Chiefs Suffer Devastating 19-22 Loss To Broncos

It’s officially time to panic.

Scoring Summary

Game Summary

1st Quarter

In an unusually critical game the Broncos got the ball first, and on the first play Conner got a sack on the blitz for a loss of 6, but Nix managed to convert the 1st down with passes of 9 and then 8 yards. A couple plays later it was 3rd and 11, but Nix had all day to find Sutton wide open over the middle for 21. The Bronncos continued to drive with short plays, but as they got into the redzone a trick play pass where Bo Nix had to bat the pass away led to a 3rd and 3 where the defense finally held on a Chris Jones sack. The Broncos kicked the field goal to take a 3-0 lead.

While the Chiefs got an 11 yard gain on a screen to Rice on the first play, their first drive ended on 3 incompletions by Mahomes on deep passes. The Broncos got a huge punt return that was aided by an unusual block in the back penalty called on the Chiefs that gave the Broncos the ball on the Chiefs 11. The defense managed to hold though, as on 3rd and 5 Chenal batted the pass. The Broncos kicked another field goal to make it 6-0.

The second Chiefs drive started with a couple first down pickups before Suamataia took off a Bronco helmet to put them back 10. But a couple plays later Worthy drew the pass interference deep to the Denver 13. But Rice dropped an easy pass, and Smith-Schuster got called for two holds on screens to keep the Chiefs to a field goal to make it 6-3.

On the kickoff Butker kicked it short of the landing zone, giving the Broncos the ball at the 40. But the quarter ended with the defense making back-to-back good plays for losses. One was Omenihu stopping McLaughlin in the backfield, then McDuffie taking his turn against McLaughlin as the ref blew the whistle quickly for a loss of 5.

2nd Quarter

The 2nd quarter started with Nix checking down to Engram on 3rd and 16 and getting 9 yards, forcing the punt. The Chiefs started on their own 11, but managed to matriculate their way down the field with only 2 plays longer than 10 yards while only facing 3 3rd downs. The first one Worthy converted on an 11 yard catch-and-run. The next one was much further down the field, but Kelce did his classic move to get open and gained 10. The next play a hold backed up the Chiefs, but Mahomes found Rice in a tight window for 18 yards. However Hunt lost a yard, then on 3rd and 3 the pressure got to him and forced him to throw it away, leading to another short field goal to tie it at 6.

Nix made a nice play on his first play of the drive to find Bryant over the middle for 15. But a couple plays later on 3rd and 8 Omenihu and Karlaftis hit him allowing Watson time to defend the pass and force a punt. The Chiefs got the ball with 3:04 on the clock and 2 timeouts on their own 10 with an opportunity to take a halftime lead. Unfortunately on 3rd and 1 the Broncos defended the play well leading to a sack and a punt.

Luckily the Broncos couldn’t do anything with their opportunity either, as they faced a quick 3rd and 2 where Nix ran up the middle and was called just short of the marker. Denver decided to run the clock down and punt. The Chiefs had 27 seconds this time. Mahomes found Brown for 12 but Brown stayed in bounds for some reason. After a false start on Simmons Mahomes avoided preasure and miraculously found Rice, who ruined the highlight by dropping the pass. The next play it was Kelce who dropped a pass that hit him in the hands. They tried for a hail mary, but the Broncos blitz and Mahomes had no chance, ending a sloppy 1st half.

3rd Quarter

The 2nd half started rough as on 3rd and 7 Mahomes threw a pick-6 that was called back on a defensive hold that is sure to make the rest of the NFL mad. But after that it was the Kelce show, as he got the ball 3 times in the next 4 plays for a combined 39 yards. But on a 14 yard checkdown to Hunt got called back by an illegal formation on Taylor, which led to a 3rd and 14 where Mahomes got too aggressive and threw a brutal pick to take away a short field goal in a game where points are at a premium.

The one saving grace was that a penalty on the interception return backed the Broncos to their own 10. But Denver responded with their best drive of the game. After picking up a 1st down they faced a 3rd and 8, but they did a nice job picking up the blitz and Nix made a great thrown to Franklin for a 35 yard gain. The next play was a 12 yard pass to Sutton. A couple plays later it was 3rd and 3, but the screen to Harvey went for 11 down to the redzone, where the second McLaughlin run saw him get pushed into the endzone as the Broncos took a 13-6 lead.

It looked bad early as the Chiefs faced a quick 3rd and 7. But Mahomes finally connected on a deep pass to Thornton for 61 yards down to the 11. It was a bit of a struggle, as Rice got stopped just short of the marker on a pitch pass to set up a 3rd and 1, but Hunt powered his way to barely get into the endzone and tie the game at 13.

Denver responded with a big play of their own on the first play of the drive, with Cook losing Bryant on play action leading to an easy 50 yard gain. Then a screen to Engram went for 9 and the 4th quarter arrived.

4th Quarter

The Broncos managed to pick up the 1st down on a 4 yard Harvey run, but the Chiefs defense made a number of good plays to force the field goal and the Broncos retook the lead 16-13.

The drive started with a good 11 yard Hunt run, but a hold by Taylor on 3rd and 9 created a 3rd and 19. For the second time today Mahomes threw it deep and the Broncos bailed them out by interfering and giving them 46 free yards. A couple plays later it was 3rd and 6. Denver foolishly brought the blitz, and Mahomes found Kelce who dodged tackles and ran in for the 21 yard touchdown. However the extra point was blocked, so the Chiefs only went up 19-16.

The Chiefs defense held with the rare lead, as the pressure got to Nix on 2nd down to force an intentional grounding and 3rd and 16. They got 14 on the checkdown to Prentice, and the were going to go for it but a false start pushed them back and forced the punt. Unfortunately a false start by Gray on the first play set the Chiefs back, and on 3rd and 2 Mahomes missed Brashard Smith forcing the punt, which Mims took to the Denver 45.

The Broncos did pick up a 1st down to get into field goal range, but Nix missed Franklin deep then on 3rd and 6 Jones got pressure to force another incompletion. But Lutz nailed the 54 yarder to tie the game at 19.

With 4:05 on the clock the Chiefs had an opportunity to put together a long game winning drive. Unfortunately the offense did nothing, as two incompletions led to a 3rd and 10, where the blitz got to Mahomes and forced the punt. It looked like the defense had the Broncos stopped as well, but on 3rd and 15 Nix had all day and found Sutton for 20 to convert. Then they faced a 3rd and 6, and Nix found Sutton who got right to the Marker for 6. A couple plays later Nix found Franklin for 32 yards that was essentially the dagger. That dagger came on the short field goal and Denver won 22-19.

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Tony Sommer

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