K.C. defense rises to the occasion
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs had played so horrendously on defense earlier this season that the Cowboys and their top-ranked offense probably felt confident that they could keep things rolling Sunday.
Chris Jones and the rest of the Chiefs made an emphatic statement to the contrary.
Jones piled up 3½ sacks while forcing a fumble and recovering one, and Charvarius Ward and L’Jarius Sneed picked off quarterback Dak Prescott at crucial points in the game, helping the AFC Westleading Chiefs roll to a 19-9 victory over the Cowboys inside noticeably raucous Arrowhead Stadium.
“We had a few rough weeks. We had a lot of guys injured. It wasn’t clicking,” Jones acknowledged. “But when you take everything into consideration, we were still able to compete. And to have everyone back and build that chemistry, it’s a huge part of our success right now.”
The defense helped bail out Patrick Mahomes, who had 260 yards passing with an interception and a fumble. Clyde Edwards-Helaire added 63 yards rushing and a touchdown for the Chiefs (7-4) in his return from injured reserve.
“This entire season, there’s been a lot of ups and downs for everybody,” said Mahomes, whose team is nevertheless 4-0 against the NFC East and rides a four-game win streak into its bye. “We’ve had
games where we put up a lot of points and played good and games we haven’t, and we still found a way to get a win.”
Prescott was held to 216 yards passing and two interceptions, though he lacked a whole lot of help.
Left tackle Tyron Smith missed his third consecutive game with an ankle injury. Amari Cooper has tested positive for COVID-19, and fellow wide receiver CeeDee Lamb sustained a concussion just before halftime. Running back Ezekiel Elliott appeared to tweak his ankle early on, though he finished the game with nine carries for 32 yards.
“We had a healthy 48 players ready to play,” Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy said. “We had a number of guys that couldn’t play in the game. That’s the NFL. That’s the course of a season.”
Micah Parsons was the biggest bright spot for the Cowboys (7-3), forcing a fumble and getting two more sacks, as the NFL’s highestscoring offense was held to 5-for-15 on third down and 276 yards in all.
“I’m never discouraged but pissed off, yeah, for sure,” Prescott said. “Especially when you have an opportunity to play against a team that’s been in the Super Bowl the last two years, and we had a chance to show what we’re capable of. But this is a resilient team that’s going to continue to fight and get better, I can tell you that.”
The Chiefs did the exact same thing after a rough first seven weeks that left them 3-4 and last in the AFC West. They’ve eliminated many of the turnovers and penalties that hamstrung their offense, and a defense that was historically inept in September and October has turned into a ferocious, ballhawking bunch in November.
Just ask Prescott, who spent a good part of the game running away from it.
Mahomes followed up a 406yard, five-touchdown performance against the Raiders by dicing up the Cowboys in the first half. He led his team on an 86-yard march that ended with Travis Kelce taking a direct snap for a touchdown, then he directed a 65-yard drive a few minutes later that concluded with Edwards-Helaire’s short TD run.