Oct. 18, 2015; Minneapolis; Chiefs head coach Andy Reid talks with side judge Walt Coleman IV during the first half against the Vikings at TCF Bank Stadium. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)
The Kansas City Chiefs looked like they went to a party, woke up hungover and still had to show up for work the next morning. That look didn’t work for them, and the Chiefs (1-5) lost, 16-10.
Kansas City has lost five straight, the longest losing streak since the Chiefs lost eight straight games in 2012.
A lot of things went wrong and some things went right. Here are five things that went both ways for Kansas City.
LOWS
• The offensive line was a complete disaster. Penalties plagued the offensive line, especially during the first half. On the first drive, left guard Ben Grubbs was called for offensive holding, but it was declined. Rookie center Mitch Morse was called for the same thing on the second drive. The offensive holding penalties continued, as left tackle Donald Stephenson was called for it on the third drive.
A total of eight penalties for 95 yards weren’t the only issue. Quarterback Alex Smith was sacked two times on the day, bringing his season total to 23. Smith is on pace to be sacked 61 times this season, a mark that would rank seventh-highest all time in NFL history.
In the second half, the Chiefs were in the red zone, going for it on fourth-and-1 at the 7-yard line. Running back Charcandrick West could have moved the chains, but the offensive line crumbled.
• The offensive line wasn’t the only Chiefs unit committing penalties. In total, the yellow flag flew 10 times against the Chiefs, eight of which were accepted, resulting in 90 penalty yards in the game. Aside from the offensive line penalties, five different players were called for penalties.
Wide receiver Jeremy Maclin committed offensive pass interference in the second quarter. Cornerback Steven Nelson drew the flags for roughing the passer. On that same play, safety Husain Abdullah was called for illegal contact. That penalty was declined. Nelson was called for offensive holding during a Minnesota punt. Nose tackle Jaye Howard was penalized for roughing the passer. West drew the yellow flags for a chop block. Tight end Travis Kelce was called for unsportsmanlike conduct for taking his helmet off and slamming it into the ground.
Midway through the second quarter, Kansas City had more penalty yards (40) than yards of total offense (28). At the half, Kansas City’s penalty yards and total offensive yards were essentially even, with the Chiefs compiling 50 penalty yards and 51 yards of total offense.
• Kansas City’s offense crawled out of the gate. In the first 10 plays of the game, the Chiefs only had 13 yards of total offense. Their first first down came off a Vikings penalty, and had just three first downs in the first half.
• The lone Kansas City turnover proved to be costly. At the time in the fourth quarter, the Chiefs were only down by three. West was the ball carrier near midfield and let go of the ball. Minnesota recovered. The Vikings turned that into three more points.
• Maclin and defensive end Mike DeVito both left the game under concussion protocol. After being drilled, Maclin tried walking off the field, but had to temporarily take a knee before trying to walk off again.
HIGHS
• The defense came through in several ways on Sunday.
The Vikings were in their red zone during the inaugural drive of the game. Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater keyed into tight end Kyle Rudolph who was end zone bound, but safety Ron Parker read the play and came up with the ball, running it five yards out of the end zone before he was brought down.
Parker’s interception was the first interception by a Chief since rookie cornerback Marcus Peters had a pick six in Kansas City’s home loss against Denver.
In the fourth quarter, Peters wanted some of the turnover action and came up with an interception at the Chiefs 23-yard line. The interception was his third of the season.
• Containing Vikings running back Adrian Peterson was a main factor for the Chiefs defense to shut down. The Chiefs defense limited Peterson to 60 yards rushing. The last time Peterson put up less yards rushing than that was during the first game of the season when he totaled just 31 yards rushing, the third worst offensive production of his career.
• Wide receiver Albert Wilson found the end zone to bring the Chiefs within a field goal. His 42-yard reception was his second longest catch of his NFL career. The only catch that was longer was 45 yards, coming against Oakland on Dec. 17, 2014.
• Smith made a complete turn around on offense. After the first quarter, Smith had just 1 yard passing. By the end of the game, Smith amassed 282 yards passing,
• Kicker Cairo Santos had a much better game than last week, drilling a 48-yard field goal and one extra point.
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Amie Just is a contributing writer for ChiefsDigest.com. Use the contact page to reach her or find her on Twitter: @Amie_Just.
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