Final score: Chiefs stave off Bucs’ comeback, win 27-24 in Tampa

The Kansas City Chiefs were clinging to a 27-24 lead, holding the ball on third-and-7 at midfield with less than 90 seconds left in the game. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had no timeouts.

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes shifted to his left, stepping up in the pocket to find wide receiver Tyreek Hill for a game-ending first down. It was a fitting end to a game that saw Mahomes throw for 462 yards and three touchdowns — all of the scores to Hill, who had a career-high 269 yards on the day.

Quarterback Tom Brady could only watch from the sideline as the Chiefs improved to 10-1 and the Buccaneers dropped to 7-5.

The Chiefs jumped out to a 17-0 lead thanks to the best first-quarter effort of Hill’s career. Hill ripped off seven catches for 203 yards in that period alone — including 75-yard and 44-yard touchdown passes.

The Buccaneers — blanked in the first quarter — found the scoreboard first in the second quarter. After quarterback Tom Brady got the Buccaneers into the red zone with a 29-yard pass to Rob Gronkowski, he hit running back Ronald Jones for 29 yards and a score on the next play.

The Chiefs led 20-7 at halftime.

Midway through the third quarter, Hill caught a 20-yard touchdown pass to extend the Chiefs’ lead to 27-10. Interceptions by Chiefs defensive backs Bashaud Breeland and Tyrann Mathieu helped hold the Buccaneers to just three points in the third quarter.

Brady and the Buccaneers kept hope alive in the fourth, when Tampa Bay continued to push for a comeback on a fourth-and-3 at the Kansas City 31. Brady floated a pass down the right sideline and into the hands of wide receiver Mike Evans for a touchdown, cutting the Chiefs’ lead to 27-17.

Two holding penalties cost the Chiefs points on the next drive — and they punted the ball back to the Buccaneers — but the penalties continued. Referees called defensive end Frank Clark for two roughing-the-passer penalties, which aided Tampa Bay in pushing the ball down the field in less than three minutes.

The Buccaneers narrowed the score to 27-24 on a 7-yard pass from Brady to Evans, but the Chiefs were able to run out the clock and secure the victory.

Mahomes had 359 passing yards in the first half alone — a career-high through the first two quarters and the most by a quarterback since 1991. Tight end Travis Kelce finished with eight catches for 82 yards.

In his return to the lineup, Alex Okafor split a sack with fellow defensive end Mike Danna. Chiefs defenders combined for eight hits on Brady.

Injuries

• Linebacker Dorian O’Daniel left the game midway through the first quarter due to an ankle injury.

Special teams

• Harrison Butker was a perfect 2 for 2 (19, 29) on field goals and 3 for 3 in extra points.

Rapid reaction

• The game’s rapid reaction will be posted to our homepage shortly.

Statistics