Chiefs game report: Leo Chenal's blocked FG keeps Kansas City perfect

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Was it a bird? Was it a plane? No, it was linebacker Leo Chenal, rushing off the right edge and laying out his entire 6-foot-3 frame to bat away Denver Broncos kicker Will Lutz’s 35-yard field goal try, sending Chiefs Kingdom and his Kansas City Chiefs teammates into a frenzy.

A loss seemed certain as Lutz lined up for a potential game-winning try from the right hash with 1 second left Sunday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

"We still believed," defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah said.

Snap, placement, kick — thud!

"It’s complete shock," Chenal said of his reaction to the game-saving block.

Chenal pawed the football toward the visitors' sideline as Patrick Mahomes sprinted across the field to celebrate a 16-14 win that keep's Kansas City perfect and matches the franchise's best start to a season at 9-0.

"You live for these moments," said Mahomes, who finished 28 of 42 for 266 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions.

Mahomes galloped around the field like a child equal parts in disbelief and exhilarated.

"When you grow up playing football, you live for the walk-off whatever it is," he said. "It’s special when you’ve been with these guys for so long, you’ve built this chemistry with them and guys get to make that play. It’s something Leo will get to have for the rest of his life.”

Chenal's heroics didn't surprise Chiefs coach Andy Reid.

"Leo steps up and does what he does every week," Reid said. "Somewhere, he makes a play. Defensively, special teams — somewhere he steps up and makes a play."

Chenal also had four tackles for a defense that pitched a second-half shutout as Kansas City won a franchise-record 15th consecutive game overall dating back to last season and including the playoffs.

"Relentless effort on that last play," linebacker Nick Bolton said of Chenal's block. "... He said he wanted to get one and he’s been close all year."

Denver snapped a 16-game skid against Kansas City in last season's meeting at Arrowhead, but the Chiefs have now won 17 of the last 18 games against the Broncos.

"I believed the whole time," said running back Kareem Hunt, who had 14 carries for 35 yards but added seven catches for a team-high 65 yards receiving. "I was just happy we found a way. You’ve got to play all the way until the clock hits zero."

RED-ZONE STRUGGLES RETURN

Kansas City’s red-zone struggles returned.

The Chiefs' offense appeared to fix those issues in recent weeks, but they reappeared Sunday against the Denver Broncos at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

Kansas City drove inside the 20-yard line four times against Denver, settling for short field goals on three of those trips.

The only touchdown came on a fourth-down hookup from Patrick Mahomes to Travis Kelce in the closing minutes of the first half.

Harrison Butker connected on a 36-yard field goal in the second quarter for Kansas City’s first points.

He added a 28-yard field goal in the third quarter and a 20-yard field goal for the Chiefs’ first lead — 16-14 — with 5:57 remaining.

But Butker’s subsequent kickoff went out of bounds before reaching the NFL’s new landing zone, which ironically is also from the 20-yard line to the goal line.

The Broncos started at the 40-yard line after Butker's special-teams gaffe and marched 43 yards on 13 plays before Lutz’s game-winning try was stuffed as time expired.

Butker said he was supposed to bang the kickoff downfield for a touchback, but "I just did not hit a good ball there and I really felt like I let the team down."

BEST START TO A SEASON

Kansas City had been the lone remaining undefeated team in the NFL for several weeks and now they’ve matched the franchise record for the best start to a season.

The Chiefs are 9-0 for the third time in the club’s history after also starting 9-0 in 2003 and 2013, which was Andy Reid’s first season after his run at Philadelphia ended.

Kansas City finished 2003 with a 13-3 record and hosted Indianapolis in the AFC Divisional Round, losing 38-31 in a game famous for being the first NFL playoff game ever without a punt.

The Chiefs lost five of their final seven games in 2013, making the postseason as a Wild Card team and blowing a 38-10 lead to Andrew Luck and the Colts.

Fortunately, Indianapolis is a longshot to make the playoffs this season.

FOURTH-DOWN CAJONES

The Chiefs trailed 14-3 with time ticking down in the second quarter.

Denver had scored back-to-back touchdowns — a 6-yard bullet from Bo Nix to Devaughn Vele and a 32-yard rainbow from Nix to Courtland Sutton — sandwiched around a 36-yard Harrison Butker field goal.

Kansas City reached the red zone again, but the offense stalled inside the 5-yard line and eventually it came down to fourth-and-goal from the 2-yard line.

Andy Reid rolled the dice — and was handsomely rewarded with a 2-yard touchdown from Patrick Mahomes to Travis Kelce, who faked a flat route then whipped back inside for a slant into the end zone.

"Trav read it right," Mahomes said. "He kind of had a read type option on that play. He got the DB to go outside and he slips a little bit. Then, Trav just kind of curls it in there."

Kelce didn’t score a touchdown during the Chiefs’ first six games of the season, but he’s now scored in two of the last three games.

Late in the fourth quarter, facing fourth-and-goal at the 10-yard line, Reid opted for a 28-yard field goal, which drew Kansas City within 14-13.

KELCE TIES TONY G

Kelce’s touchdown also gave him a share of yet another franchise record.

He now has 76 career receiving touchdowns, which is tied with Tony Gonzalez for the most in Chiefs history.

Kelce, who finished with a team-high eight catches for 64 yards, already owns the franchise record for receiving yards (11,827).

He ranks second in Kansas City history with 924 receptions, trailing only Gonzalez’s 959.

JOHNSON’S PASS-RUSH BREAKTHROUGH

Nazeeh Johnson returned from a one-game absence and did so in style, notching his first career sack in the first quarter.

Johnson, who ascended to the No. 2 cornerback role after Jaylen Watson broke his ankle in a win at San Francisco, missed all of last season with a torn ACL.

He then exited his first career start two weeks ago at Las Vegas with a concussion, which sidelined him for Monday’s win against Tampa Bay as well.

Returning to the starting lineup against Denver, Johnson dragged down Nix for a 17-yard loss on the second drive for his signature moment so far in the NFL.

UP NEXT

Kansas City puts its perfect record on the line next Sunday in Buffalo.

The Chiefs (9-0) and Bills (8-2) kick off at 3:25 p.m. The game, a rematch of Kansas City’s 27-24 win nine months ago in the AFC Divisional Round, will air on CBS.

"We know it’s going to be a great challenge next week," Mahomes said. "Buffalo’s playing great football. They’ve played great football for a while now."

This will be the Chiefs’ fifth regular-season meeting against the Bills since 2020.

Kansas City won the only previous meeting during that span in Buffalo four years ago, but the Bills have won three straight in the regular season at Arrowhead each of the last three seasons.

"It’s going to be another tough one, just like every week," Hunt said. "We’ve got to go out there prepared and ready to battle."

Led by Mahomes, Kansas City is 2-0 against Buffalo and Josh Allen in the playoffs since the 2020 season, including last season’s win and the AFC Championship Game romp in January 2021.

"Lots of room to improve," Reid said. "We’ve got a good team that we’re going to play this next weekend here, so we’ve got to get ourselves ready, learn from the mistakes today and move on. But I’m proud of our guys for battling."

ANOTHER KEY OFFENSIVE INJURY

Left tackle Wanya Morris (knee) exited the game early in the second quarter and did not return.

He was replaced by rookie second-round Kingsley Suamataia, who played collegiately at BYU.

When Suamataia struggled — especially against the speed rush of Nik Bonitto, who had a sack and three quarterback hits — Morris re-entered the game early in the fourth quarter.

Kansas City’s offense already was without four wide receivers — JuJu Smith-Schuster (hamstring), Hollywood Brown (sternoclavicular dislocation), Rashee Rice (knee) and Skyy Moore (core muscle) — along with running back Isiah Pacheco (broken leg) and tight ends Jody Fortson and Jared Wiley, who both suffered a torn ACL this season.

WAS TAYLOR SWIFT AT THE GAME?

Of course! Taylor Swift’s tour doesn’t resume until Thursday in Toronto.

Charlie Riedel/AP

The Eras Tour wrapped up its U.S. legs earlier this month but there are nine concerts in Canada between Nov. 14 and Dec. 8.

Swift has been dating Travis Kelce since last summer. She’s been to all of the Chiefs’ home games this season — including wins against Baltimore, Cincinnati, New Orleans and earlier this week against Tampa Bay.

Kansas City improved to 15-3 in games when Swift was in attendance, including a 10-game win streak dating back to late last season.

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