Chiefs Not Phased by Sub-Zero Weather, Advance to Divisional Round
Photo Credit: Ed Zurga, AP Photo
In the fourth-coldest game in NFL history, the Kansas City Chiefs cruised to a 26-7 victory over the Miami Dolphins in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs on Saturday night at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Behind a phenomenal effort from rookie wide receiver Rashee Rice and their defense, Kansas City jumped out to an early lead and never looked back as the temperature continued to drop lower and lower as the night went on.
Rice, the rookie from Southern Methodist in his first playoff action, looked like a veteran on the field, finishing with eight catches for 130 yards and a touchdown. Rice was the team’s second-leading receiver this season and showed why Saturday.
The game opened with a fast and furious attack from the Chiefs offense, going 69 yards in nine plays in under four minutes to open a 7-0 lead early. The drive was capped by an 11-yard touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes to Rice on a shallow crossing route.
Later in the first quarter, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa sailed a pass over the middle that landed in the arms of Kansas City safety Mike Edwards, who intercepted it. Kansas City capitalized off the turnover with a field goal early in the second quarter.
The field goal was answered quickly, as the next Miami drive only took two plays and 50 seconds to find the end zone when wide receiver Tyreek Hill took the top off the secondary for a 53-yard score in his first game back at Kansas City since signing with the Dolphins before the 2022 season.
Kansas City added two more field goals and escaped to the locker room at halftime, seeking warmth with a 16-7 lead.
The second half was a painful showing from the Miami offense, as Tagovailoa and the Dolphins’ offense got colder the longer they were out there, putting up zero second-half points in one of the most lifeless efforts in a playoff game in recent memory.
Kansas City added another touchdown and a field goal after the half, but Mahomes’ favorite helmet was damaged in the process in a bizarre incident (Mahomes was okay after).
Mahomes finished the game with a touchdown and 262 yards through the air on 23/41 passing. Kansas City also made their presence felt on the ground, led by Isiah Pacheco, who had 89 yards and a touchdown on 24 attempts.
Many large questions loom for Miami heading into the offseason, the first being what to do at the quarterback position for the future after Tagovailoa fell apart at the end of the season.
For Kansas City, the most likely outcome is that they go to Buffalo for the Divisional round next week. Mahomes and the Chiefs have a 1-3 record against Buffalo in the regular season, but are 2-0 against the Bills in the postseason. This will also be the first time Mahomes will play in Buffalo, as the first six contests were all at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
