A Closer Look at Crucial Chris Jones Penalty

He was right there earlier in the fourth quarter, when he sacked Bo Nix on third down to force a punt. That was big, too, because the Chiefs struggled to stop the Broncos all night on third down, allowing a season-high 61.1 percent conversion rate (11 of 18).

But on the only other time they stopped the Broncos in the fourth quarter, just before the two-minute warning when Nick Bolton held Evan Engram to a short gain to set up a fourth-and-2 from the Chiefs’ 9-yard line, Jones hurt them.

Badly.

Broncos weren't going to snap the ball

His neutral zone infraction was the first accepted penalty against Kansas City, 58 minutes into the game. And Denver very likely wasn’t planning to snap the ball. The Broncos’ sole intention appeared to be drawing the Chiefs offside.

Had Jones not jumped into the neutral zone, giving Denver a first down and setting up an eventual touchdown to take a 20-13 lead with 1:45 left, the Broncos likely would’ve taken their final timeout and kicked a 27-yard field goal.

That four-point difference would’ve been monumental for the Chiefs. Instead of driving for a game-tying field goal to send the contest to overtime, Chris Oladokun had to settle for a 26-yard, fourth-down incompletion intended for Hollywood Brown.

Dissecting film of the penalized play, right guard Quinn Meinerz might’ve twitched ever so slightly, but Jones had to know that officials would’ve struggled to see it. As soon as backup center Alex Forsyth slowly lifted his head, Jones exploded into the neutral zone.

Neutral zone infraction, not offsides

Both Meinerz and Forsyth definitely moved but not until after Jones had crossed the neutral zone. That’s important because this was not offsides. It was a neutral zone infraction, the definition of which is exactly what Jones did. It’s also an unfathomable mental error since defensive linemen are taught from a very early age to watch the ball, not the guard.

Jones is an All-Pro both on the field and with regard to his character. This season, he’s been accountable for his actions. He’s also played exceptionally well over the last month.

But there’s no doubt that his fourth-quarter mental mistakes have led to at least three losses this season.

In the Week 1 loss to the Chargers in Brazil, he allowed quarterback Justin Herbert to break contain and scramble for a game-ending first down in the final seconds. Four weeks later in Jacksonville, thinking the play was over, he stood idle and watched Trevor Lawrence stumble to the grass before getting up and scoring the game-winning touchdown.

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