The Kansas City Chiefs just needed a field goal to get to overtime in a one-score game they went on to lose to the Los Angeles Chargers. Their postseason hopes went down alongside quarterback Patrick Mahomes who suffered a late knee injury.
The now 6-8 Kansas City Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention with a 16-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers that may have longstanding implications, as Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes went down late in the fourth quarter with a knee injury that he will undergo an MRI on it either Sunday night or Monday, according to Nate Taylor of ESPN. Mahomes got hurt with less than two minutes remaining on a scramble out of the pocket where he was taken down by Chargers defensive end Da’Shawn Hand and stayed down after throwing an incompletion while grabbing at his left knee and wincing in noticeable pain. He eventually was helped up after several minutes and was assisted to the locker room with a bit of a limp.
Mahomes was replaced by Gardner Minshew, who went 3-of-5 and got Kansas City into field goal range before throwing a game-ending interception. After ten consecutive seasons of advancing to the postseason, the Chiefs will not be in the 2025 playoffs. With hopes to be the second team in the Super Bowl era to make four consecutive appearances in the Super Bowl, they simply could not manage to perform in critical moments, dropping their postseason hopes in a one-score loss. That brings their total up to seven losses in one-score contests this season after winning 11 of those close thrillers in 2024.
Here is the full story from Chiefs' Roundtable writer Bob McCullough on the tough loss that ended the team's postseason hopes and maybe more with a late injury to Mahomes.
On Los Angeles’ end, they’re battling through their own adversity, with o-line injuries and quarterback Justin Herbert enduring playing through a broken left hand. He finished 19-of-29 passing for 210 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. It brought the Chargers up to 10 wins with a rare series sweep of Kansas City in the regular season. Los Angeles beat the Chiefs to begin the season in Brazil.
Early in the game, things seemed to favor Kansas City. With 38 seconds left in the first half, the Chiefs got out to a 13-3 lead and seemed to be in control. The Chargers quickly took those reins and looked like the ones poised to be in the postseason after starting the contest wearing the opposite hat. They quickly answered with a score and tied the contest with their first possession out of halftime. There was a total of three points scored in the second half, but the field goal was all Los Angeles needed while Kansas City could not find an answer to even get in field goal range. The Chiefs will now end their season at the close of Week 18 as a result.