The Kansas City Chiefs, winners of five of the last six AFC championship games, are in deep danger of missing the playoffs after a 20-10 loss to the Houston Texans on “Sunday Night Football.”
In a back-and-forth defensive struggle, the Chiefs were held scoreless in the decisive fourth quarter. The defeat dropped Kansas City to 6-7 — the first time Patrick Mahomes has been under .500 in December in his career — and at least two games behind every team ahead of it for the final Wild Card spot in the AFC.
The Texans, meanwhile, have now overcome a 2-4 start to win six of their last seven games. The victory put Houston in seventh place — and ahead of Indianapolis Colts — for the last playoff spot in the conference.
The turning point of Sunday’s game happened with a little over 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, with both teams tied at 10.
Facing a 4th and 1 from their own 31-yard line, the Chiefs opted to go for it instead of punting. But Mahomes threw incomplete to Rashee Rice while under pressure, setting up the Texans with great field position. Six plays later, Houston scored for the first time since the second quarter to take a 17-10 lead.
On its next possession, Kansas City once again attempted to convert on fourth down. Mahomes found an open Rice over the middle but he dropped the ball.
Both defenses were dominant, as neither side managed to gain 300 yards of total offense.
At one point in the second half, Mahomes went 10 straight passes without a completion, a career-worst streak. He finished 14 of 33 for 160 yards with three interceptions. Mahomes’s last interception was the backbreaker, as he was picked off after a bobble by Travis Kelce on the first possession following the two failed fourth-down attempts.
Drops were an issue for Mahomes’ receivers, as they coughed up six passes, the most in a single game during Mahomes’s tenure as a starter.
Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud was also inefficient, completing only 15 of 31 passes for 201 yards and a touchdown. He started the second half with his own incompletion streak, failing to connect on his first nine passes after halftime. But Stroud made multiple clutch third-down throws to help lead Houston to victory, particularly in the second half.
The Texans built a 10-0 lead over the first two quarters before the Chiefs tied the game in the third quarter. Kansas City’s defense was stifling after the break, forcing four straight three-and-outs and five straight punts to start the second half. It wasn’t until the Chiefs’ first failed fourth-down conversion the Texans were able to break through with a score.
Kansas City’s defense forced another three-and-out before Mahomes threw his third pick, which led to a late field goal.
The win keeps Houston’s division dreams alive, as the Texans are one game behind the Jacksonville Jaguars for the lead in the AFC South.
The Chiefs, meanwhile, who have played in the AFC championship game in every single season Mahomes has been the starter, now face a daunting uphill climb to simply make the playoffs: Kansas City’s chances of making the postseason now sit at 16%.
