Why Chiefs Lost the Adjustment Game to Cowboys

“Credit to them,” Mahomes said after the game. “They changed up things, but at the end of the day, we got to execute at a higher level.”

At the beginning of the day, they were executing at a stratospheric level – especially on the ground. After the Cowboys tied it, 7-7, Kareem Hunt opened the ensuing drive with 21 combined yards on consecutive carries. Kansas City’s line, which later in the game would lose both starting tackles, was dominating the line of scrimmage.

And when Mahomes squeezed his body through a seam in the pocket and got loose for 16 yards on third-and-14, the Chiefs looked like they would rule the day. In fact, they dominated so much on that 72-yard touchdown drive that they piled up 70 rushing yards on eight carries to retake the lead.

Cowboys clamped down

But that’s when Matt Eberflus and the Cowboys earned their money. Osa Odighizuwa, Quinnen Williams and Kenny Clark slowly started to take away the run.

“Yeah,” Andy Reid said, “they got penetration is what they did, shut it off there. We were kind of up and down, but it was working well in the first half.”

They got penetration on important downs, too. Midway through the third quarter, Hunt had converted 84.6 percent of his season attempts on third- or fourth-and-1. But the Cowboys stuffed him on third-and-1.

Stark difference between halves

In that first half, the Chiefs averaged 6.0 yards per carry, with 90 yards on 15 attempts. But after intermission, even though the score was never too far out of reach, Kansas City managed only 29 yards on eight carries (3.6 avg.).

And Hunt, who’d flourished over the fourth quarter and overtime in an emotional win over Indianapolis to earn Offensive Player of the Week honors, was the target of the Cowboys’ adjustments.

In the first half Thursday, Hunt registered 45 yards on eight carries (5.6 avg.). But over the balance of the game, he had just 13 more yards on six attempts (2.2 avg.).

And when the Chiefs were able to make their own adjustments, they shot themselves in the cleats.

“Penalties killed some drives,” Mahomes said. And that's something we got to be better at, and that's the kind of stuff that we've done all year long, is you get penalties, you get behind the sticks, and then you don't get first downs.

“And so, whenever you have 10, 11, whatever it was penalties, that usually hurts you at the end of the day.”