Chiefs Defeat the Steelers onto the Divisional Round. What Did We Learn?

The Kansas City Chiefs played the Pittsburgh Steelers on a cold Sunday winter evening inside Arrowhead Stadium in a win-or-go-home playoff game. As usual, the KC Kingdom packed the house to witness the first step to making the Super Bowl. KC would defeat the Steelers, 42-21 in the AFC Wildcard round to advance to the AFC Divisional round. The game many believed would be Ben Roethlisberger’s last of his career. There was a lot to learn in this game heading into the next round.

The first quarter of the game was a pure battle on both sides as neither team would score. The first points came in the second quarter when Pittsburgh Steelers’ linebacker TJ Watt would scoop up a fumble from Darrel Williams and return it to the end zone.

From that point on, the flood gates would open as the Kansas City offense would dominate for the next three quarters. The Chiefs would string together three drives, an 8 play, 76-yard drive, a 7 play, 74-yard drive, and a 6 play, 80-yard drive all resulting in touchdowns. The first half would end with a score of 21-7 KC.

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Patrick Mahomes Played MVP Caliber Football for the Kansas City Chiefs

The offense would score three more times as Eric Bienemy would pull some Houdini-type plays out of his hat. Patrick Mahomes would throw a touchdown to guard Nick Allegretti. Tight end Travis Kelce would throw a touchdown to wideout Byron Pringle. The Chiefs deflated all hopes for the Steelers to advance in the postseason and turned this game into a lopsided affair very quickly which is one important detail we must discuss.

Patrick Mahomes played about as elite as a quarterback can play. He completed 30-out-of-39 passes for 404 yards and five touchdowns. Mahomes did throw an interception that was deflected by TJ Watt which halted a drive for KC. When Mahomes is in the zone and playing at an MVP level this team is extremely hard to beat. His ability to make plays happen when the play is broken is incredible.

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The Offense Was Clicking on All Cylinders for the Kansas City Chiefs

The offense complimented Mahomes extremely well as running back Jerick McKinnon would rush 12 times for 61-yards, but also caught 6-out-of-6 targets for 81-yards and a touchdown. Tight end Travis Kelce would catch 5-out-of-7 targets for 108-yards and a touchdown. Kelce also eclipsed 1,000 yards in the postseason.

Wide receiver Byron Pringle had an incredible stat line catching two touchdowns, one from Mahomes, and one from Kelce. When the offense is firing on all cylinders, this team is hard to beat. The versatility is unmatched, and the ability to throw so many different looks is incredible. This type of offensive play will have to continue if the Chiefs want to return to their third consecutive Super Bowl.

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The Defense Played Lock Down Football for the Kansas City Chiefs

The defense was electric and shut down the Steelers’ offense. Ben Roethlisberger would complete 29-out-of-44 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns. Rookie running back Najee Harris was nonexistent in the offense as he would rush 12 times for 29 yards. The Kansas City defense had corner L’Jarius Sneed, and Nick Bolton tied for eight total tackles. Mike Danna and Tershawn Wharton would account for the two sacks. The defense was stifling and until the end did not let up on the Steelers’ offense.

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What Is Next for the Kansas City Chiefs

The next game for the Kansas City Chiefs will be played in Arrowhead Stadium against the Buffalo Bills. Kansas City lost to the Buffalo Bills in Week 5 of the regular season, 38-20. The divisional matchup will be on Sunday, January 23rd at 5:30 P.M. CT. The game will be aired on CBS. This is going to be a tough matchup for Kansas City, but if you have made it this far in the season no matchup will be easy.