NFL

Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs

· National Football League
5-5, 3-3 Away
Final
14 - 16
9-0, 5-0 Home

Chiefs block Broncos' potential winner as time expires, hold on for 16-14 win to remain perfect

Chiefs remain unbeaten after blocking Broncos' FG attempt in final second

They added a walk-off block to the list against the Broncos on Sunday.

Leo Chenal was part of a red wave that crashed through the center of the Denver field goal unit, and the Chiefs linebacker got his hand on Wil Lutz's 35-yard attempt as time expired, allowing Kansas City to escape with a 16-14 victory.

“It's a complete shock, you know? Not much I can say about it," Chenal said. “I was really praying for something to happen. That moment is so heavy. There's a second on the clock, they're going to kick a field goal and you feel the weight of the moment.”

Chiefs coach Andy Reid indicated they took advantage of something they had seen in the Broncos' field-goal operation.

“We did,” Reid said, “but it's also something we work on like crazy. It normally doesn't work quite like that one.”

The Chiefs had taken the lead on Butker's field goal with 5:57 remaining, but Bo Nix and the Broncos converted a trio of third downs while marching right back down the field. They proceeded to set up Lutz for the winner, but Chenal came up the middle amid a big push by the Kansas City defensive line to get his hand on the kick.

The ball squibbed away toward the Denver sideline as the Chiefs rushed onto the field to celebrate.

“I felt like we outplayed them but we didn't finish,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said. “That one will take a while. It'll sting.”

Mahomes finished with 266 yards passing and a touchdown for the Chiefs, who became only the fifth Super Bowl champion to win its first nine games the next season. That also matches the best start to a season in franchise history, and their 15-game win streak dating to last season is the longest in the NFL since the Packers won 19 in a row from 2010-11.

Travis Kelce had eight catches for 64 yards and a touchdown for Kansas City. DeAndre Hopkins caught four passes for 56 yards, and Kareem Hunt was held to 35 yards rushing but also caught seven passes for 65 yards.

“Any way you win is good in this league,” Mahomes said. “You live for these moments. When you grow up playing football, you live for the walk-off whatever-it-is. And I'm glad we get to experience it together.”

Nix finished with 215 yards passing and two touchdowns for the Broncos (5-5). Courtland Sutton had six catches for 60 yards and a score. And their 13-yard hookup on third-and-6 with 1:45 left is what gave Denver a chance to kick as time expired.

“They just made one extra play. When we thought it was in our hands, it wasn't,” Nix said. “It's tough. And again, it's two good football teams out there playing against each other, and one day it will go our way.”

The Broncos stunned the Chiefs a year ago, forcing five turnovers in a 21-9 win at Denver that ended a 16-game losing streak in the series. And they clearly had the same intention in mind as the AFC West rivals met again Sunday.

Their defense harassed Mahomes throughout the first half, particularly when an injury to Wanya Morris forced rookie left tackle Kingsley Suamataia into the game. And the Broncos capitalized on offense with two long scoring drives, the first ending with Nix finding Devaughn Vele wide open and the second with Sutton's 32-yard TD catch for a 14-3 lead.

It was Mahomes who got the Chiefs on track, going 7 for 7 for 62 yards on the ensuing drive. When it looked as if it had stalled at the Denver 2, Reid went against his conservative nature on fourth down, and Mahomes hit Kelce for the score.

The Chiefs still trailed 14-10 at the break, meaning they had Denver right where they wanted them.

Unflappable in winning its last eight games when trailing in the second half, Kansas City closed within 14-13 on Butker's chip-shot field goal late in the third quarter. The Chiefs defense then forced back-to-back punts, and Mahomes and the offense drove to the Denver 2, where Butker added the go-ahead kick with just under six minutes remaining.

Plenty of time for the Broncos to drive down the field. Not enough time for them to win.

“I told our team I was proud of the way they fought. I thought we outplayed them," Payton said. “But nonetheless, you have to beat a champion and we weren't able to do it, so obviously gut-wrenching.”

Swift returns Taylor Swift was back at Arrowhead Stadium to watch Kelce and the Chiefs just six days after turning up to see their win over Tampa Bay on Monday night. The pop superstar resumes her Eras Tour on Thursday night at Rogers Centre in Toronto.

Injuries Chiefs: Morris hurt his knee in the first half but returned early in the fourth quarter.

Up Next Denver plays Atlanta next Sunday.

Kansas City visits Buffalo the same day.

How can I watch Broncos vs. Chiefs?

  • TV Channel: Broncos at Chiefs 2021-22 NFL, week 10 is broadcasted nationally on CBS and NFL Sunday Ticket - Paramount+ NFL on CBS 2021 - Try it FREE!.
  • Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.
    In Canada, viewers can watch Broncos vs. Chiefs on DAZN.

Scoring Summary

DEN TD 2nd Period 14:20 Devaughn Vele 6 Yd pass from Bo Nix (Wil Lutz Kick)
KC FG 2nd Period 9:02 Harrison Butker 36 Yd Field Goal
DEN TD 2nd Period 6:39 Courtland Sutton 32 Yd pass from Bo Nix (Wil Lutz Kick)
KC TD 2nd Period 1:44 Travis Kelce 2 Yd pass from Patrick Mahomes (Harrison Butker Kick)
KC FG 3rd Period 3:51 Harrison Butker 28 Yd Field Goal
KC FG 4th Period 5:57 Harrison Butker 20 Yd Field Goal

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/den.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originDEN https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nfl/500/kc.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originKC
16 1st Downs 19
12 Passing 1st downs 13
4 Rushing 1st downs 4
0 1st downs from penalties 2
7-13 3rd down efficiency 7-16
0-0 4th down efficiency 2-2
55 Total Plays 65
260 Total Yards 300
4.7 Yards per Play 4.6
9 Total Drives 8
182 Passing 243
22/30 Comp/Att 28/42
5.7 Yards per pass 5.3
0 Interceptions thrown 0
2-33 Sacks-Yards Lost 4-23
78 Rushing 57
23 Rushing Attempts 19
3.4 Yards per rush 3.0
1-2 Red Zone (Made-Att) 1-4
6-35 Penalties 3-10
0 Turnovers 0
0 Fumbles lost 0
0 Interceptions thrown 0
0 Defensive / Special Teams TDs 0
26:39 Possession 33:21
Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Rashee Rice, WR Questionable Apr 2
Gardner Minshew, QB Questionable Mar 13
Baylor Cupp, TE Questionable Feb 11
Jared Wiley, TE Questionable Feb 11
BJ Thompson, DE Questionable Feb 11
Denver Broncos Denver Broncos Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Evan Engram, TE Questionable Mar 12
Delarrin Turner-Yell, S Questionable Feb 11
Alex Singleton, LB Questionable Feb 11
Frank Crum, OT Questionable Feb 11
Jonah Elliss, LB Questionable Jan 17

Game Information

GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium

Location: Kansas City, MO
Capacity:

2024 AFC West Standings

TEAM W L PCT T PF PA
Kansas City 15 2 .882 0 385 326
Los Angeles 11 6 .647 0 402 301
Denver 10 7 .588 0 425 311
Las Vegas 4 13 .235 0 309 434
Full Standings

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