The Kansas City Chiefs clinched a playoff spot on Friday with another miraculous win, this time over their AFC West rival Las Vegas Raiders. After a topsy-turvy second half that saw the Chiefs lose a 13-point lead before regaining the advantage and hanging on for dear life, a late fumble by the Raiders handed them the 19-17 win.
This victory lifted the Chiefs to 11-1 on the season, and they will now officially be a part of the postseason. After the game ended, Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark expressed her excitement for the Chiefs’ win on social media.
“CHIEFSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!” Clark posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Things didn’t exactly come easy for the Chiefs, as the Raiders made them work for everything on Friday in Kansas City. The Chiefs seemed to be cruising to a comfortable win late in the third quarter, holding a 16-3 lead, before the Raiders came to life.
Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell threw two long touchdowns in the span of just a few minutes to put the Raiders in front in a flash. The first of those scores went to tight end Brock Bowers on a 33-yard gain after a beautiful throw on a corner route by O’Connell. A few minutes later, O’Connell hit speedy receiver Tre Tucker streaking down the left sideline to put the Raiders in front.
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However, the Chiefs made the plays when they needed to. Defending a 19-17 lead late, the Chiefs batted down two passes in the final minutes to force a very long field goal from Daniel Carlson, which he missed. On the final drive, the Chiefs recovered a fumble on a poor Raiders miscue.
This wasn’t the best day for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City offense, especially down in the red zone, but they did what they usually do and got just enough done to walk out with a win. However, they will need to be much more clinical in the playoffs and cash in on their opportunities when they get them.