Even though they blew an 11-point fourth-quarter lead, the Kansas City Chiefs still had a golden opportunity to take a stranglehold on first place in the AFC West on Sunday. In fact, they probably should have broken the Denver Broncos' hearts after reaching second-and-goal from the four-yard line with a timeout in the closing moments.
Instead, they're left with regret while decrying the officiating the way many losing teams do.
Let's take it to that final sequence. For a moment, it seemed like the Chiefs really did it. When Patrick Mahomes fired a short pass to a wide-open Rashee Rice for a touchdown on third-and-goal with just four seconds on the clock, it looked like the Chiefs did exactly what they've done throughout the Mahomes era. They pulled
victory out of the jaws of defeat. There was one problem. Right tackle Jaylon Moore moved just before the snap and negated the winning touchdown with a false start. One play later, the Broncos would sack Mahomes on fourth down to salt away the epic 28-24 divisional win.
BRONCOS WIN pic.twitter.com/A4SWB4IO4L
— NFL (@NFL) November 2, 2026
Oof. What a brutal turn of events for Kansas City.
During his postgame press conference, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid cast doubt on there being a false start at all. He thought the Chiefs ran a clean play and had won the game, no questions asked. Because of course he did:
On the false start in the closing seconds of the game Andy Reid said he didn’t see it. “That’s one man’s opinion.”
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) November 2, 2026
Hmm. Does Reid's claim have real merit? Or is he, as mentioned, doing the typical complaining about a costly call from a loser coach in a tight game? Watch a replay of the false start, and it's obvious. As Travis Kelce goes in motion across the formation, Moore blatantly flinches.
It was a textbook false start that will almost always be called by NFL officials:
JAYLON MOORE WITH A COSTLY FALSE START THAT MADE IT 4TH AND GOAL FROM THE 2 TO THEN THE 7-YARD LINE
— ClutchWire (@ClutchWireHQ) November 2, 2026
CHIEFS FOLD IN THE 4TH QUARTER AGAIN pic.twitter.com/YFjULU0qVQ
With all due respect to Reid and everything he's accomplished, there is no universe where that shouldn't have been a false start. It's unfortunate it cost the Chiefs at the worst possible time, but there's a reason procedure penalties exist in pro football.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Andy Reid cast doubt on Chiefs’ brutal false start. The footage says otherwise
