Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce Help Chiefs Hold off Broncos for 7th Straight Win

In perhaps the least surprising news of the entire NFL season, the Kansas City Chiefs are going back to the playoffs. 

The defending champions clinched their sixth consecutive postseason appearance with a 22-16 victory over the Denver Broncos in Sunday's AFC West showdown at Arrowhead Stadium. Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce led the way for the victors, who improved to 11-1 and completed a season sweep of the Broncos.

Denver's dismal season continued despite solid showings from Tim Patrick and Melvin Gordon III, as it fell to 4-8 with a second straight loss. It had a chance to win in the final minute, but Tyrann Mathieu intercepted Drew Lock to secure the victory.

Notable Player Stats

• Patrick Mahomes, QB, KC: 25-of-40 for 318 yards, 1 TD, 0 INTs
• Travis Kelce, TE, KC: 8 catches for 136 yards, 1 TD
• Drew Lock, QB, DEN: 15-of-28 for 151 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
• Melvin Gordon, RB, DEN: 15 carries for 131 yards; 1 catch for 11 yards
• Tim Patrick, WR, DEN: 4 catches for 44 yards, 2 TDs

Chiefs Offense Overcomes No-Call TD and Slow Start in Win

There are games the explosive Chiefs seem to win in the first quarter, but Sunday's contest was certainly not one of them.

Instead of Mahomes and Co. racking up the points, Denver held Kansas City without a touchdown in the first half. It frustrated Mahomes by batting down multiple passes at the line of scrimmage and kept the home team out of the end zone on two possessions that went inside the 10-yard line.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire likely would have helped near the goal line, but he was sidelined with an illness.

Actually getting credit for the touchdown they scored in the first half would have helped the Chiefs as well, but Tyreek Hill didn't even know he caught the ball on the play. He appeared to drop a surefire touchdown, but the ball bounced around and fell right into his hands even though it was ruled incomplete.

Because Hill didn't even realize what happened, head coach Andy Reid didn't challenge. The decision hurt even more when the Broncos scored a touchdown on the ensuing possession.

It was more of the same with another goal-to-go field goal for the Chiefs on their first possession of the second half, but it was just a matter of time until they would break through and find the end zone.

Mahomes did just that when he drew a defender offside and found Kelce for a go-ahead touchdown late in the third quarter and then appeared to put the game away with a deep-ball score to Hill. However, the speedster had another touchdown wiped away, this time for holding. 

It was far from Kansas City's best performance, but it is also a testament to just how dangerous it is that the quarterback throwing for more than 300 yards and the tight end going for more than 120 represented an uneven showing. It was enough to win Sunday and clinch a playoff spot.

Broncos Miss Opportunity for Bounce-Back Upset

It's not often a team with a losing record is among the biggest stories of the entire NFL, but that was the case with the Broncos last week.

All four of their quarterbacks were ineligible for a 31-3 loss to the New Orleans Saints due to COVID-19 concerns, which left practice squad wide receiver Kendall Hinton under center because he played the position at Wake Forest. The result was a predictable blowout, which made the return of Lock all the more important for Sunday's contest.

Lock struggled early on, tossing a first-quarter interception to Mathieu. But Gordon stabilized things for the Broncos offense with a number of strong runs between the tackles—including a 65-yarder—to help keep Mahomes on the sidelines and control the clock.

That set up two touchdown strikes from Lock to Patrick, the first of which came on play-action and the second of which was perfectly dropped right over Bashaud Breeland.

It was a credit to the Broncos' game plan that they had a second-half lead and were well within striking distance in the fourth quarter, but they missed a golden opportunity for a head-turning upset down the stretch.

They started the fourth quarter with two straight punts, the second of which came on 4th-and-3 near midfield, and never had a realistic chance in the final minute without any timeouts. Mathieu's second interception was all but a formality, ending the overmatched Broncos' hopes of earning the shocking win.

What's Next?

Both teams are on the road in Week 14 when the Chiefs play the Miami Dolphins and the Broncos face the Carolina Panthers.