Chiefs at Jets - Week 4 - Record: 3-1

I wonder how many Chiefs fans are getting a bit exasperated with watching right tackle Jawaan Taylor mess up. He's actually not done terribly with his play but it just head-scratching the whole thing with his line positioning getting penalized (which didn't happen tonight) and his getting other penalties like the facemasking call tonight that resulted in a safety for the Jets. He also had an almost crushing holding penalty late when the Chiefs were driving to try to score and put the game away.

That safety was a huge momentum turn-arounder. Forgive me, I don't know what to call it except that. 

The Chiefs owned the 1st quarter, surging out to a 17-0 lead and well on their way to the blowout everyone thought this would be. But then early in the 2nd quarter Taylor got enough of the Jets pass rusher's facemask, barely at the goal line, to get the Jets two points.

Shortly after that it was 17-5.

Then 17-12.

After a Chiefs FG they got a TD to make it 20-20 at the half.

Um...

Thing is, Zach Wilson was actually playing really well. Everybody was hoping for a miracle as he was forced into playing regularly when Aaron Rodgers went down for the season in the very first Jets game. In fact we were all hoping to finally see that Rodgers-Mahomes matchup. I think to some extent the fact that everyone knew Taylor Swift was going to show up again made up for that -- for many people it definitely made this primetime affair well worth tuning in.

As for the Jets quarterback play, again for most of the night Wilson was throwing darts. If anything his receivers were messing up a bit too much by dropping too many balls. The main issue with Wilson was one single play that really gave the win to the Chiefs. These games can really turn on those kinds of things.

With about eight minutes left in the game and the score still tied, the Jets had the ball at close to midfield. Wilson was in the shotgun and as the snap came to him he looked up too soon, and dropped the snap. The Chiefs recovered, and the Jets offense never saw the ball again.

Penalties on both teams made the last eight minutes or so go on forever. The Chiefs had 3rd-&-long twice but the Jets committed penalties on both, you know, those holding or illegal-use-of-hands calls that give the offended team five yards and a first down.

The Chiefs then ran the ball well enough to get those other critical first downs. One of those runs featured Mahomes running free to the end zone but... you know the new strategy... don't score a touchdown. With a new set of downs at the Jets one-yard line you can now run out the clock without letting their offense have the ball removing any chance for them to do anything.

Final score in this very weird game: Chiefs 23-20.

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The photograph of Isiah Pacheco is by Mikayla Schmidt at the official Chiefs website. Thank you.

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