The Kansas City Chiefs guaranteed their spot in the AFC playoffs after securing a Week 13 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Black Friday.
The Chiefs seemed destined to lose their matchup against Las Vegas after Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell led a heroic two-minute drill that got his team in field goal range facing a two-point deficit.
But, when rookie center Jackson Powers-Johnson botched a snap to O’Connell with 15 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Kansas City’s defense made the most of its opportunity to close out the game.
Star linebacker Nick Bolton lept on the ball, and the Chiefs took possession after the referees called a controversial penalty that Kansas City had the option to decline.
Ten years in a row, and it never gets old.
SEE YOU IN THE POSTSEASON, CHIEFS KINGDOM! pic.twitter.com/zNpnWPAhQI
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) November 29, 2024
This was among the Chiefs’ sloppiest wins in a season that has seen the defending Super Bowl champions stack victories seemingly against all odds.
With its spot in the playoffs now secured, Kansas City officially controls its own destiny in the race to earn the AFC’s No. 1 seed, and a coveted bye in the Wild Card round.