HOUSTON (AP) — After 22 years without a playoff victory, the Kansas City Chiefs were determined not to give up the lead this time.
The Chiefs had enough points to win after jumping ahead 7-0 in the first 11 seconds, and they used relentless pressure, five turnovers and a ball-control offense to dominate the Houston Texans 30-0 in the wild-card round of the NFL playoffs on Saturday.
They were especially cognizant of not letting up after blowing a 28-point lead in a loss to the Colts in their last playoff appearance in 2013.
“What happened to us a couple years ago, everybody remembers that even the coaches included, so our entire mentality is about finishing,” quarterback Alex Smith said. “The mentality doesn’t change.”
They finished off the Texans early, and they had the hometown fans booing by the second quarter. Texans quarterback Brian Hoyer had the worst game of his career with four interceptions and a fumble. Houston’s defense kept the Texans close in the first half, but J.J. Watt left with an injury in the third quarter, Jadeveon Clowney never even put on his jersey and the Chiefs were able to close the game out in the second half.