Four Takeaways From the Chiefs' 36-10 Win Over the Steelers

Here are some major takeaways from the Chiefs' 15th game of the 2021 season.

On an afternoon that saw quite windy conditions that made for an overall difficult game for kickers, the rest of the Kansas City Chiefs were quite proficient en route to a dominant 36-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. With their eighth consecutive win, the Chiefs rose to 11-4 on the season. The Steelers, still fighting for playoff positioning in a crowded middle of the pack in the AFC, are now 7-7-1 on the year.

Here are four takeaways from Sunday's game.

1. The win came at a cost

In the third quarter of the Chiefs' big win, running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire suffered a collarbone injury and was downgraded from questionable to out by the end of the quarter. In the fourth frame, safety Tyrann Mathieu was ruled out due to a quad injury. Mathieu had briefly exited the game a bit earlier but entered back in before the team finally deemed his day over. The Chiefs are a deep team capable of weathering the storm without some of their best players, but losing two of them in-game is a tough break. 

In postgame media availability, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid referred to Edwards-Helaire's injury as a shoulder ailment, as well as describing Mathieu's injury as a quad contusion. 

2. The AFC West crown resides in Kansas City... again

Heading into this season, there had been three stretches in which an AFC West team had clinched the division title five years in a row. There had never been one to do so for six seasons straight... until Sunday afternoon. With a win and a Los Angeles Chargers loss, the Chiefs have punched their tickets to the 2021 playoffs as the AFC West division champions. Considering the fact that Kansas City was 3-4 earlier in the season and is now the hottest team in the NFL, comprehending that turnaround is nearly impossible. The West crown was in jeopardy of leaving town, but now it officially remains exactly where it's been for over a half-decade. 

3. Patrick Mahomes and Byron Pringle were dialed in

Without his most reliable weapon in Travis Kelce, Patrick Mahomes had one of his most surgical performances of 2021 before being benched due to Kansas City's blowout being in full effect. The superstar quarterback completed 23 of 30 passes for 258 yards and a trio of touchdowns, with two of them going to wide receiver Byron Pringle. Pringle had arguably his best game as a pro, having his first two-touchdown contest in the process. Pringle doing good things for the Chiefs is nothing new, but he had a statement game against a quality defense. That's a major boost for the Chiefs' offense as the postseason approaches. 

4. Steve Spagnuolo's defense did its thing

There isn't much that can be said about the Chiefs' defense that hasn't been repeated over the past couple of months. Steve Spagnuolo was under quite a bit of heat earlier this year due to his unit's underperformance, but it's competing like one of the best in the NFL right now — and has been for a while. The returns of Chris Jones, Willie Gay Jr. and L'Jarius Sneed all made a difference against the Steelers, and the Chiefs' defense didn't skip a beat. It's no longer time to question whether the defense is legit — it's time to question just how elite it can be as the season comes to a close. 

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