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The Kansas City Chiefs\u2019 31\u201328 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day dropped Kansas City to 6-6 \u2014 and provided a story barely different from so many of the team\u2019s defeats this season: self-inflicted mistakes, costly penalties and missed opportunities in moments that demanded execution.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe guys understand we\u2019ve got to clean up a few things,\u201d head coach Andy Reid told reporters after the game. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to do better as coaches \u2014 and we\u2019ve got to do better as players. So you go back to the drawing board and you keep working; that\u2019s what you do. We were close here, but we had too many opportunities that we gave away. You can\u2019t be two good teams playing each other and have those things happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
The most glaring issue continues to be penalties. The Chiefs were flagged 10 times for 119 yards, turning manageable offensive situations into third-and-long scenarios. On defense, penalties repeatedly gave Dallas extra opportunities to extend drives.<\/p>\n
\u201cBottom line is we\u2019re having too many penalties,\u201d said Reid. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to make sure we take care of that on both sides of the ball \u2014 to get off the field on third downs \u2014 and then to stay on the field offensively and not back yourself up. No excuses with it. We\u2019ll work on cleaning it up.\u201d<\/p>\n
These mistakes were especially costly late in the game. After Kansas City pulled within 3 points late in the fourth quarter, the defense couldn\u2019t get off the field. The Cowboys leaned on its top two receivers \u2014 wide receiver CeeDee Lamb and wide receiver George Pickens \u2014 who combined for 13 catches and 200 yards. They used their size and physicality to draw two key defensive pass interference penalties. Both of them extended Dallas\u2019 final drive \u2014 and ultimately sealed the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not always going to agree with the call, but the calls are made,\u201d Reid admitted. \u201cThey\u2019ve got some physical receivers \u2014 big, strong, physical guys. That\u2019s the way they were playing \u2014 and in return, my guys were fighting to maintain leverage in that. It\u2019s not the way I saw it \u2014 but it\u2019s the way the officials saw it, so they made the calls. You\u2019ve got to stay aggressive against those guys. There\u2019s no other way to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Still, penalties weren\u2019t the only problem. Despite quarterback Patrick Mahomes throwing four touchdown passes, the offense stalled for long stretches \u2014 including scoreless second and third quarters as Dallas seized control of the game.<\/p>\n
\u201c[It was] just missed opportunities \u2014 like all the losses we\u2019ve had this year,\u201d said Mahomes. \u201cGetting the ball two times at midfield at the start of the second half and not getting points? That\u2019s stuff you can\u2019t do against good football teams.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mahomes pointed to the same consistency issues that have followed Kansas City all season long.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can beat anybody, but we\u2019ve shown that we can lose to anybody,\u201d he observed. \u201cWe\u2019ve got to be more consistent \u2014 and it starts with me being consistent throughout the entire game, not just in big moments. That\u2019s something we have to do throughout the entire game and week-to-week; it\u2019s not just one time. Last week, we had a big win, then you come here and play another good football team and you don\u2019t come to play. The ceiling can be what it is, but until you put it on the field, you won\u2019t be able to go out there and win football games.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Chiefs still believe in their potential, but confidence alone won\u2019t fix what continues to hold them back: discipline, consistency and an inability to finish close games.<\/p>\n
And at 6\u20136 in the tight AFC standings, they\u2019re out of runway; the margin for error is gone. The playoffs might be, too \u2014 unless they can quickly change the story of their season.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the end of the day, you\u2019ve got to win every game now \u2014 and hope that\u2019s enough,\u201d said Mahomes. \u201cWe\u2019re going to play a lot of good football teams coming up \u2014 and if we\u2019re going to make the playoffs, we\u2019re going to have to [beat] them all. That\u2019s got to be the mindset when we step into the building when we get back.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Penalties and other self-inflicted mistakes cost Kansas City in loss to Dallas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":123357,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-123356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"\n