Matthew Wright kicked a 31-yard field goal that went wide of the left upright as time expired. And the Kansas City Chiefs survived another close game, beating the Los Angeles Chargers 19-17 on Sunday. On the night they won their ninth consecutive AFC West title.
Patrick Mahomes led the Chiefs (12-1), the two-time defending Super Bowl champions, to run out the clock to set up Wright’s fourth field goal on a 4 1/2-minute drive. It looked routine until the ball hit the post in Kansas City’s final narrow escape to win 10 games by one score.
A tank for the section! That’s good! @CIEFS Success! pic.twitter.com/RtsINqo05m
— NFL (@NFL) December 9, 2024
Kansas City’s nine consecutive division titles are two shy of the New England Patriots’ NFL record of 11.
The Chargers (8-5) led 13-0 at halftime after punting on their first six possessions, but Justin Herbert and LA came alive in the second half, scoring on each of their three drives.
Cameron Dicker’s 37-yard field goal put the Chargers up 17-16 with 4:35 left.
The @leaders Win the AFC West for the 9th consecutive season! pic.twitter.com/lBIH75d4el
— NFL (@NFL) December 9, 2024
Mahomes then went to work, hitting Xavier Worthy on third-and-10 for 14 yards and scrambling for another first down. After the two-minute warning, Mahomes scrambled, blocked a potential tackle and launched a shot to a kneeling Travis Kelce that allowed the Chiefs to run the clock down to zero.