Kansas City Chiefs Back to Winning Ways Against New England Patriots

After dropping their last two games in controversial fashion, the Kansas City Chiefs traveled to Foxborough, Massachusetts to battle the New England Patriots. The Patriots looked to keep their winning momentum on Sunday following last week’s Thursday night victory over the Steelers. 

After both teams missed field goals early in the first quarter, the Chiefs would find the endzone first when Rashee Rice broke the plane on a well-designed running play. However, it did not take long for Bailey Zappe and the Patriots to tie the score at 7-7 as he hit Hunter Henry for a 16-yard touchdown on 4th and 1. Later in the quarter, the Patriots would capitalize off of a Mahomes interception and retake the lead 10-7 after a Chad Ryland field goal. On their next possession, Mahomes would lead the Chiefs on a 75-yard touchdown drive to take a 14-10 lead into halftime. 

The Chiefs would open up scoring in the second half with a field goal to extend their lead to 17-10. On the Patriots opening second-half possession, Bailey Zappe threw his lone interception of the game to Willie Gay who returned the pick to the New England 7-yard line. Two plays later, Mahomes would find Clyde Edwards-Hellaire for a short touchdown. Harrison Butker’s PAT was good and the Chiefs lead grew to 14 points early in the third quarter. The Patriots would stall on their next drive and the Chiefs would tack on a 54-yard field goal from Butker to conclude scoring in the third quarter. 

In the fourth quarter, the Patriots were kept alive by another Kadarious Toney miscue. The Chief’s wideout was unable to secure a pass from Mahomes resulting in an interception by Pats linebacker, Jahlani Tavai. Two plays later, Zappe handed the ball to Kevin Harris who rumbled up the middle for an 18-yard score, trimming the lead to ten with 8:24 remaining in the game. The Chiefs were able to chew over four minutes off the clock on their ensuing drive before executing an incredible punt that pinned the Patriot’s offense down inside their 1-yard line. The Patriots would go four and out on their final possession where the Chiefs would kill the remaining time on the clock. 

The Patriots fall to 3-11 this season with a top draft pick within reach, while the Chiefs improve to 9-5 with a two-game advantage in the AFC West with three games remaining. The Patriots will take on the Broncos in Denver on Christmas Eve while the Chiefs will host the Las Vegas Raiders in a critical AFC West contest on Christmas Day.