Stop me if you’ve heard this before. Patrick Mahomes recovers the ball, the Kansas City Chiefs rush down the field in the final seconds and win the game.
Or how about this: The Chiefs defense succeeds with a decisive fourth down to earn a victory.
Andy Reid’s team has accomplished this over the last few years, as this Chiefs team has become a dynasty. However, the 2024 season has been so crazy in terms of last-second wins or close games for Kansas City, that even the head coach has to smile when talking about it.
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, #15, throws before the start of an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Kansas City, Mo., Friday, Nov. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
“It’s a unique year,” Reid told reporters after his team’s latest victory, thanks to a field goal. “They are all unique, [but] This one is unique in that we had a lot of close games. We were able to overcome some difficulties to achieve these victories. I am sure we will continue to do so. »
Ask Mahomes, Travis Kelce and others on the Chiefs, and they’ll tell you they don’t want to play that position every week. However, the reality of the NFL is that great teams win these close games, and the Chiefs do it consistently.
In fact, if the results were reversed this season in games the Chiefs won by one score or less, they would be 2-11 at the bottom of the NFL standings.
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The Chiefs just don’t lose close games. After Sunday night’s win over the Chargers, when Matthew Wright hit the game-winner off the left upright but the ball went in, the Chiefs extended their single-game winning streak to 15 in a row, which is simply unheard of.
He also created this villain arc for Kansas City, which usually comes with winning a lot of games. In fact, Mahomes won his 101st game as a starter in the NFL – he played in 127 games.
Looking back on some of those games, it’s crazy to think that the Chiefs came away victorious.
It all started in week one as Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson used Isaiah Likely for a potential game-winning play if head coach John Harbaugh chose to go for two if they scored one touch.
Kansas City Chiefs kicker Matthew Wright, #49, celebrates after kicking a last-second field goal to defeat the Los Angeles Chargers 19-17 during an NFL football game on Sunday, December 8, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
That’s what seemed to happen when Jackson, dancing around the pocket, threw a laser pass to Likely with the clock ticking down to zero in the fourth quarter, and his tight end caught it. However, after the video was replayed, Likely’s toe – now infamous – was on the white boundary in the back of the end zone. He was ruled out and the Chiefs won 27-20.
Next week, the Cincinnati Bengals will travel to GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium for the latest chapter in the Mahomes-Joe Burrow rivalry. The Bengals, after suffering a bad loss to the New England Patriots in their home opener, needed a stop on 4th and 16 with 48 seconds left and a two-point lead .
Mahomes threw a pass to Rashee Rice, and it fell incomplete. However, yellow flags flew, calling safety Daijahn Anthony for pass interference, flipping the field in the Chiefs’ favor, and Harrison Butker did what he does best: score a game-winning field goal in the 26-25 victory .
The list goes on and on, from the controversial defensive pass interference miss in Week 3 against Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts to the blocking of the Denver Broncos’ game-winning field goal in Week 10. Kansas City’s last three wins have been decided by three points or fewer, two of which ended on game-winning field goals.
Again, this is what sets the great teams apart from the pack. The Chiefs have players like Mahomes, Kelce, Isiah Pacheco, DeAndre Hopkins and many others who have been tested and know they can win a game no matter what the clock says.
The question now is whether this will be sustainable as the regular season approaches the playoffs. The Chiefs clinched their ninth straight AFC West title after beating the Chargers, and there are just four games left to see if they can hold on to that No. 1 seed in the AFC.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes speaks during a news conference following an NFL football game against the Buffalo Bills, Sunday, Nov. 17, 2024 in Orchard Park, New York. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)
For 15 straight games, almost a full season, it’s been sustainable for these Chiefs to come through in crunch times, and they’ve won back-to-back Lombardi Trophies to prove it.
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If they want to make it three in a row this season, which has never been done before in league history, it’s more than likely they’ll pull off one-score victories.
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