The Cincinnati Bengals had put the Kansas City Chiefs under pressure on Sunday.
But they gave Patrick Mahomes one last chance. And as always, Mahomes led the Chiefs on a winning drive and secured a thrilling 26-25 victory over the Bengals.
Mahomes overcame two interceptions to lead the Chiefs to the game-winning field goal, aided by a fourth-and-16 conversion. The Bengals were given a pass interference penalty on a downfield throw with 38 seconds left, keeping the Chiefs’ drive alive and putting Harrison Butker in range for a 51-yard field goal. Butker fired the ball through the goal posts as time expired to seal the win.
The last change of leadership was the fifth of an exciting second half.
Late pass interference brings Chiefs victory
The Bengals had a chance to win the game on offense after forcing a punt with 6:57 left, but the Chiefs sacked Burrow on third down with 2:46 left, forcing the Bengals to punt.
Cincinnati then forced Kansas City to go for fourth-and-6 on the Chiefs’ ensuing possession. Mahomes found Rashee Rice for a first down, but an illegal hands-to-the-face penalty negated the gain and sent the Chiefs to fourth-and-16.
In Kansas City’s last gasp, Mahomes ran and passed deep downfield, again to Rice. Rice couldn’t catch the ball this time, but rookie safety Daijah Anthony made contact early on defense and was penalized for pass interference.
The penalty gave the Chiefs 29 yards and a series of new attempts at the Cincinnati 36-yard line with 38 seconds left. Four plays and 4 yards later, Butker converted the field goal.
With this win, the Chiefs improved their record to 2-0 and are looking for a third straight win after defeating the Baltimore Ravens in Week 1. They have now defeated two of their likely strongest challengers in the AFC.
Hard defeat for the 0-2 Bengals, who led most of the game
It was a tough loss for the Bengals, dropping them to 0-2 after taking a late fourth-quarter lead against the defending Super Bowl champions. They have shown much improvement since last week’s surprise home loss to the New England Patriots, but they weren’t good enough to pull off a win.
Cincinnati scored first with a field goal in the first quarter and didn’t trail until the third quarter when the Chiefs scored a touchdown to take a 17-16 lead. The Bengals countered with a 70-yard touchdown drive that ended with Burrow’s second touchdown pass of the day to sophomore receiver Andrei Iosivas.
Bengals cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt then delivered one of the best plays of the young NFL season with a spectacular one-handed interception of Mahomes to win the ball back for the Bengals, with a 22-17 lead and 2:16 remaining in the third quarter.
The interception was Mahomes’ second of the day, but the Bengals were unable to capitalize on it.
Burrows fumble changes the momentum
Three plays later, the Chiefs sacked Burrow as he ran on third-and-10. Burrow’s fumble was on display and cornerback Chamarri Conner scooped up the ball for a 38-yard touchdown return that put the Chiefs ahead 23-22.
Kansas City’s 2-point conversion failed, but the Chiefs regained the lead thanks to the game-winning play.
Penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct by Chase slows Bengals advance
The Bengals responded with a 33-yard field goal drive and took the lead again (25-23) on a 53-yard kick by Evan McPherson. The drive was slowed by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase for confronting a referee to contest a call.
Ja’Marr Chase is cautioned here for unsportsmanlike conduct. It looks like he is complaining about a missed facemask call. The broadcast conveniently only shows the replay of Chase’s complaint and not the tackle… #CINvsKC pic.twitter.com/joM2DX1PIp
— Rate the Referee App (@Rate_the_Refs) 15 September 2024
The penalty put Cincinnati 22-and-7 on their third attempt. The Bengals were unable to score another first down and settled for a field goal.
It wasn’t enough for victory.
Burrow looks better since week 1
If there’s a positive for the Bengals, it’s that Burrow looked better after his Week 1 performance raised concerns that he hasn’t yet recovered from wrist surgery he underwent during the offseason. Burrow completed 23 of 36 passes for 258 yards (7.2 yards per attempt) with two touchdowns and no interceptions.
In the second half, he had no problems with a 45-yard long ball to Jermaine Burton.
The Bengals gained more yards than the Chiefs (320 to 286) as their offense looked significantly better than it did last week in their 10-point game against New England.
But questions will continue to swirl around Chase, who has been a limited participant in preseason practices after holding out during training camp to get a contract extension he didn’t get. Chase’s unsportsmanlike foul in the second half could cost Cincinnati dearly. He finished the game with four catches for 35 yards.
The Bengals will look to get back on track with upcoming games against the Washington Commanders and Carolina Panthers, who have started 1-3 together. The Chiefs have an away game at the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night in Week 3.
