Arrowhead Stadium fell silent long before the final whistle, as a season that once carried championship expectations ended in pain, frustration, and a familiar rival celebrating on Kansas City’s home field.
According to The Associated Press, the Kansas City Chiefs’ postseason hopes officially unraveled Sunday night in a 16-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, a game that ended with Patrick Mahomes being helped off the field and into the locker room with a towel over his head and a torn ACL in his left knee.
The decisive moments came late. With under two minutes remaining, backup quarterback Gardner Minshew threw a game-sealing interception to Derwin James, allowing the Chargers to escape with a narrow victory and leaving Kansas City staring at the end of its season.
Mahomes was injured moments earlier while sprinting toward the sideline and throwing the ball away. Defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand spun him to the turf, and the two-time MVP immediately clutched his left knee.
“It didn’t look good,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said afterward.
The team later confirmed the diagnosis.
“An MRI has confirmed that Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes sustained a torn ACL in his left knee in today’s game. Patrick and the club are currently exploring surgical options,” the Chiefs said in a statement.
Mahomes addressed the injury on social media.
“Don’t know why this had to happen. And not going to lie it’s hurts. But all we can do now is Trust in God and attack every single day over and over again,” he wrote.
Before the injury, the Chiefs had controlled much of the first half. Mahomes opened the game with a 12-yard touchdown run and later guided Kansas City to a 13-3 halftime lead, aided by two Harrison Butker field goals.
Los Angeles turned the game around after the break. Playing with a broken left hand, Justin Herbert led a steady rally.
KeAndre Lambert-Smith’s first career touchdown catch pulled the Chargers closer, and Cameron Dicker tied the game early in the second half before giving Los Angeles the lead with a 49-yard field goal in the cold and wind.
Kansas City had chances to respond but faltered repeatedly in the red zone. One promising drive ended when Mahomes was intercepted by Daiyan Henley at the goal line.
After Mahomes exited, Minshew briefly revived hope with three straight completions. That hope vanished when James leaped in front of a pass intended for Travis Kelce with 20 seconds remaining.
“It’s a ball team. This is a ball team,” Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said. “Starting to think this is my favorite ball team that I’ve ever been on. I’ve been on a lot of teams, none better than this team. It’s a ball team. A real ball team. Love these guys.”
James emphasized the significance of the win.
“We know what that team has done the last eight, nine years,” he said. “Coming into Arrowhead Stadium and getting a win, it means a lot for out team, because we’re 5-0 in our division.”
Minshew will start the final three games for Kansas City, including a Christmas night matchup with Denver.
“I’ll do whatever the coaches ask of me,” Minshew said, “and we’ll go try to win some games.”
For the Chiefs, now 6-8, the reality is unavoidable. They are guaranteed to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2014.
Kelce declined to discuss it.
“Sorry guys, it’s not the time,” he said.
Herbert, meanwhile, praised his defense for closing the door.
“I thought it was really cool that we were able to close out a one-score game like that,” he said. “For the defense to come out there with the turnovers and stops, it was awesome to see.”
