The Kansas City Chiefs made a bold fourth-down decision in Thursday’s NFL season opener.
Faced with a 4th-and-25 from deep in its own territory near the two-minute warning, Kansas City chose to go for it instead of punting it away to Detroit.
Patrick Mahomes threw it past the first down marker but no receivers were able to haul it in and possession changed at the two-minute warning.
In theory, what Kansas City was trying to do makes at least a little bit of sense. Had the Chiefs punted, they would have still needed to get the ball back to try and score, so going for it at least gives you a chance to get a first down and not have to worry about that. Additionally, turning it over that deep in the opponent’s territory would mean you could allow a quick touchdown or field goal and get the ball back even sooner.
Unfortunately for Kansas City, the decision backfired as Detroit was able to get a first down on their next drive and Kansas City ran out of timeouts, leading to the Lions’ 21-20 victory and propelling Detroit to 1-0 for the first time since 2017 when they knocked off Arizona to open the season. Kansas City falls to 0-1 for the first time since 2012 against the Atlanta Falcons.
Social media had plenty to say about the questionable decision.
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