The Chiefs’ defense is really good, and Patrick Mahomes looms

The Kansas City Chiefs defense stood tall in Week 14, as they made Tom Brady and the New England Patriots look ordinary in front of their own fans.

After playing under their level for a few weeks, the Kansas City Chiefs have returned to being a force in the AFC. In Week 14, the Chiefs defeated one of the best two teams in the conferences and avenged their AFC Championship game loss in doing so. Kansas City beat the New England Patriots 23-16 at Gillette Stadium, handing Bill Belichick his first home loss of the 2019 season.

Best of all, the Chiefs did it by playing great defense for the second straight week. After owning the Oakland Raiders in a 40-9 win last week, the Chiefs held Tom Brady and the Patriots suddenly subpar offense to 16 points.

Brady and the Pats threatened with a minute left to go after a gutsy 17-yard scramble from the veteran quarterback, but cornerback Bashaud Breeland reminded fans why he was a key offseason pickup by saving the game with a wonderful deflection in the end zone on a pass intended for Brady’s favorite target Julian Edelman.

Although the Chiefs had issues a month ago when they blew a game to Ryan Tannehill and the Tennessee Titans, allowing 35 points to the resurgent quarterback, they have rebounded nicely defensively since then.

Last season, the Chiefs defense held Patrick Mahomes back from heading to the Super Bowl in his first season as a starting quarterback. Mahomes took the league by storm as the unquestioned MVP, but he was left hanging on the doorstep of a Super Bowl due to a woeful pass defense.

Now, the Chiefs defense is finally good. They have taken their lumps this season, but when it matters most, they have pulled through. There will be tougher tests than Derek Carr and 2019’s Tom Brady in the postseason, but the Chiefs have to be proud of the effort they put forward on defense, especially in the fourth quarter.

Breeland proved to be a difference-maker at corner for the Chiefs, intercepting one pass earlier in the game before sealing the Chiefs’ victory with an incredible pass deflection in the end zone. Kendall Fuller also made a big play on that final drive, and if he and Breeland can keep standing out in front of safeties Juan Thornhill and Tyrann Mathieu, this Kansas City secondary should be ready to withstand the pressure come January.

As for Mahomes, he is the least of the Chiefs worries. He hasn’t been at his usual MVP standard in the last two weeks, as he only averaged 7.1 yards per pass attempt with a touchdown and a poorly-thrown pass for an interception in Week 14. But Mahomes still made a couple of special throws against the Pats and did enough for his team against one of the NFL’s scariest defenses.

So between a rising defense and a great quarterback who should hit his full stride soon, the Chiefs look like an absolute force in the AFC again. After exorcising their biggest demon in the Patriots, Kansas City have emphatically shown that they are indeed among the conference’s elite.