FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Trailing at home by 16 points in the third quarter on Sunday evening, the New England Patriots had already been booed off the field three times. Tom Brady, the epitome of cool, had snapped in the first half, furiously charging at a mammoth Kansas City defensive lineman after a jarring tackle. The Patriots’ beleaguered young wide receivers, blamed for everything that has troubled New Englanders this month except for last week’s snowstorm, had dropped two pivotal passes.
It appeared the defending Super Bowl champion Patriots were facing a rout in their rematch of January’s A.F.C. championship game at Kansas City.
And then, as they had 11 months ago, the Patriots rallied. What ensued was a gripping, passionate and entertaining second-half battle between two N.F.L. heavyweights. In what may prove to be a coming-of-age moment, the upstart Chiefs fought back and held on to win, 23-16, in a game that went down to the final seconds. While Kansas City may not have exacted revenge for last season’s playoff loss, the result may have dealt the Patriots a damaging blow to their customary status as one of the top-seeded playoff teams.
With a third defeat in their last five games, the Patriots (10-3) may have squandered their chance for a first-round bye. The Chiefs (9-4), meanwhile, are improving steadily and could be back in Foxborough next month for another postseason rematch. Or they could be hosting New England.
“That’s a possibility, we certainly know the season’s not over,” Kansas City Coach Andy Reid said with a broad smile after the game. “But we’ll enjoy this on the flight home for now. It’s a big win in a really tough game.”
The mood in the Patriots’ locker room was less jovial. Asked if he had heard the Gillette Stadium fans repeatedly booing his team, and whether that bothered him, New England Coach Bill Belichick did not answer at first.
Finally, Belichick, in a low voice, said: “No, I’m just trying to win games.”
It was the first December home loss for New England since 2015 and only the fourth regular-season defeat at home in December or January since 2010. It was also a game marked by several pivotal, and controversial, calls by the game officials.
Afterward, Reid said his Pro Bowl quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, who completed 26 of 40 passes for 283 yards, had injured his throwing hand.
“We think it’s O.K.; we’ll take an X-ray,” Reid said. “You could see it was bothering Pat and it was hard for him to grip the ball. But he didn’t say much. He never does.”
Ahead by 13 points at halftime, the Chiefs extended their lead on their first possession of the third quarter with a 41-yard Harrison Butker field goal. For the Patriots, the second half started ominously: Their first drive ended with the Chiefs’ second sack of Brady.
But the tenor of the game shifted when the Patriots blocked a Kansas City punt deep in Chiefs territory. Two plays later, Brandon Bolden’s 10-yard touchdown run cut the Kansas City lead to 23-13.
A fumble by Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce — Kelce was initially ruled down by contact, but the call was reversed in a video review challenge — gave the football back to the Patriots, and several plays later it appeared they had scored a 15-yard touchdown on a swing pass to the rookie wide receiver N’Keal Harry. Harry had tiptoed along the left sideline, diving from the 3-yard line and extending the football until it contacted the goal line pylon marker, which is considered a part of the end zone.
The officials, however, ruled that Harry stepped out of bounds at the 3-yard line. The Patriots had used their two allotted video review challenges. By rule, the game officials were not permitted to review the play, but video replays seemed to show that Harry had not stepped out of bounds.
The Patriots settled for a 29-yard field goal to trim the Chiefs’ lead to 23-16. The stadium scoreboard continued to show replays of Harry’s apparent touchdown, screenings that elicited round after round of cacophonous booing.
Belichick declined to comment on the officiating after the game.
Reid shrugged when the topic was raised.
“It’s part of the give-and-take,” he said. “All part of the human part of the game.”
Still, the Patriots came back again. With just less than five minutes left in the fourth quarter, James White threw a halfback option pass to Jakobi Meyers for 35 yards. New England had a first down at the Kansas City 33-yard line.
A mix of rushes and passes and a 17-yard scramble by Brady moved the Patriots inside the Chiefs’ 10-yard line, and with less than a minute to play, New England faced a fourth-and-3 at the 5-yard line. But Brady’s pass to the left corner of the end zone was deftly batted away by Chiefs cornerback Bashaud Breeland.
The Patriots opened the game’s scoring with an impressive first possession. Two defensive pass interference penalties helped keep the Patriots drive alive, as did a flea flicker pass from Brady to his favorite target, Julian Edelman, who had dashed behind a drawn-in Chiefs secondary. Edelman caught Brady’s pass as he fell backward into the end zone for a 37-yard touchdown.
Mahomes was intercepted on the next Kansas City drive and the Patriots were in Chiefs territory with a chance to add to their lead, but New England’s offense sputtered and punted. The Chiefs stormed back to kick a field goal and the Patriots responded with a lengthy, moderately proficient drive that set up a 41-yard field goal attempt by New England place-kicker Nick Folk.
But in a turning point of the first half, the Chiefs blocked the kick. Seven plays later, with Mahomes gaining his rhythm in the passing pocket, the Chiefs took the lead when a scrambling Mahomes threw on the run and tossed a deft, 48-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mecole Hardman.
On the first play of the ensuing Patriots possession, Brady, who completed 19 of 36 passes for only 169 yards, fired an ill-advised, poorly executed pass into double coverage, a throw that was easily picked off by Breeland. That miscue led to the Chiefs second touchdown and it was a creative one.
Shifting before a third down-and-goal from the Patriots’ 4-yard line, Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce stood in the shotgun behind center with a teammate on his left and right in the backfield — and with Mahomes behind him in the formation. Taking the direct snap, Kelce faked a handoff and then bulled through the Patriots defense, bouncing off would-be tacklers until he was standing in the end zone for a score that put the Chiefs ahead, 17-7.
The Chiefs tacked on another Harrison Butker field goal near the end of the second quarter for a 20-7 lead at intermission.
Source: Football - nytimes.com
