Chiefs vs Texans | Image credits: Imago/ UPI Photo
Dare Ogunbowale scored a tiebreaking touchdown midway through the fourth quarter, and the Houston Texans claimed a hard-fought 20-10 road win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night.
Ogunbowale rumbled 5 yards to snap a 10-all deadlock before the Texans (8-5) converted an Azeez Al-Shaair interception of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes into a 28-yard Ka'imi Fairbairn field goal with 30 seconds left. Houston extended its winning streak to five while Kansas City (6-7) was eliminated from AFC West contention, snapping its streak of nine consecutive division titles.
Mahomes passed for 160 yards but completed only 14 of 33 attempts -- a career-low percentage (42.4%) in a single game -- and threw three interceptions. C.J. Stroud was 14 of 31 for 203 yards and one TD for the Texans, who finished 2-for-4 in the red zone.
Having clawed back from a 10-0 halftime deficit, the Chiefs rolled the dice early in the fourth quarter. Mahomes' third-down scramble set up a 4th-and-1 from the Kansas City 31, but the Chiefs failed to convert when Will Anderson Jr. pressured Mahomes, whose pass to Rashee Rice was defensed by Derek Stingley Jr., giving the Texans a short field. Six plays later, Ogunbowale scored.
The Chiefs turned to their defense to work their way back into contention. While the Texans amassed minus-2 yards on four possessions in the third quarter, the Chiefs rallied behind Mahomes' heroics.
Kansas City covered 56 yards in eight plays on its first possession of the second half. Mahomes hit Hollywood Brown for a 35-yard gain that built momentum on a drive capped by a 2-yard, fourth-down touchdown run from Kareem Hunt that cut the deficit to 10-7 at the 9:52 mark of the third.
The Chiefs pulled even roughly eight minutes later, thanks in large part to Mahomes' scrambling ability. Harrison Butker booted a 36-yard field goal with 1:50 left in the third to close a seven-play, 30-yard possession. Mahomes led the Chiefs with 59 rushing yards, but the interceptions and two failed fourth-down conversions in the fourth quarter proved punitive.
Already missing three starters on the offensive line, the Chiefs lost right tackle Wanya Morris to a knee injury on the first offensive snap of the game. The Texans, meanwhile, used two long passes from Stroud to Nico Collins to seize control. Collins' 46-yard catch set the table for a 35-yard Fairbairn field goal that provided Houston a 3-0 lead at the 4:18 mark of the first quarter.
Stroud found Collins for a 53-yard gain to the Kansas City 7 early in the second, avoiding the Chiefs' rush on the play. Stroud hit Woody Marks for a 9-yard scoring pass and a 10-0 lead.
The Chiefs totaled only 98 yards in the first half. Their lone promising drive ended with Butker clanking a 43-yard kick off the right upright with 60 seconds left in the half.