Last year's AFC Championship game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals broke every heart in Chiefs Kingdom. Selective memory made it genuinely difficult for me to recall specifics from that game, lest the thought of it hurt me all over again. I thought it would be wise to watch it one final time before this week's Bengals-Chiefs faceoff. The viewing experience gave me indigestion.
It all started so well; KC's defense forces a three-and-out on the Bengals' first drive, then Mahomes immediately marches down the field for a first-drive touchdown. Cincy's offense begins moving the ball methodically on the next possession as the Chiefs fail to stop either Joe - Mixon or Burrow. The Bengals push deep into enemy territory, but KC's secondary disrupts two straight pass attempts to the end zone to force Cincinnati to kick a 32-yard field goal, resulting in a 7-3 score nearing the end of the first quarter.
KC responds with a 44-yard connection to Mecole Hardman on the first play of the following drive, which ends with a TD pass to Kelce. Cincy is quickly forced to punt on the next drive, leaving KC with a 14-3 lead and the ball with 10 minutes to play in the second half. Successful and aggressive play-calling immediately leads KC to yet another TD, this time to Hardman. It was five minutes 'til halftime and the Chiefs were up 18. I know what happened next, but how the hell did it happen? Just how?
Veteran running back Samaje Perine slips through some porous defense before the end of the first half for a quick Cincy touchdown. With a minute and a second, KC moves the ball swiftly with quick shots to Hill and Kelce. A pass interference call on Tyreek leaves the Chiefs with nine seconds and a 1st and Goal on the 1 yard-line. An incompletion leaves them five seconds. A completed pass for no gain to Tyreek leaves no time on the clock and a heavy sense of regret in the hearts of everyone in Chiefs Kingdom. Despite driving all the way to Cincinnati's 1 yard-line, the Chiefs failed to put more points on the board.
No problem though, right? The Chiefs get the ball to star the second half, and they're already up 11, so it's still all good. Then KC fails to get a single first down in this possession, and they punt. The Bengals offense responds to the roars of the Arrowhead faithful with impressive competence, until a Delay of Game penalty stifles the drive and forces a punt of their own.
The Chiefs start on their own 7 yard-line. They soon punt from the 25. Burrow, Chase and Mixon look frighteningly good as they march into Chiefs territory. KC's defense tightens up to limit Cincy to a field goal. KC gets the ball back with a lead and under five to play in the third. Everything should have been fine.
On the second play of the possession, Mahomes feels the pressure of a blitz coming from his right, and he fires a quick pass to his left that bounces off the hands of another defender closing in on him. The ball bounces upward and lands in the hands of Bengals defensive tackle B.J Hill. This is the moment in my re-watching experience that I paused the video and went to grab some cookies. Not even the good kind, but the cheap ones, the off-brand chocolate chip cookies that only I seem to enjoy, even though they make my stomach ache. I only stoop to eating them when I have a particularly low sense of self worth. I returned to the video prepared to hurt myself in more ways than one.
So now it's Bengals' ball with a little over two to play in the third. Before the fourth quarter begins, Cincy ties the game with a touchdown drive and two-point conversion. KC responds by going three-and-out.
L'Jarius Sneed then brings the Arrowhead crowd to an unhealthy decibel level with an interception that quickly ends the Bengals' next possession. Despite all their stumbles, the Chiefs still had the ball in Mahomes' hands with a tie and under 14 left in regulation. The Chiefs responded to this opportunity by going three-and-out, as Mahomes is sacked on third down on consecutive possessions.
A memorable third-down scramble from Burrow keeps the Bengals' next drive alive despite consistent pressure from KC. On consecutive third downs - both 3rd and 7 - Cincy's remarkable young QB uses his legs to move the chains. The bend-don't-break Chiefs defense gets a stop on Burrow's Bengals eventually, but not before Cincy gets in range for Evan McPherson to hit a 52-yard field goal that gives the Bengals the lead with only six minutes left in regulation.
Patrick Mahomes was made for moments like this. He nearly proves it with a long drive that gave KC a first down on Cincinnati's 4 yard-line. KC failed in ugly fashion to punch it in, but instead relied on Harrison Butker to tie the game with a 44-yarder as time expired.
Overtime. KC wins the toss. Incomplete pass on first down. Another on second down that almost results in an interception. On third and 10, Mahomes goes deep downfield to Tyreek in double coverage. Bengals safetey Jessie Bates III gets a hand in between Hills' hands as Tyreek leaps up and reaches for the ball. Bates swats the pass away, and it lands in the hands of his fellow Bengals defender Von Bell. A Mahomes interception gives Burrow the ball in overtime.
The Chiefs defense cannot stop the Bengals on the ground or through the air. Burrow sets his team up for a 31 yarder. The kick is good. Mahomes winces as Burrow celebrates. Pleasantries are exchanged as Chiefs fans everywhere hold their reeling heads in their hands. Kansas City just scored three touchdowns on their first three drives of the game. The man with the best start to a career of anyone in the history of his position was one step away from the sport's ultimate stage, and he came up short. That hurt Chiefs Kingdom in a unique and unforgettable fashion.
Winning today would be little solace. This is only the 12th chapter of a 17-part story, and if that story goes well enough, KC gets to start a new and more important story when the playoffs begin. Only when the Bengals and Chiefs meet again when it's do-or-die will KC get a chance at true redemption. Consider this afternoon's game a tease of a bigger story yet to be told. With all that foreshadowing out of the way, we do have a slightly more technical topic to consider.
Burrow killed KC's defense in aforementioned crucial moments by using his legs on third down. I don't get paid the big bucks to know how to limit that, especially since Madden was enough to teach me that a QB spy strategy simply leaves a team one less defender to guard one of the Bengals' dangerous wide receivers. Whatever Steve Spagnuolo can think of to limit this will be utilized from now on, but it may be as simple as guys in the middle of KC's defense like Nick Bolton using their athleticism to close on Burrow ASAP on third down. Bolton's rapid improvement and the growth of Willie Gay should mean KC is better equipped at dealing with Burrow's scrambling skills this time.
I cannot predict a win for KC today. Until proven otherwise, Cincy has KC's number. Nobody knows how effective Ja'Marr Chase will be today after missing four games with a hairline fracture in his hip. Cincinnati is fresh off an exciting win over a solid Tennessee Titans team who also lost to the Bengals in the playoffs last year. The Chiefs are coming off a yawn-inducing victory over a Los Angeles Rams team who had to start their relatively unknown third-string quarterback. I'm predicting another thriller but unfortunately another defeat at the hands of Joe Burrow. 30-27, Bengals. Don't forget, though; the real test comes in January.
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