Redskins at Chiefs - Week 4 - Record: 4-0

I'm going to blog post this game during the game. I regularly don't do this, but sometimes I do. I work early tomorrow morning, and while these primetime games are wonderful, they do go late even for me here on the west coast.

As of now we're getting our butts whupped. We really are. Last week I wrote about how inadequate I feel our offensive line has been, and tonight they're proving it more. Injuries aren't helping, already Laurent Duvernay-Tardif is out with some serious leg injury, and we already don't have Mitch Morse. I'd even seen that Eric Fisher was iffy for tonight's game.

Bottom line, we're getting smeared up and down the field by both their lines.

On offense? Ha. Kareem Hunt had a nice run, Travis Kelce has had a couple of nice receptions, but that's it. We're almost to the end of the first half and we have zilch. Zero. The main reason is Alex Smith YET AGAIN looks harried hurried and harassed back there on every single play. He has no time to let things progress, and for someone who's had issues with that before, this isn't helping... offensive line...

Washington's defense is faster, stronger, and easily reading everything we do.

Funny though, they just flashed a stat saying the Chiefs have a 7.5 average run-after-catch, highest in the NFL. Thing is half of that is Kareem Hunt's run-after-catch for a touchdown against the Patriots. I'm exaggerating, of course, but all we've had are those couple of big plays. Yes, I like big plays that get us wins as they have in the first three games so far. But as I've always said, I get nervous when we have to rely on big plays.

We may have to do that tonight, with some chance still to win since we're only down 10-0 with about three minutes left in the first half.

And whaddya know. We're moving the football. When Alex Smith has at least some time he can make nice connections, like right there to Chris Conley to take it to their 17. We should get at least a field goal to get on the board, with a brand new spankin' kicker in a guy with the name Harrison Butker, picked up when we just flat-out released injured Cairo Santos so we won't have to pay him millions of dollars next year.

We won't be able to see him kick a FG now, only a PAT, because Smith finally got a big pass play to Kelce for the touchdown! Very nice.

Chiefs have the ball again, and oh -- gutsy play by Alex Smith to scramble down into Redskins territory with about half-a-minute left. Why don't they use his legs more often?! All the times I see him go down in the backfield I wonder, why can't they arrange a play specifically to draw the defense into the middle of the backfield and he just takes off around the edge. Make that a design? Huh Andy Reid? How about it?

Now Butker is in for the FG. And he barely misses it. That's nice. Something like a 40-yarder. It looked really good, but as it always seems for the Chiefs, it may look good but still misses.

At halftime here I just have to point this out. I'd noted a while ago that the Chiefs have only lost once to Washington, ever -- in 1983, the year the Redskins went to the Super Bowl. All the other games the Chiefs have played against the Redskins they've won, all eight of them, many of them against those good Redskins teams. I'd wondered, is there any other head-to-head matchup that has been more lopsided? I looked and looked, and couldn't find one until I saw that the Patriots have the same record against the Ravens, 8-1. I should add that the Patriots are also 7-0 against the Jaguars, but the Jaguars are an expansion team and the Patriots have been dominant for years.

I did, however, find there is one head-to-head record that is even better. The Jets are 10-1 against the Buccaneers. Turns out the Bucs simply cannot beat the Jets for some reason.

As of now, the Patriots against the Ravens and the Chiefs against the Redskins are the second best won-loss records in head-to-head matchups in NFL history.

The Chiefs' vs. Redskins record in on the line now. So far we've skated through the first half only down 10-7. I don't know how. The Redskins have easily outplayed us in every facet of the game, especially on the line. It has actually taken Alex Smith's activity late in the half to keep us in this game. When he's had time he's thrown the ball well and scrambled beautifully.

Chiefs are now moving down the field to start the second half, Alex and Kareem playing well. Thing is, that stout Redskins defense is hurting. They've already had a couple key guys injured, including their studly D-back Josh Norman.

And what a play for the touchdown! From their one yard line Alex Smith with the read-option, faking everyone out -- I even thought it was going to Kareem Hunt and Smith walks into the end zone. Butker drills the PAT and he does look good except for the barely missed FG -- he's been booming kickoffs.

Will our standard 2nd-half surge carry us to the win tonight?

Nkay, back and forth a bit, with the Chiefs doing the standard Chiefs things. Since the 1st quarter the Chiefs offense has had the ball for most of the time.

Smith is throwing nice passes enough but getting sacked some more. Kareem Hunt is being phenomenal with the run, he's got to have 100 on the ground by now, or close to it. Add to that a nifty Andy Reid weird play that works great: Kelce in the wildcat running for a 1st down.

With about five minutes left we get the ball deep into Redskins territory but can't get the TD. Butker comes in for a 32-yarder and now we're ahead 20-17.

Will our standard late-4th-quarter surge carry us to the win tonight?

AND WOW. The Redskins had it. They had the touchdown catch to put them up with under a minute left. Receiver in the end zone with the ball in his hands, and he can't hang on to it. So they tie it with the field goal, it's now 20-20.

We get the ball with :47 left.

Redskin defenders are still coming off the field injured, what's with that?

Can we matriculate the ball down the field to get a game-winning FG with a brand spankin' new kicker. Aaagh!

And Albert Wilson with the medium deep-ball sideline catch on a pass from scrambling Alex Smith! How nice is that! Yet another big play to get us a chance at the win! And Albert Wilson! How about that -- he's caught everything thrown his way tonight.

Now we're into Washington territory with :33 left.

Will it come down to Harrison Butker?...

And it does.

Here he is, 43-yard attempt. They signed this kid on Tuesday. Does he have ice in his veins?

He does drill his first attempt, right down the middle, but the Redskins called timeout a nanosecond before the snap.

Now the snap ----- the hold -----

AND HE GOT IT. Right down the middle.

We're up 23-20.

:04 left. They have it at their 25. Rarely rarely rarely has a team done the whole lateral-lateral-lateral play to win a game late -- I think it was successful only once in NFL history. Will it happen here? Errrrrghhh...

And they try it, Washington lateraling it everywhere, until Justin Houston picks up one of the errant laterals and takes it into the end zone. How goofy. We win 29-20. The announcers just said the Chiefs were 7 point favorites, so they cover the spread.

And so we take care of business again. We get the job done late.

Speaking of late, I've got to get to bed. An entertaining game for sure, and a Chiefs win to boot. Literally, to boot.

Now four weeks into the regular season, guess what?

The Chiefs are the only undefeated team in the NFL!

As heart-wrenching as these games are, definitely enjoying it so far.
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