Your Kansas City Chiefs are good enough to win a game like Sunday against the Denver Broncos fairly comfortably. But a series of ill-advised decisions and mistakes allowed the Broncos to assume the role of closer. Somehow, with an MVP quarterback, a Super Bowl MVP running back, and an offense that ran for 220 yards against the same defense six weeks ago, Kansas City couldn’t gain a yard in the game and the division was on the line.
At the end of the day, they were still 5-2, and in a strong position in the AFC. But they could – and probably should – have won this game.
Here are some Chiefs who stood up to the team’s second straight loss.
Running back Emmett Johnson: When teams focus all their energy on stopping Kenneth Walker, the Chiefs need a counterpunch to come out. On Sunday afternoon, it came in the form of a breakout performance from Emmett Johnson. The rookie from Nebraska led the Chiefs in receiving (128), had the biggest play of the game (73 yards), scored a touchdown, made a special teams tackle, and returned a kick 44 yards to set up what should have been a game-winner. Maybe the Chiefs should go back to the kid at the end?
Defensive end George Karlaftis: The talk all week has been about Kansas City’s lack of pass rush, but we shouldn’t overlook the efforts of Furious George. Continuing an underrated season, Karlaftis had three batted passes, a sack, a tackle for loss and a forced fumble.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes: The best quarterback in the NFL had a great statistical game and delivered what should have been the game-winning score on a short pass to Rashee Rice. This loss was not on Mahomes.
Wide receiver Rashee Rice: Mahomes needs reliable receivers who can create yards after the catch. The return of Rashee Rice is a reminder that they now have (more than) one in-house. This was a solid game for Rashee, one that could have been better, and something to be proud of.
Tight end Travis Kelce: A middle-aged married man is still the team’s best option on the last drive of the game— Travis Kelce’s 32-yard catch and run makes this QB/TE duo the best in history. Kelce caught 5 of 7 targets for 67 yards, continuing his strong start to 2026.
Kicker Harrison Butker: The pressure is on, and the kick is wide— again.
Wide receiver Xavier Worthy: At this point, should he just be given a package of trick plays and punt returns?
The Chiefs offensive line room: What’s going on with Andy Heck’s men? The left side of the line should be loaded with talent; instead, they mysteriously miss many games. The All-Everything Center had low snaps in every game. The right side of the line has a costly penalty in the biggest moments. And the depth still leaves a lot to be desired. Can they put together a championship offensive front for the next four months?
Defensive lineman Chris Jones: Eventually, the lack of production from the future Hall of Famer in the middle will outweigh the wins from the sideline. Sack Nation needs a better version of their CEO to win the second half of the season.
Head Coach Andy Reid: The buck stops with Big Red. Again, Reid sat the starting left guard, jeopardizing the offensive game plan before kickoff. Then, the Chiefs wasted Mahomes’ great performance (321 yds and 3 TDs). They lost more penalty yards (11-105) than they gained running the ball (24-90). They couldn’t capitalize on a breakout game from their rookie running back and instead let Denver do the heroics. They once again struggled in short-yardage situations and gave up points on the field.
They still led 24-13 in the fourth quarter, and seemed poised to grind out the clock in a solid win. But then there was a punt on 4th and 1 from the 41 (questionable decision)… leading to a long Broncos drive that almost ended in a goal-line stand. Instead, Bo Nix found wide open receivers in the end zone (execution failures) on 4th and 2 and the two-point conversion.
On the ensuing drive to the Denver 30, up for a field goal, Mahomes was sacked (bad play call and execution), and Butker missed a long field goal (everyone outside of the coaching staff saw that, right?). This comedy of errors led to another Broncos touchdown at the two minute warning. But even then, the Chiefs would have first-and-goal from the four-yard line with plenty of time to get out of Colorado with the win. Ken Walker got them to one, but more mistakes ended their chances as time expired — a failed pass attempt (predictable play call), a touchdown nullified by a penalty (undisciplined play), and a sack (appropriately awful ending).
When a player struggles, we can call them out. But this game showed a lack of discipline, poor execution, and questionable coaching decisions leading to a fourth quarter collapse. One could argue that Andy Reid has been outcoached two weeks in a row.
Note: Applying the “loser” label is not meant to be a judgment on the talent or character of any of these individuals. This is just a simple way to mark their work performance in a game. No disrespect intended.