Harrison Butker kicked a 41-yard field goal with 49 seconds left on Sunday, enabling the Kansas City Chiefs to edge the Los Angeles Chargers 13-12 in Inglewood, Calif.
Kansas City (11-6) trailed by two points after Cameron Dicker made his fourth field goal of the day, a 20-yarder with 4:06 remaining that gave Los Angeles (5-12) its only lead of the game. But Blaine Gabbert ran for gains of 25 and 14 yards to put Butker in range for the game-winner.
Gabbert completed 15 of 30 passes for 154 yards with an interception for the Chiefs, who rested starting quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce and many other regulars in a game that didn’t affect their playoff seeding. Kansas City will be the third seed in the AFC and host a wild-card round game next weekend.
Chargers quarterback Easton Stick hit on 28 of 47 passes for 258 yards and also rushed for 77 yards on 13 attempts. But he misfired on a fourth-and-3 pass from the Los Angeles 33 with 13 seconds left to seal the outcome.
The Chargers outgained the Chiefs 353-268 but still lost their fifth straight game. After a 4-4 start, they dropped eight of their last nine.
The only touchdown came via the Kansas City defense on Los Angeles’ first drive. The Chargers smartly drove to the 4 but Stick fumbled on a scramble. Mike Edwards lugged it 97 yards to give the Chiefs a 7-0 lead at the 4:56 mark of the first quarter.
Butker capped Kansas City’s best drive of the day — 12 plays, 66 yards — with a 22-yard field goal with 4:03 left in the first half that upped its lead to 10. Los Angeles got on the board with Dicker’s 49 and 40-yard field goals in the final 2:43, cutting its deficit to 10-6 at the break.
Dicker edged the Chargers within 10-9 with a 43-yard field goal with 4:11 remaining in the third quarter, finishing off a 12-play, 60-yard drive that lasted 5:59.
–Field Level Media
