The Kansas City Chiefs celebrated Christmas with a franchise-record 15th regular-season victory on Wednesday by defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers, 29-10, in front of a national television audience.
The win also secured the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC playoff picture, guaranteeing a first-round bye and homefield advantage throughout the postseason.
"Merry Christmas to all our fans…Good way to celebrate it right here in Pittsburgh," said Head Coach Andy Reid. "We know that our work isn't done, for sure. We're going to celebrate this, but we're going to get right back on it."
Indeed, the Chiefs led wire-to-wire on Wednesday after quarterback Patrick Mahomes found wide receiver Xavier Worthy for a 7-yard touchdown on Kansas City's opening series of the game. Mahomes then had the Chiefs back in the end zone when he connected with wide receiver – and Pittsburgh area native – Justin Watson for an 11-yard score one drive later.
The latter series included a 49-yard strike to Watson earlier in the drive that represented the Chiefs' third-largest play from scrimmage all season, and in the blink of an eye, Kansas City possessed a two-possession lead while Pittsburgh had just one first down offensively.
To its credit, Pittsburgh rallied to pull within six points early in the second quarter when quarterback Russell Wilson scrambled for a 1-yard touchdown, but Kansas City went on to outscore the Steelers by 13 points the rest of the way.
"I don't know the exact stats, but it seemed like we spread the ball around really well," said Mahomes, who completed 29-of-38 passes for 320 yards and three touchdowns on Wednesday. "Guys made plays, and when you have that many weapons out there, it's hard for the defense to account for [all of them]."
Mahomes' favorite targets throughout the game were wide receiver Xavier Worthy, who hauled in a career-most eight catches for 79 yards, and tight end Travis Kelce, who recorded eight catches for 84 yards and a touchdown. Kelce's score made him the franchise's all-time leader in touchdown receptions, passing Pro Football Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez.
"What more can you say about him?" Reid said. "Every time we come out here, he sets some kind of record."
Kelce's touchdown, which took place early in the fourth quarter, essentially put the game away and also cashed in on Kansas City's second takeaway of the game – a forced fumble by cornerback Trent McDuffie – in what marked McDuffie's third-straight game with a forced turnover.
Overall, the Chiefs' defense – despite missing the services of defensive tackle Chris Jones, who was absent on Wednesday due to a calf injury – matched a season-high with five sacks and notched two takeaways. It all helped Kansas City hold Pittsburgh to its lowest point total of the season, which included just three points in the second half.
Additionally, Wednesday's win put a bow on a grueling stretch of three games in 11 days in which Kansas City forced a whopping 10 turnovers on defense and special teams while committing zero turnovers (and allowing just one sack) on offense.
In short, it's clear that Kansas City is playing its best football of the season at the perfect time.
"We feel like we can continue to get better and better, but obviously, we're playing – especially offensively – our best football at the end of the year," Mahomes said. "We're getting guys healthy. We're excited. We're going to keep working. This isn't the end. This is just the beginning. We'll continue to work to get even better as we go into the playoffs."
In terms of injuries, tailback Isiah Pacheco (ribs) left Wednesday's game early.
The Chiefs will now have some additional time off before closing out the regular season against the Denver Broncos.
