Sunday afternoon marked a difficult day in Chiefs Kingdom for a variety of reasons as the Kansas City Chiefs fell to the Los Angeles Chargers, 16-13, eliminating them from postseason contention for the first time since 2014.
The Chiefs also lost quarterback Patrick Mahomes to a left knee injury late in the game, and in the hours that followed, the team confirmed that the three-time Super Bowl MVP had suffered a torn ACL.
Mahomes was in the midst of a potential scoring drive when the injury occurred, leading the Chiefs – trailing by three points – to midfield with just over two minutes remaining in the game. Mahomes exited the game before the Chiefs could get into field goal range, however, and while backup quarterback Gardner Minshew went on to move Kansas City to the Chargers' 34-yard line, the veteran passer was ultimately intercepted in the game's closing seconds.
It was a heartbreaking conclusion to another slim loss for the Chiefs, who have now lost seven games by a single score in 2025, five of which by a field goal or less. The loss mirrored many of Kansas City's other defeats this year, featuring moments of elation but also, unfortunately, too many costly errors.
"All-in-all, we came up short on both sides of the ball, [and on] special teams," said Head Coach Andy Reid. "We had a few mistakes, and that ends up costing you against a good football team."
The result of the game was in stark contrast to how the matchup began, as Kansas City marched right down the field on its opening possession before Mahomes scrambled for a 12-yard touchdown. The Chiefs then went on to add a pair of field goals across its next four drives, building a 10-point lead in the closing seconds of the first half.
Kansas City had a chance to engineer an even larger advantage though, particularly when defensive end Ashton Gillotte picked off Chargers' quarterback Justin Herbert deep in Los Angeles' territory midway through the second quarter. Kansas City drove to the Chargers' 9-yard line following the interception, but the Chiefs eventually settled for a field goal.
The final minute of the second quarter, which began brilliantly for Kansas City, is then when things really began to turn. The Chiefs drove all the way to the Chargers' 29-yard line on their final series of the first half, but Mahomes' third-down pass fell incomplete, forcing the Chiefs to settle for another field goal. Still, despite falling short of the end zone, adding points prior to halftime felt like a positive until the Chargers – with only 33 seconds to work with – marched down the field and scored a touchdown with just five seconds remaining in the half.
It was the Chargers' only touchdown of the day, but it ignited a run of 13 unanswered points for Los Angeles that proved to be the difference in the end. The final score as part of that run – a 49-yard field goal – put the Chargers in front for the first time all game late in the third quarter.
Kansas City, despite managing just one first down in the third quarter, still had an opportunity to tie the game when Mahomes engineered a 9-play, 49-yard series that drove all the way to the Chargers' 17-yard line early in the fourth quarter, but an interception thwarted the drive and, as it turned out, ended Kansas City's best remaining scoring opportunity.
"We've got to do better. When you get opportunities in the red zone, or [with good] field position, you have to take advantage of that," Reid said. "We weren't quite good enough in all three phases, and again, that's my responsibility to make sure [we] don't have these kinds of mistakes. I'll look in the mirror first on this."
In addition to Mahomes, the Chiefs lost offensive tackle Jaylon Moore (knee) and wide receiver Tyquan Thornton (concussion protocol) to injury on Sunday.
The Chiefs, now eliminated from playoff contention, will turn the page toward a matchup with the Tennessee Titans this upcoming Sunday.
