Chiefs Beat Broncos 30-27 in Overtime

Instead of trailing both of their top AFC West rivals, the Chiefs are 8-3 and in second place in the division, a game behind the Raiders.

All this after special teams came up big at New Orleans two weeks earlier by blocking an extra point and returning it for the first game-winning defensive 2-point play in National Football League history. Denver still must face Oakland, Kansas City and the No. 1 seed in the AFC, New England (9-2), in the final five weeks of the season.

This classic had huge implications for the AFC playoff hunt.

“I’m just thankful to be a part of this team and just come out and contribute”, Winchester said. I thought we could do it.

Siemian went 20-of-34 in passing for a career-high 368 yards, three touchdowns and a 125.6 passer rating.

Luckily, Gary Kubiak had enough with Sambrailo and made a decision to bring in Donald Stepheson. But the personnel change failed close the holes upfront.

“They’re fired up to play”, Reid said. “It gave us an opportunity and we were able to capitalize”. Not only was he able to make play after play with his arm, but he also showed his ability to escape pressure and produce with his feet. Payton chose not to make a big deal about the matchup, but as Saints safety Kenny Vaccaro said after a 49-21 victory: “He was sacked up”. Made some tremendous throws.

But he was smart to invest in one commodity you can’t get enough of – the guys who get to quarterbacks. “He has to battle through it”. Justin Houston sacked Siemian three times, including one safety. “Defense and special teams kept us in it”.

Exhausted of letting Chiefs outside linebacker Justin Houston have all the fun after his three-sack first half, Von Miller unleashed his own onslaught on Kansas City’s offensive line.

The Broncos struck back, scoring 10 straight points to take a 10-9 lead.

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Hill is the first player to score those three ways in a game since Gale Sayers of the Chicago Bears did so against the Minnesota Vikings in 1965.

It didn’t matter, though, because they didn’t make the splash play when they needed it. Alex Smith completed 24 of 31 passes for 261 yards and a touchdown against one interception.

That paid off midway through the second quarter when Broncos returner Jordan Norwood juggled a Dustin Colquitt punt, pinning the Broncos at their own 5-yard line.

The pass rush helped keep Kansas City’s offense at bay while the Broncos’ offense regrouped.

After holding the Broncos to a field goal in the first half, the Chiefs were shaky on defense. It didn’t seem a coincidence that the Broncos’ first drive of the evening got its momentum with Houston off the field. In the receiving end, Demaryius Thomas posted 87 yards and a touchdown in eight catches while Emmanuel Sanders added 54 yards in five catches.

As a result, Kansas City took over at the Denver 48, needing just a field goal to win, with a minute on the clock and a timeout in its pocket. The call was reversed after review and Smith connected with Hill again for the game-tying 2-point conversion to force overtime.

According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetDSI, the Broncos are a 3.5-point home favorite versus the Chiefs while the over/under now sits at 39 points.

“I’m 100 percent behind Kube”, Miller said. “This was a big game and I wanted to be there for my teammates”.

“It’s on me”, Kubiak said, explaining he made the move because he had confidence in his kicker even with a new long snapper who joined the team on Friday. It was very tough. “Whatever the coaches want me to do, I am here”. He walked to the locker room but returned to the line during the Broncos’ final possession of the half.

That Broncos defense? It is basically as good as it was last season thanks to Aqib Talib and Von Miller.

Unlike Reid or Houston, Hali said he couldn’t see a big game coming from Houston because the way Houston practices makes this type of game hard to predict. “They’ve been going down like this for years”. We just got to get into the playoffs. I’m still thinking about that jet sweep No. 10 (Hill) got. “That’s the main goal right now”.