KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Justin Watson got knocked flat as he released into the end zone late in the second quarter.
Las Vegas linebacker Robert Spillane spilled him on his backside in the Allegiant Stadium end zone on third-and-goal from the Raiders’ 3-yard line.
But Watson — the Kansas City Chiefs’ top wide receiver this season — popped up, shuffled to his right into open space and caught the game-tying score.
WATCH OUT FOR JWAT. pic.twitter.com/cn2BKuMVKU
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) November 26, 2023
Watson then earned a taunting personal foul for getting into Spillane’s face after the score, which seemed to embody the Chiefs’ offense in recent weeks and in the Raiders game, in particular.
Kansas City had scored more than 23 points only three times this season and had been shut out in the second half in three consecutive games entering Sunday’s game in Vegas.
The Chiefs looked out of sorts again during the first two drives against the Raiders, managing only one first down and 13 yards on seven plays during that span.
But, like Watson on the touchdown with 25 seconds before halftime, Kansas City’s offense got up off the ground and showed some fight.
The Chiefs (8-3) never trailed again in a 31-17 victory over the Raiders, who had been 4-1 at home.
It’s only the fourth time this season Kansas City topped 23 points in a game. The Chiefs scored 41 in Week 3 against Chicago, 31 in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Chargers and 27 in Week 5 at Minnesota.
With the win, Kansas City kept pace atop the AFC playoff standings with Jacksonville (8-3) and Miami (8-3), who already had notched Week 12 wins.
Baltimore, which entered the week 8-3, plays the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday Night Football with a chance to remain a half-game in front of the field with a win or to fall a half-game off the pace with a loss.
Patrick Mahomes finished 27 of 34 for 298 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions and Travis Kelce caught six passes for 91 yards as the Chiefs’ offense got untracked for the first time in a month, including 17 second-half points.
“It was a good day,” Mahomes said. “I still think we can be better. There were plays here and there that we didn’t execute at a high enough level.”
ROOKIE RICE CONTINUES RISE: Second-round pick Rashee Rice enjoyed his first career 100-yard game, including his fifth career receiving touchdown, in yet another breakout performance in a season of breakouts.
“He’s a smart kid and he works tremendously hard at his profession here," Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. "He’s got the trust of the quarterback.”
Rice finished with eight catches for 107 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter that iced the Chiefs’ comeback win.
Rice caught a short crossing route from right to left from Mahomes and outran cornerback Nate Hobbs around the edge.
Accelerating upfield, Rice pulled away from Hobbs and got a key downfield block by Marquez Valdes-Scantling against Tre'von Moehrig, which allowed the cutback to the end zone.
Rice also had a key 19-yard reception on a scramble-drill pass from Mahomes on Kansas City’s third-quarter touchdown drive, which provided the first lead of the game.
Rice had another nifty 19-yard catch on the sideline midway through the fourth quarter, which put him over the century mark for the first time in his career.
The eight receptions also were a career-high for Rice, whose 72 yards Oct. 12 against Denver had been his high-water mark this season.
Rice’s score also gave him touchdowns in consecutive games for the first time in the NFL.
DOUBLE THE POP: Isiah Pacheco had scored in nine of 30 career NFL games, including the playoffs, but Sunday in Las Vegas he powered into the end zone twice on 1-yard runs for his first multi-touchdown game.
He finished with 55 yards on 15 carries.
“Those are the toughest 55 yards I’ve ever been around,” Reid said.
Pacheco also had five catches for another 34 yards receiving.
REID STANDS ALONE: Future Hall of Famer Andy Reid entered the game tied with Pro Football Hall of Famer Hank Stram for first place in franchise history with 124 regular-season wins.
Reid improved to 125-48 in his career with Kansas City — passing Stram, who went 124-76-10 in his Chiefs career.
Both coaches won two championships with the franchise.
Stram led the then-Dallas Texans to the 1962 AFL title and the Chiefs to Super Bowl IV title, while Reid guided the franchise to Super Bowl LIV and LVII victories.
Overall, Reid is 137-55, including the playoffs, since arriving in Kansas City before the 2013 season.
Stram, the franchise’s first head coach, finished 129-79-10, including the postseason, during 15 seasons as head coach of the Texans/Chiefs.
He also went 7-21 in two seasons with the New Orleans Saints, while Reid went 130-93-1 in 14 seasons with Philadelphia before he came to Kansas City.
SKID STOPPER: Kansas City improved to 3-0 after a loss on the season, a trend that's become something of a hallmark for the team under Reid.
“A loss teaches you a lot of things — more so just being disciplined, correcting mental errors and, most importantly, it makes you take accountability,” defensive tackle Chris Jones said. “I think that’s what we do, especially after a loss. But hopefully we don’t have to go through that again and we can learn accountability and all of that after a win. Let’s just stay winning.”
This season, the Chiefs won six straight after a season-opening loss against Detroit.
After a shocking loss in Denver, Kansas City responded with a victory against Miami in Frankfurt, Germany, before their bye week.
Coming off the bye, the Chiefs lost Monday against Philadelphia in a rematch of Super Bowl LVII but rebounded with a win in Las Vegas.
“You just have to bounce back,” Mahomes said. “When you’re playing a short week and you’re playing a team like the Raiders that always plays you tough, you have to bounce right back. You watch it, you learn from it and then you just go back to fundamentals and keep working.”
Mahomes is now 16-3 — an .842 win percentage — in games after a loss in his NFL career
OUT OF TIME: Las Vegas controlled the ball for 13 minutes, 5 seconds in the first quarter.
The Chiefs went three-and-out on their only possession but only trailed by one score after Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson pushed a 30-yard field goal wide right on their second drive.
Las Vegas scored touchdowns on the drive before and after the missed field goal, including Aidan O’Connell’s 18-yard touchdown pass to Jakobi Meyers on the game’s opening drive and Josh Jacobs’ 63-yard TD burst on the first drive of the second quarter.
Jacobs’ run was the longest play allowed by Kansas City’s defense all season and the longest run by 14 yards.
Only Joshua Kelley (49) and Breece Hall (43) have even topped 40 yards on a rush against the Chiefs through the first 10 games.
But Las Vegas managed only three points and 137 yards the rest of the way.
“We were just more detailed as a defense,” Jones said. “The first half, we made some MEs — mental errors — missed tackles, missed calls that let them have some big yardage.”
After that was cleaned up, the Raiders were toast and the Chiefs actually finished with more time of possession (30:45).
BUTKER REMAINS PERFECT: With a 32-yard field goal in the closing minutes and four more extra points, Harrison Butker remained unblemished on the season.
The Chiefs’ kicker, who somehow has never been selected to a Pro Bowl, improved to 20 for 20 on field-goal tries this season and has yet to miss on 28 point-after tries.
INJURY REPORT: The already banged-up Chiefs offense got dinged further Sunday at Las Vegas, but Reid said there was “nothing too serious.”
Kansas City played without a couple of wide receivers, Kadarius Toney and Mecole Hardman Jr., and now had two injured starting offensive linemen.
Left tackle Donovan Smith briefly left the game in the third quarter with a stinger, according to Reid, while right guard Trey Smith hurt his foot late in the game but never left the field.
Another Chiefs wide receiver, Skyy Moore (left knee), also picked up an injury.
“All of them should be OK,” Reid said.
UP NEXT: The Chiefs stay on the road for a Sunday Night Football showdown at Lambeau Field against Green Bay.
The battle with the resurgent Packers, who upset Detroit on the road on Thanksgiving Day and have won three of four, kicks off at 7:20 p.m. and can be seen on KSHB 41.
It is Kansas City’s first visit to Green Bay since 2015.
The Chiefs are 8-5-1 all-time against the Packers, including a loss in Super Bowl I, but haven’t won at Lambeau since 2003.
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