Patrick mahomes and the chiefs vs. the texans

After the Houston Texans took down the Los Angeles Chargers last week, they traveled to Kansas City to face the Chiefs in the AFC divisional round. Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs got a first round bye for being the number one seed in the AFC with a 15-2 record. 

The game started off with a boom as Chiefs returner Nikko Remigio took the opening kickoff 63 yards to the Texans 32 yard line. They were unable to take advantage of the big return and had to settle for a field goal from Harrison Butker.  

The Texans answered back with a nice drive that was highlighted by a 34 yard reception by Dalton Schultz. They were also unable to finish off the drive, and had to settle for a field goal to tie the game at 3-3. 

Stroud came up limping with an apparent knee injury after being tackled on the sideline on the third down play. Although he was seen on the sideline wincing in pain, Stroud was able to stay in the game. 

The Chiefs next drive seemed to have stalled out when Mahomes threw a third down incompletion to force them to punt. A flag was thrown in the backfield for roughing the passer on Will Anderson to extend the Chiefs drive. They ultimately had to settle for a field goal after the Texans thought that they forced them to punt a few plays earlier. 

The two teams traded three and outs for the next couple of drives. The Texans were then able to set up a field goal try on a drive that included a 28 yard scramble from stroud on third down and nine from the Texans 33. The scramble set up a 55 yard field goal from Ka’imi Fairbirn who was unable to cash in through the Kansas City winds. 

The miss gave the chiefs the ball at their own 45 yard line with their lead still at 6-3. A Travis Kelce 49 yard catch and run set the Chiefs up at the Texans six yard line. Kareem Hunt punched in in from the one yard line to give the Chiefs a 13-3 lead. 

The Texans were able to drive down the field on a 4:20 drive to set up a Fairbairn field goal to make it 13-6 heading into the locker rooms for halftime. Despite early struggles, Fairbairn was able to drill the 48 yard field goal. 

The Texans started the second half with a 15 play 10:24 touchdown drive. Joe Mixon capped off the drive with a 13 yard touchdown run. Fairbairn’s struggles carried over from the first half as he missed the extra point to make it a 13-12 Chiefs lead. 

The Chiefs immediately answered back with an 81 yard drive that ended with an 11 yard Travis Kelce touchdown reception. The drive was aided by an unnecessary roughness penalty called on

the Texans for a late hit on a scrambling Mahomes. Joe Buck and Troy Aikman did not agree with the controversial call in the booth, but Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs took advantage of the call, and took their lead to 20-12. 

Both offenses stalled for the next couple drives as they traded quick punts, and a turnover on downs.  

The Chiefs took the ball back with 7:35 left to play. They drove the ball down the field on a three minute drive to set up a Butker field goal. The kick was good from 27 yards out to take the lead to 23-12. 

The Texans looked to keep hope alive as they took the ball 53 yards to the Chiefs 17 yard line. The drive set up a field goal from 35 yards out. Kansas City’s Leo Chenal broke through the Texans line to block the field goal, and kill all the hope that the Texans had left. 

With the game all but over, Chiefs punter Matt Araiza took an intentional safety to make the score 23-14 with 11 seconds left. A CJ Stroud kneel ended the game along with the Texans season. 

The win gave Chiefs head coach Andy Reid his 300th win in the NFl, making him only the fourth coach in history to achieve that mark. Travis Kelce also made history by becoming the only player in NFL history with at least nine 100 yard receiving games in the playoffs. He broke a tie with the legendary Jerry Rice. 

The win propelled the Chiefs to the AFC Championship game for the seventh straight season. They will host either the Ravens or Bills who will play each other on January 19th at 6:30 in Buffalo for the spot. If the Chiefs win in the AFC Championship game, they will play in the Super Bowl where they will attempt to win their third straight championship.

Mason Garcia

DiSportsPhotoAgency

Writer