Four Takeaways From the KC Chiefs' 13-12 Win Over the LA Chargers

Four overarching thoughts on the Chiefs' Sunday afternoon road matchup against the Chargers.

The Kansas City Chiefs' 2023-24 regular season is officially over. With a Week 18 outing against the Los Angeles Chargers in the books, Andy Reid's squad can officially look ahead and focus on the postseason.

It wasn't the most thrilling of games, as evidenced by a 13-12 final score. Kansas City hung in there in a competitive contest, even getting a chance to lead a game-winning drive after squandering a narrow lead. With quarterback Blaine Gabbert driving the team down the field late in the fourth quarter, the Chiefs' final drive was capped off with a Harrison Butker game-sealing kick. Kansas City finishes the season with an 11-6 record.

Here are four takeaways from Sunday's game.

Chiefs get a firsthand look at young talent on defense

Of the Chiefs' seven 2023 draft picks, five were on the defensive side of the ball. Following a theme similar to the 2022 draft class, that naturally didn't leave a ton of available reps for first-year players. That, combined with dynamics like defensive end BJ Thompson essentially having a redshirt year and tackle Keondre Coburn no longer being with the team, left some uncertainty surrounding the crop of talent. Sunday didn't answer many questions, although Kansas City finally got an extended look at some of its young pieces for Steve Spagnuolo's unit. 

For starters, it was a heavy Felix Anudike-Uzomah game. The No. 31 overall pick had some good and bad moments in Week 18, which was expected. The team continues to be fond of his progress off the field. Down the list, defensive back Chamarri Conner kept logging serious reps in the secondary and returned to the game after suffering an apparent injury. Thompson played in his first career game and flashed on a play. Even seventh-round cornerback Nic Jones got some work in. Kansas City didn't get enough to necessarily solidify plans for 2024, but this in-game exposure certainly helps. 

It wasn't the most inspiring performance from the backup offense

Don't get it twisted: Kansas City's first-team offense hasn't been anything to write home about this season. Despite that, there was still a very clear drop-off with most of the second-tier unit in the game. Pure box score statistics for players like Mecole Hardman (six receptions for 77 yards) and La'Mical Perine (74 rushing yards) indicate solid performances, although the group as a whole struggled to consistently execute. That was mostly predictable, however, and isn't an indictment on anyone specific.

The Chiefs produced just 12 first downs on Sunday, averaging 4.6 yards per play and logging 268 total net yards overall. Facing 16 third downs on the afternoon, it was a grit-and-grind style of win for Reid and Matt Nagy's offense. Gabbert completed just half of his 30 passing attempts and the offense didn't score a touchdown. The game lived up to the preseason environment many joked about during the week, with the visitors doing just enough to emerge with an ugly victory. Neither offense could get cooking in Week 18.

Kansas City made the right calls on Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Chris Jones

Early in the week, it was unclear what the Chiefs' plan would be for Sunday's game. Would Reid let his starters continue to build some continuity on the offensive side of the ball? How much stock did he put into rest versus performance? Did Travis Kelce's 1,000-yard streak or Chris Jones's big-time sack incentive factor into his plans? Things got clearer as the week unfolded and the Mahomes-Kelce duo eventually got ruled out, but Jones was allowed to play. As it turns out, Kansas City handled the situation with its three best players correctly.

While it's unfortunate for Kelce that his streak is ending at seven years, it's still one of the greatest feats by a tight end in NFL history. At 34 years old and considering how much he's been banged up this season, it was wise to sit him. Letting the face of the franchise do the same was a no-brainer. Jones took longer than expected to pass the 10-sack mark but with a third-quarter takedown of Easton Stick, he accomplished his goal as well and earned $1.25 million. Not everyone came out of Week 18 healthy, although the Chiefs keeping their star trio intact and getting Jones a few extra bucks is a clear win for everyone involved (even with Kelce out). 

Chris Jones Reaches Contract Incentive for 10th Sack

The real season is quickly approaching

It wasn't the regular season the Chiefs wanted or many expected, sure. The offense simply didn't produce at a level anyone could have predicted entering the year. The best part of Sunday, though, is Kansas City can now put it in the past and focus on the franchise's ultimate goal of winning another Super Bowl.

Time will tell if that goal gets achieved. This year's Chiefs team undoubtedly has plenty of flaws, and it wouldn't be surprising to see them lose sooner than usual in the postseason. With that said, it's a good time to have a "down" campaign in the AFC and simply getting into the playoffs is step one. Sunday Night Football's matchup between the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills will determine who comes rolling into Kansas City on Wild Card Weekend, so all Reid and Co. can do in the meantime is wait. The most important stretch of the season will be here before they know it.