KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ The Kansas City Chiefs are locked in as the AFC's No. 2 seed for the NFL playoffs thanks to their 31-21 win over the Los Angeles Chargers and the Miami Dolphins' 27-24 upset at the New England Patriots.
But things didn't come easy at Arrowhead Stadium Sunday.
The Chiefs appeared to be sleepwalking in the first half despite their 10-7 lead, and needed a big play to wake up.
Rookie wide receiver Mecole Hardman provided it in the second half.
The Chargers took a brief 14-10 lead to start the third quarter when running back Melvin Gordon scored on a 5-yard run, which came three plays after quarterback Patrick Mahomes' interception.
Hardman produced the game-changing play on the ensuing kickoff with a 104-yard return for a score down the left sideline. Hardman pulled a tight-rope routine near the Chargers' 35-yard line, maintaining his balance before cutting back against the grain of L.A.'s pursuit.
The play provided the necessary energy to kick-start the Chiefs, and running back Damien Williams punctuated the awakening with an explosive 84-yard touchdown down the left sideline.
The Chargers appeared to have Williams stuffed for a short gain at the Chiefs' 18-yard line, but Williams bounced off two defenders, then spun free to give the Chiefs a 24-14 lead.
Williams, who returned to the lineup in Week 16 after missing three games with a rib injury, finished Sunday's win over the Chargers with 124 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 12 carries.
Mahomes wasn't spectacular, but he didn't need to be as Hardman and Williams helped take the load off the quarterback's shoulders. Mahomes completed 16 of 25 pass for 174 yards and a touchdown, adding 21 yards on seven carries. And he came up big with a 47-yard completion to Tyreek Hill late in the game to help seal the win.
Meanwhile, Kansas City's defense allowed its most points since a 35-32 loss at Tennessee, snapping an impressive streak of five consecutive games of holding opponent to 17 or fewer points.
The Chiefs' defensive unit seemed to take a bend-but-don't-break approach against the dangerous Chargers offense.
Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers threw for 281 yards and two touchdowns, but the Chiefs picked him off twice and effectively limited L.A.'s big plays. The Chiefs also kept running back Austin Ekeler in check, holding him to nine catches for 43 yards _ a stark contrast to these teams' first meeting of the season in Week 11, when Ekeler caught eight passes for 108 yards on 12 targets.
Sunday's win gave the Chiefs a sweep of the AFC West for the first time since the 2016 season, and the third in team history (1995).
Reid is now 27-3 against the Chiefs' divisional opponents since 2015. Sunday's win also cemented for the Chiefs the NFL's best divisional winning percentage (.900) in a five-season span since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970.
With the regular season now over, the Chiefs will enjoy a first-round bye before hosting a game at Arrowhead in the AFC Divisional Round.
