Mahomes and Kelce lead the Chiefs to a 23-14 victory over the Texans, securing another trip to the AFC title game.
- NewsBlend360
- Jan 18
- 4 min read
BY NEWS BLEND 360
Updated 8:56 PM EST, January 18, 2025
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (NB360) — Patrick Mahomes has maintained an undefeated record in the divisional round of the playoffs with the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Houston Texans have yet to secure a victory.
With the Chiefs’ standout quarterback connecting with his close friend Travis Kelce seven times for 117 yards and a touchdown, and a defensive line that sacked Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud eight times, Kansas City secured a 23-14 win on Saturday, advancing the two-time defending Super Bowl champions to the AFC title game for the seventh straight season.
The Chiefs join an exclusive group as the fourth team in NFL history to reach the conference title game following consecutive Lombardi Trophies, with the previous three failing to advance further. They aim to change that at Arrowhead Stadium next weekend against either the Bills or Ravens, who compete on Sunday in Buffalo for a chance to unseat the reigning champions.
“It’s been a special run,” said Mahomes, whose wife, Brittany, welcomed their third child last Sunday. “I still remember moments from the World Series my dad played when I was 5 years old. These are the moments that I’ll cherish my entire life.”
The journey continues for the Chiefs (16-2), supported once again by Kelce’s girlfriend Taylor Swift and WNBA star Caitlin Clark, as they pursue an unprecedented third consecutive Lombardi Trophy.
Mahomes, who passed for 177 yards and a touchdown, improved his postseason record to 16-3, tying Joe Montana for the second-most wins by a starting QB in NFL history, behind Tom Brady. This includes his flawless 7-0 record in divisional playoff games.
Meanwhile, Mahomes and Kelce contributed to Andy Reid becoming just the fourth coach in NFL history to achieve 300 career wins.
“I joked to the guys, you know, you get a couple of more and you might be able to equal my weight,” Reid said.
There was plenty of humor in the Kansas City locker room Saturday night, unlike in the Texans’ locker room. They remain winless in six divisional games, having lost twice to Kansas City in heartbreaking fashion.
Stroud threw for 245 yards but was sacked eight times, while Joe Mixon — who was questionable due to an ankle injury — rushed for 88 yards and their sole touchdown.
Texans kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn missed a 55-yard field goal attempt, a PAT, and had another field-goal attempt blocked with 1:46 remaining, which could have kept their comeback hopes alive by making it a one-possession game.
“Knowing what we were up against in this game, we can’t make the mistakes that we made,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “We had a lot of self-inflicted mistakes that happened, whether it was special teams not converting, defensively not being where we’re supposed to be in coverage, offensively not protecting our quarterback and keeping him clean.
“On top of everything else we have to deal with,” Ryans added, “that’s going to be an uphill battle.”
The Texans’ special teams struggled from the outset. The Chiefs nearly started the game with a kick return touchdown, a bizarre play that ended with Houston cornerback Kris Boyd nearly pushing his own assistant coach to the ground.
The Texans limited Kansas City to a couple of field goals early, but their defense faltered late in the first half when the powerful Kareem Hunt scored a touchdown, giving the AFC West champions a 13-3 lead.
Houston managed a 48-yard field goal through cold, swirling winds to make it a one-possession game at halftime, and that late kick seemed to have revived the AFC South champions when they returned for the second half.
Stroud skillfully led a 15-play, 82-yard drive that consumed most of the third quarter, converting four third downs, including one where he scrambled to the sideline and took a hard hit. Mixon finished the drive with a 13-yard run, only to see Fairbairn’s extra point, which would have tied the game, go wide right.
That miss may have shifted the momentum.
As they have done in winning their last eight playoff games, the Chiefs responded with a time-consuming drive of their own. Mahomes connected with Kelce four times on the 81-yard drive, including an 11-yard touchdown pass to his reliable tight end as the two-time NFL MVP was being pulled to the ground by Houston’s Mario Edwards Jr.
“I thought it was going to be an interception,” Hunt said.
The Texans had two chances to score a tying touchdown. The first ended when Stroud was sacked by George Karlaftis on fourth down near midfield with about 10 minutes left. The second was halted when Stroud missed on consecutive passes, forcing Houston to punt with just over seven minutes remaining.
Kansas City then drove inside the Texans 10, and Harrison Butker’s field goal with 4:32 left sealed the victory.
“We’re fortunate we’ve got a lot of great character guys in the building,” Kelce said. “On top of that, as the years have gone on, we only got here by focusing on the task at hand. And right now, this one was great. We’re going to enjoy this one tonight. But the task at hand is going to be that AFC championship.
“You don’t get a three-peat by looking past that.”
Injuries
Texans: LB Azeez Al-Shaair injured his knee in the first half. He had been questionable to play with a knee injury.
Chiefs: SS Bryan Cook missed most of the first half while being checked for a concussion, but returned. ... FS Justin Reid took a hard hit to the head breaking up a pass in the fourth quarter, but remained in the game.
Up next
The Chiefs will host the AFC title game a week from Sunday for the sixth time in seven years. They’ll face either the Bills, one of two teams to beat them in the regular season, or the Ravens, who lost in Kansas City in Week 1.
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