the division, dropping the Chiefs to 5-2 while Denver moved to 6-2. It also erased an 11-point Chiefs lead early in the fourth quarter and sent a game that had been hanging by a thread all afternoon down to the final snap.
The ending stung in a familiar way for Kansas City. Patrick Mahomes was sacked on the game’s last play from the Broncos’ 6-yard line, but the Chiefs had been in position to win one snap earlier. Mahomes found Rashee Rice in the end zone from the 1, only for right tackle Jaylon Moore to be flagged for a false start.
Denver got its revenge for the opening-game loss to Kansas City, and it did it in a game that swung on small details, tipped balls and one rookie who suddenly looks like he belongs.
Emmett Johnson was the bright spot for the Chiefs. The Nebraska rookie delivered his breakout performance, turning a Mahomes floater into a 73-yard catch-and-run touchdown for his first NFL score.
He also turned a short catch into a 38-yard gain, ripped off a tackle-breaking 15-yard run, returned a kickoff 44 yards and added a strong special teams tackle. More playing time should be coming.
Mahomes did his part in a strong passing day, finishing with 321 yards and three touchdowns. The Chiefs quarterback put just the right touch on Johnson’s long score, then benefited from a tipped pass that landed in Noah Gray’s hands for a first down. Andy Reid also burned a timeout on third-and-12 from the Denver 16 to get the offense aligned, and the drive ended with Mahomes hitting Cyrus Allen for 12 yards before finding Gray for a 4-yard touchdown.
The passing game was sharp enough to earn the highest grade of the day.
The ground game was less decisive. Kenneth Walker was held to 69 yards on 21 carries after Denver made it clear it wasn’t going to let him run wild the way he did in the season opener, when he piled up 173 yards.
He did help jump-start KC’s 95-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter with a 10-yard run, but the Chiefs couldn’t lean on the run when they needed to close things out late with a three-point lead. Harrison Butker missed a field goal in that stretch, and Kansas City couldn’t finish the job.
Up front, the Chiefs had two different starters than in the last game. Jaylon Moore returned from concussion protocol at right tackle, and Mike Caliendo got the start at left guard over Kingsley Suamataia in a coaches’ decision.
Defensively, Kansas City had moments that looked like they might tilt the game back its way. George Karlaftis got his hands on three Bo Nix passes, and the Chiefs repeatedly used deflections at the line to slow Denver down. Khyiris Tonga and R Mason Thomas also got pieces of passes.
Still, Nix found the end zone twice, and both touchdowns came on the same kind of play: a back or receiver leaking into the end zone. Both scores came on fourth down after the Chiefs had battled hard near the goal line, and one of those Denver drives ended up producing the game-winner.
The Chiefs’ run defense was sturdier. Denver managed only 77 rushing yards, and Kansas City nearly pulled off the goal-line stand of the season late in the first half by stopping three Broncos plays from the 2. On fourth down, though, Nix found Jaylen Waddle on a rollout, and Denver settled for a field goal answer after Kansas City had forced the issue.
Special teams had its share of stress, too. Butker’s 45-yard field goal before halftime was a relief, but his 54-yard miss with 2:31 left only added to the tension. Johnson’s 44-yard kickoff return gave the Chiefs one more late chance, but they couldn’t turn it into points.
Kansas City goes back home next weekend to face the New York Jets. Kickoff is set for noon at Arrowhead Stadium, with the game on CBS (Channel 5 TV).
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