The Kansas City Chiefs moved one step closer to clinching the AFC West title after beating the Los Angeles Chargers, 34-28, on Thursday Night Football. Travis Kelce scored the game-winning touchdown in overtime to give the Chiefs a commanding two-game advantage atop the AFC West standings with just three games remaining this season.
Kelce delivers in crunch time for Kansas City
Kelce put on quite a show at SoFi Stadium, catching 10 passes for a career-high 191 yards and a couple of touchdowns. He delivered the goods in crunch time, helping the Chiefs battle back from a 28-21 deficit late in the fourth quarter.
His first touchdown reception came with 1:16 remaining in the fourth quarter, catching a seven-yard pass from Patrick Mahomes to tie things up at 28-all. He then sealed the win for Kansas City in the extra session, scoring on a 34-yard pass from Mahomes. Kelce caught Mahomes' pass at the 30 and ran unopposed to the end zone, eluding a pair of tackles by the Chargers.
Five of Kelce's 10 catches came in the fourth quarter and overtime, with the Chiefs tight end racking up 142 yards out of those receptions. Kelce's heroics would not be possible without the brilliance of Mahomes, who finished strong after throwing a key interception in the fourth quarter. That pick resulted in an Austin Ekeler touchdown which gave the Chargers a 21-13 lead. Mahomes bounced back strongly after that turnover, completing 10 of 16 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns.
It was a disappointing defeat for the Chargers, who were so close to grabbing the No. 1 seed in the AFC West. The Chargers grabbed a 28-21 lead with 2:19 left in the game clock following Justin Herbert's eight-yard touchdown pass to Keenan Allen. That was more than enough time, though, for Mahomes to conjure his late-game magic.
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Fourth down miscues sink Chargers
The Chargers only have themselves to blame for the heartbreaking loss as they wasted several scoring opportunities against the Chiefs. Los Angeles came up empty on three red-zone drives as the Chargers' gamble to go for it on fourth down backfired. The Chargers went just 2 of 5 on their fourth down opportunities, with two of those failed attempts coming inside the Chiefs' 5.
The Chargers could have entered the halftime break with a 20-10 advantage if Brandon Staley opted to kick field goals on their fourth down chances inside the red zone. That has not been Staley's style, though, with Kansas City taking full advantage of the Chargers' red zone woes.
The game got off to a terrible start for the Chargers after tight end Donald Parham suffered a terrifying head injury on LA's opening drive. He slammed his head on the turf after catching a pass in the end zone in the first quarter. Parham appeared to lose consciousness upon impact. The Chargers announced after the game that he is in stable condition.
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