KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ It took a few timely turnovers, a strong running game and a foolish self-inflicted penalty by New Orleans, but the Chiefs held on to beat one of the league's best quarterbacks _ and most effective passing attack _ Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium.
The Chiefs' offense, led by quarterback Alex Smith, did its part. Smith completed 17 of 24 passes for 214 yards and two touchdowns, while running back Spencer Ware rushed 17 times for 77 yards. Most importantly, though, the Chiefs did not turn the ball over and give Saints quarterback Drew Brees extra possessions.
And that's a pretty big deal, because Brees had a nice day as it was, completing 37 of 48 passes for 367 yards for three touchdowns. But the Chiefs' defense also forced an interception _ one that resulted in a score _ and came up with some timely stops when it mattered (including a forced fumble late) to solidify the win.
It would have been hard to imagine that outcome during the Saints' first drive of the game, when Brees engineered a super-efficient 10-play, 80-yard scoring drive. Brees, who completed 5 of 6 passes on the drive, capped it with an precise throw to receiver Brandin Cooks, courtesy of a lofted ball on a wheel route right over the head of outside linebacker Frank Zombo, for a 9-yard touchdown that gave the Saints a 7-0 lead.
The Chiefs responded, however, largely due to the hard-charging style of Ware, who caught a tunnel screen and maneuvered his way through multiple Saints for a 46-yard catch-and-run touchdown.
It was a terrific show of running ability, one that was actually matched a few plays later by Chiefs safety Daniel Sorensen. With the Saints facing a third-and-12, defensive coordinator Bob Sutton dialed up some pressure up the middle on Brees, who _ with defensive tackle Jaye Howard right in his face _ threw a rocket over the middle to slot receiver Willie Snead IV.
Safety Eric Berry saw it all the way, however, and he delivered a well-timed blow to Snead that caused the ball to wobble into the air. Sorensen ran under it, hauled it in and took off toward the Saints' end zone, sprinting down the sideline before angling back up the middle toward paydirt. His 48-yard return gave the Chiefs a 14-7 lead entering the second quarter, and it was the sixth straight time the Chiefs have forced an interception at Arrowhead.
The defense kept getting after Brees, too, forcing three-and-outs on the Saints next two drives. In between, the Chiefs extended their lead to 21-7, courtesy of Smith's gorgeous 38-yard touchdown pass to rookie receiver Tyreek Hill, who beat his man in single coverage and hauled in a deep ball _ one handed _ in the end zone for his team-high third touchdown reception.
The Chiefs took that 14-point lead into the break, one the Saints quickly cut into early in the third. New Orleans mounted a 14-play, 75-yard scoring drive that was capped by a 3-yard touchdown pass from Brees to running back Mark Ingram, but the Chiefs essentially gifted that to them, as outside linebacker Tamba Hali was whistled for two offsides penalties _ including one on a third-and-5 stop _ that extended the drive.
The Chiefs responded with a 39-yard field goal by Cairo Santos that made the score 24-14 entering the fourth quarter.
The Saints made them sweat a bit, though. On their first drive of the quarter, Brees led the Saints from their own 33 to the Chiefs' 13, until safety Ron Parker poked the ball out of running back Mark Ingram's hands.
Cornerback Marcus Peters _ who, to that point, had been quiet due to the Saints' reluctance to throw his way � scooped it up and ran 21 yards to negate the scoring opportunity.
The Chiefs failed to score on their ensuing possession, but they did churn 3 { valuable minutes off the clock � thanks in large part to a third-and-17 conversion, via an 18-yard completion from Smith to receiver Chris Conley _ before punting the ball back to the Saints.
Brees got the ball with five minutes left, though, and that was more than enough time for the future Hall of Famer to put a scare into the Chiefs. He promptly guided New Orleans on a 10-play scoring drive, capped by a 10-yard touchdown throw to Brandon Coleman, that took all of two minutes and 27 seconds.
That cut the Chiefs' lead to 24-21. After recovering the ensuing onside kick, the offense got the ball back at the Saints' 46-yard line with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left in the game.
The Saints only had a timeout left, so the offense basically needed only one first down to ice the game. After a 3-yard loss by Ware on first down, the Saints took their final timeout.
And on second down, the Chiefs called an end around to Hill, who mistakenly went out of bounds, which should have stopped the clock. But the Saints bailed the Chiefs out when defensive tackle Nick Fairley threw Ware down 30 yards away from the play and was whistled for a personal foul.
The penalty gave the Chiefs a first down at the Saints' 29-yard line. Three running plays later, Santos drilled a 41-yard field goal that put the Chiefs ahead 27-21 with 28 seconds left.
For as good as the Saints' passing attack is _ and it was tops in the NFL entering the game _ that wasn't enough time to mount a strike, as the Chiefs, 4-2, managed to hold on for the victory while the Saints dropped to 2-4.
.png?w=600)
