It was one of those games for the Kansas City Chiefs on “Sunday Night Football” against the Tennessee Titans. Nothing seemed to go right for the team from offensive playcalling and execution on down. But with opportunities waning, Patrick Mahomes put the team on his back and delivered another special performance.
So what else did we learn about the Chiefs in their latest game?
Final Score: Chiefs 20, Titans 17
This was about as weird of a game as you’ll see from Kansas City. In their usual fashion, they didn’t get down on themselves no matter the situation. Tennessee led from the second quarter late into the fourth quarter, but this team kept battling. The offense kept grinding through their struggles, the defense tightened up in the second half to contain Derrick Henry and they found a way to win an ugly game in overtime. It wasn’t pretty, but in the end, style points don’t count.
Weekly Awards
- Chiefs Wire Game Ball: QB Patrick Mahomes
- Harrison Butker Rookie of the Game: CB Trent McDuffie
- Casey Wiegmann Veteran of the Game: TE Travis Kelce
- Jamaal Charles Offensive Player of the Game: QB Patrick Mahomes
- Bobby Bell Defensive Player of the Game: DE Carlos Dunlap
- Morten Andersen Special Teams Player of the Game: WR Mecole Hardman
- Otis Taylor Play of the Game: Patrick Mahomes’ 20-yard run on third-and-17.
- Wesley Roesch Stat of the Game: Patrick Mahomes sets career-high in passing attempts with 68
Quick-hitting observations and analysis
- The opening game script was really nice for the Chiefs. It was a 15-play drive, but it stalled out in the red zone after an offensive holding penalty on Noah Gray. That was really the theme of the night for Kansas City. Too many mistakes.
- I was really impressed with Kadarius Toney’s few snaps on offense. He caught the first pass that went his way and had a two-yard gain. He caught another pass later for about eight or nine yards. He’s a really solid weapon with the ball in his hands.
- The running game in Kansas City is an abomination. Outside of Patrick Mahomes, there was zero rushing threat in Week 9. The Titans are a good defensive front, but this has been a trend all season long. The Chiefs need to figure something out at the running back position.
- Mecole Hardman had a “Jekyll and Hyde” game. He had a 20-yard punt return and scored the lone touchdown for the Chiefs in the first half of the game. He also let a punt die at the one-yard line instead of fielding it and had a back-breaking dropped pass at the end of the third quarter.
- As much as the defense struggled in the first half, they did their part in the second half of the game. They forced multiple punts and gave the offense opportunities to respond in the second half. Thankfully, Patrick Mahomes put the offense on his back in the fourth quarter and was able to respond. It took a full-team effort in overtime to come away with the victory.
- Harrison Butker has to get the missed kicks figured out. Since returning from injury he’s missed at least one kick (PAT or field goal) in each game back. At some point, it’s going to become a trend and they still have Matthew Wright on the practice squad.
- The offensive line got worked for the majority of the game and was mostly a disaster, but they really stepped up late in the fourth quarter and overtime. Kudos to them for not getting down on themselves and for playing a full 60 minutes.
- Carlos Dunlap recorded his 99th career sack at a pivotal moment in this one. He saved one of his best pass rushes of the season for that moment and the Chiefs really needed him to step it up.
- I don’t know what it is about Patrick Mahomes when he plays the Titans, but his legs come alive. In regulation, he ran the ball six times for 63 yards, a touchdown and a two-point conversion.
Up next:
The Chiefs are at home for the second consecutive week, this time facing the Jacksonville Jaguars in their penultimate AFC South matchup of the regular season. It’ll mark the second time that former Chiefs OC Doug Pederson has faced off against his mentor Andy Reid, but this will be the first time he returns to Kansas City to do so.
