Drops, turnovers derail Chiefs against Eagles

The Kansas City Chiefs (7-3) lose to the Philadelphia Eagles (9-1) in week 11, 21-17.

The Kansas City Chiefs failed to score a single point in the second half for the third straight week. In week nine, it was enough to secure a win over the Miami Dolphins. Week 11 however, was a different story. The Chiefs' defense put together another dominant performance against one of the league's top offenses, but it was not enough. 

Much like the Eagles in Super Bowl 57, it was the Chiefs that seemingly had all the momentum heading into halftime with a 10-point lead. It was two all-too-common vices that led to the demise of the Kansas City Chiefs (7-3) this week against the Philadelphia Eagles (9-1) that ultimately led to their 21-17 loss. Drops and turnovers bit the Chiefs, again. 

“That’s a great football team,” quarterback Patrick Mahomes said. “… in the second half, we didn’t play well but the defense did a great job against a great team, and we were putting them in a lot of bad situations … We went up against one of the best if not the best NFC team and we were this close and, in the NFL, if you don’t make those plays in those big moments in the red zone and in those two-minute drills then you lose and that’s what we did today.”

The particular problem with the turnovers is that they both came in the red zone after long sustaining drives. On the first one, Patrick Mahomes was baited by veteran safety Kevin Byard as he lofted it into the endzone to wide receiver Justin Watson. To make matters worse, that sequence failed to take advantage of a L’Jarius Sneed interception on the previous Eagles' offensive possession. 

The second red zone turnover felt even more critical, however. Mahomes had just completed a five-yard pass on a first and 10 to tight end Travis Kelce before veteran cornerback Bradley Roby punched it out for linebacker Nick Morrow to pick up. At that point, Kansas City had a three-point lead looking to extend it to a two-possession game in the fourth quarter. 

Aside from those critical errors, the Chiefs wide receivers dropped at least five balls. None were bigger than Marquez Valdez-Scantling’s with just under two minutes to go in the game. Had that 51-yard deep ball by Mahomes been completed, it would have put the Chiefs up by a field goal with little time left. It would have been a spectacular catch, but it hit him square in the hands, nonetheless. 

The Chiefs' defense came up with a stop to get the offense the ball with just under three minutes left in the game, but the offense could not muster more than 25 yards after various mishaps. After that big drop, Mahomes was called for intentional grounding, forcing a fourth and 25, which the Chiefs were unable to convert. From there, the Eagles finished in victory formation. 

“We just got be better in the second half,” Mahomes said. “All season long we haven’t played great football in the second half, so we have to continue to work … Today was penalties and just miscues but we just got to find ways to score at the end of the day. The defense is playing great football. Has been all year. On offense, we have to find a way to finish football games.”

Mahomes’ leading receiver was Justin Watson, who tallied 53 yards and a touchdown. With that though, he was targeted 11 times, only bringing in five of them and accounting for a couple of the drops. Watson’s catch-target ratio is not an indictment on him as much as it is the group as a whole with how much he is asked to do in this offense. 

Not only was Kelce liable for the fumble, but he was in on the drops too. He finished with seven catches for 44 yards and a touchdown on nine targets. Wide receiver Rashee Rice had one drop on his five targets, four catches, and 42 yards. Mahomes finished with 177 yards passing. Despite the lack of offensive production in the second half, Reid still likes their chances of turning it around. 

“I see teams change things around quick in this league,” head coach Reid said. “We got to take care of business there and get it done so I’m not standing here having to talk to you guys (media) about this. I want to get it right. I’m a part of that, too.”

If you look at the box score, you will see a lot of recipes for success, but with all of these errors that added up, it was not enough to overcome a team like Philadelphia. The Chiefs established the run game, rushing for 168 yards on the night while the Eagles came in allowing 66 per game. Running back Isiah Pacheco had 89 of those yards. 

Kansas City put up 98 more total yards, was 20 percent better on third downs, had seven more first downs, racked up more passing and rushing yards, and allowed four fewer sacks. It was not necessarily an issue of executing the offense, but more about not executing in big moments. 

The offense getting shutout for the second straight week in the second half is going to be the storyline, but it is a shame because the defense was stout once again against a world-class offense. 

Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts was limited to 150 yards passing, was sacked five times, and only averaged 2.4 yards per carry on his 12 attempts. Wide receiver DeVonta Smith did do damage against the Chiefs to the tune of six catches and 99 yards, but they held A.J. Brown to one catch for eight yards. 

What the Eagles did do well on offense was what the Chiefs offense struggled at. They finished drives, going three for three in the red zone. 

“We can improve in a lot of areas,” defensive tackle Chris Jones said. “Look at the red zone defense. We talked about it all week … There’s a lot of good football we left out there … This is a growing moment for us as a team overall.” 

Jones got back on the board after being silent for a few games. He actually came down with two sacks, both on the same drive, essentially ending it all on his own. That brings his total up to 7.5 on the year. 

Cornerback Trent McDuffie tallied a couple as well, registering his first two sacks on the season. One of those sacks was a strip, but Philadelphia recovered. Two plays later, however, defensive end George Karlaftis ended the drive with his seventh sack of the season. 

The only injury to mention is wide receiver Mecole Hardman’s thumb which forced him to exit in the first half. Next up for the Chiefs is the first of a two-game road trip that starts in Las Vegas. Kansas City will take on the Raiders (5-6) on Sunday, November 26th at 3:25 CDT.