Kansas City Chiefs: Cracking under pressure… again

Once again, for the sixth straight time, the Kansas City Chiefs lose a playoff game at home. An off-season of questions remain.

Different season, similar result. An up and down season for the Kansas City Chiefs came to an abrupt halt at home thanks to Marcus Mariota and the Tennessee Titans. The Titans came back from an 18 point halftime deficit to score 19 unanswered to defeat the Chiefs 22-21.

Despite a great first half by Alex Smith and the whole team in general, the Titans took over the momentum and took over the game. Painful penalties, bad third down possessions and questionable play calling doomed the Chiefs as the Titans crawled back to eventually take the lead and hold on.

That gut feeling all Chiefs fans had when Mariota caught his own deflected pass to score a touchdown is a testament to what they have been through over the years. Over and over those type of ridiculous plays, or instances, lead to crushing defeats of the team they hate to love.

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The Chiefs simply stalled. The defense caused two Titans turnovers and got zero points off of them. The offense was 3-3 in the red zone, but never got close after halftime. The Chiefs made sure that they were part of yet another great comeback story for their opponent, much like the debacle against the Colts when they came back from 28 to knock the Chiefs out of the playoffs.

Deja Vu

Favored by nine points, the Chiefs continued their losing ways in the playoffs. The uncanny play took all the air out of the Chiefs as they simply stalled out from that point on, even though they were still up by 11 at that point.

Andy Reid and Matt Nagy again forgot that they had the leagues leading rusher on the team. Kareem Hunt only had 11 rushes for 42 yards in a game that the Chiefs once led 21-3 at one point.

Third down conversions continued to be something the Chiefs couldn’t figure out. They only converted 4 of 11 third downs. The Titans converted 8 of 13.

Alex Smith made some bad decisions and didn’t do much after the first quarter. This loss can’t go solely on him, although he once again proved he couldn’t make the plays when he had to. He, like his teammates, cracked under pressure.

The coaching cracked under pressure as well. The ever notorious dunk and dink offense that Kansas City plays when they have the lead showed up on cue. Like it usually does, that offense helped the Titans get back into the game and forced the Chiefs into desperate football.

Marcus Peters and old man Derrick Johnson played their hearts out, but the Titans ripped the hearts out of the fans as they left One Arrowhead Drive in disbelief.

Changes

All sides of the ball may likely see different coordinators next season. Bob Sutton was under fire at times this season and many veterans may retire or be let go. Matt Nagy seems primed to take a head coaching job, Likely Indianapolis. Dave Toub appears to be a head coaching candidate  Alex Smith will be playing for a different fan base. If for any reason, the Chiefs will ship him away in the off-season for cap space.

The Chiefs will look very different in 2018. Patrick Mahomes will be slinging the ball. Mahomes alone will change the way opponents practice for the Chiefs. Teamed up with Hunt, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce, the Chiefs will be an explosive offense and hard to beat. The defense will need almost a complete overhaul in the off-season.

No matter what the Chiefs do however, it is going to be a long wait to get this taste out of Chiefs fan’s mouths. The emotional roller coaster of not only this game, but the season as well hurts. A game of inches stayed true to the phrase. A few inches on the Mariota pass and a few inches on the last strip fumble by Marcus Peters would have resulted in a different finish. Just a few more inches.

Next: !0 worst seasons for the Chiefs

Now Chiefs fans wait to see what changes will be made. Certainly, changeswill be met withmixed emotions. As for Smith, he changed the culture of Chiefs Kingdom. He left an underappreciated loser. Smith has played his final game in a Chiefs uniform. The Chiefs will try for next year, again.

The future is bright while the present lies in darkness.