The Kansas City came right out of the gate on defense, forcing the Indianapolis Colts offense to go three-and-out on their opening drive. But a muffed punt by Skyy Moore set Indy up to score the game’s first touchdown and kicked off a very bad tone for the rest of the game. Ending in a 20-17 loss.
In a surprisingly defensive battle, the Chiefs struggled to move the chains on offense consistently, and nothing went their way on special teams. Kansas City was forced off the field, going three-and-out on their first two offensive drives.
Matt Ryan and the Colts offense also had difficulty moving upfield consistently. On fourth-and-one, the Chiefs bared down as cornerback L’Jarius Sneed got the first sack of the game, giving his team the ball at the 35 on the Colts side of the field with 2:40 left to play in the first quarter.
Kansas City capitalized on the fourth down play as the offense got into the end zone, but the miscues on special teams struck again, with kicker Matt Ammedola missing the extra point, keeping the Chiefs a point behind the Colts late in the first quarter. On their ensuing possession, Indianapolis answered with a long drive that stalled at the Chiefs’ 25-yd line—setting up Chase Mclaughlin to punch in a 43-yard field goal to give the Colts an early 10-6 lead at the start of the second quarter.
After the Chiefs’ next offensive drive ended in a punt after 13 plays, Indianapolis took over at their one-yard line. After completing a 30-yard pass to Alec Pierce, the Chiefs defense stuffed running back Jonathan Taylor at the line for a gain of one.
On second-and-nine, Ryan was sacked and stripped of the ball by Carlos Dunlap, and L’Jarius Sneed recovered to give Kansas City the ball on the Indy 32 with 3:23 left to play in the first half.
Two Mahomes completions move the Chiefs 19 yards upfield to within two yards from the end zone. Kansas City to run in up the gut with Clyde Edwards-Helaire, but the play only gains a yard. On second down, Mahomes attempts a pass for Travis Kelce that goes incomplete, but the Colts are called for defensive holding, which gives Kansas City a new set of downs from a yard out. On the next play, Edwards-Heliare is handed the ball, and this time he breaks the plane for the touchdown. Instead of going for the PAT, however, Kansas City lines up for a 2-point conversion attempt. Under heavy pressure, Mahomes slings a pass to Kelce, who struggles to get the ball under control fully but holds on long enough for the officials to call the conversion good.
Both teams exchanged possessions one more time before the half expired.
Kansas City got the ball to begin the third quarter, but neither team did much in the 15 minutes. Both settle for field goals early, and Kansas City turns the ball over on downs after attempting a fake field goal that is well defended and goes nowhere.
In the fourth quarter, Indianapolis gets the ball first but also turns the ball over on downs after seven offensive plays. Kansas City takes over at their own 31 and travels 53 yards upfield before running out of gas 16 yards from the goal line. The Chiefs call upon Matt Ammendola for a 34-yard attempt that slices wide left.
The miss allows Indy to hang around with a 17-13 deficit to overcome and 8:38 left to play. From their own 24, Colts move up the field in short bursts for the first plays. On third-and-six at the 39, Ryan is sacked for a loss of seven yards, but an unsportsmanlike penalty on Chris Jones gives the Colts a new set of downs starting at the 46.
Ten plays later, Ryan completes a 12-yard pass to Jelani Woods in the end zone for his second TD-catch of the game and the game-winner with under 30 seconds left to play.
Kansas City got the ball back with :18 left in the fourth. Mahomes’ first pass attempt to Marquez Valdes-Scantling goes incomplete, but the second goes for a 24-yard gain to the Colts 46. On the next play, Mahomes’ pass was tipped in the air and intercepted, sealing Kansas City’s first loss of the season.
