Breaking Down the Chiefs' 23-20 Win Over the Jets: Key Stats + Turning Point

It wasn't pretty but the Chiefs got it done

The Kansas City Chiefs (3-1) beat the New York Jets (1-3) by a score of 23-20 Sunday night in a game that most Chiefs fans are just going to want to forget.

It wasn’t pretty.

The offense struggled and the defense allowed Jets’ QB Zach Wilson to have the best game of his season, and perhaps one of the better games of his young and tumultuous career. Wilson finished 28/39 for 245 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

Here’s what stood out to KCSN’s Craig Stout:

14:47 - Time the Chiefs had the ball in their last two drives

On a day that the New York Jets defense – outside of the first quarter – kept the Kansas City Chiefs offense in check, it was the Chiefs offense that came up huge near the end of the game. The Chiefs recorded a safety on a penalty, two interceptions, and a drive that petered out in the red zone for a field goal.

Out of the half, the Chiefs had back-to-back punt drives with a total of 14 yards. The Chiefs defense had done just enough to keep the game level, but the Chiefs offense needed to put points on the board and give Steve Spagnuolo’s group a rest.

The Chiefs went on a 7:23 drive spanning the end of the third quarter and the early fourth. While it only ended in another red zone field goal, the Chiefs were able to rattle off 14 straight plays spanning 75 yards to achieve the game-winning points. A strong mixture of passes and runs helped the clock keep running and pushed the Jets in a quicker, more urgent mode.

After leaning on heavy personnel throughout the game, the Jets went with lighter personnel and a pass-heavy attack to try to put points on the board quickly. This hurried nature led to a critical mistake – Zach Wilson’s fumble – and the ability to get to a game-deciding drive.