Kansas City Chiefs 26, Minnesota Vikings 23: Minnesota loses heartbreaker at the gun

The Minnesota Vikings had an opportunity to win at Kansas City for the first time since 1974, but they just didn’t have enough to get it done.

Harrison Butker connected on a game-winning field goal from 44 yards out as time expired, giving the Kansas City Chiefs a 26-23 victory over the Vikings in Week 9 action at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Chiefs got on the board first in this one, as they concluded their second drive of the game with a 40-yard touchdown pass from Matt Moore to Tyreek Hill. Hill beat Trae Waynes and made an outstanding catch to get into the end zone, and the home team found themselves ahead, 7-0.

Minnesota answered on the next position, as Kirk Cousins found Olabisi Johnson for a 4-yard score to tie things at 7-7. Laquon Treadwell, of all people, played a big role in the drive, as he caught a pair of passes for 39 yards and converted a pair of first downs as the Vikings evened things up.

Kansas City took the lead back in the second quarter, as they put together a 17-play drive that got to the Minnesota 5, but the Vikings’ defense stiffened in the red zone and the Chiefs were forced to settle for a 24-yard Harrison Butker field goal to make the score 10-7.

Minnesota got back to even just before the half, as Dan Bailey connected on a 28-yard field goal to make the score 10-10.

The Vikings started the second half with a big break, as Mike Hughes forced a Mecole Hardman fumble on the opening kickoff and Holton Hill recovered at the Kansas City 38-yard line.

The Vikings took advantage, as Cousins found Ameer Abdullah for a 16-yard catch-and-run, and Minnesota took the lead for the first time on the afternoon. Dan Bailey pushed the extra point wide to the left, but the Vikings still had the lead at 16-10.

Minnesota would surrender the lead shortly thereafter. The Vikings downed a punt at the Kansas City 3-yard line, but the Chiefs had an answer, as Damien Williams took a handoff from Matt Moore and blasted 91 yards for a score, the longest run in the NFL this season. Butker connected on the extra point, and the Vikings found themselves trailing again, 17-16.

Kansas City added to the lead just before the end of the third quarter, as Butker connected from 45 to extend the Chiefs’ lead to 20-16.

The Vikings took the lead back early in the fourth quarter, as the Vikings put together an impressive drive with Cousins finding Kyle Rudolph for a 3-yard score. Dan Bailey connected on the extra point, and the Vikings found themselves up 23-20 with just under eleven minutes remaining in the game.

The Chiefs got the game back to even late in the fourth quarter, as Butker blasted one home from 54 yards out to tie the score, 23-23, with 2:30 remaining in the contest.

Minnesota had an awful three-and-out late and a shanked punt by Britton Colquitt gave the Chiefs the ball in great field position early. Stephen Weatherly got to Matt Moore and knocked the ball away for a fumble, but the Chiefs got themselves into position for Butker to attempt a 44-yard field goal for the win with three seconds remaining. He put the ball right between the uprights, and the Vikings’ four-game winning streak had come to an end.

Kirk Cousins didn’t have a great afternoon, though he did have three touchdown passes on the afternoon. He completed 19-of-38 passes for 220 yards, and just seemed to be off on a lot of his throws against a Chiefs’ defense that, for the most part, has been fairly bad this season. Laquon Treadwell actually wound up being Minnesota’s leading receiver, catching three passes for 58 yards. Dalvin Cook had 45 yards on four catches, C.J. Ham had 37 yards on a pair of receptions, and Irv Smith Jr. had 33 yards on four grabs. Stefon Diggs had just one catch on the afternoon for four yards.

Despite facing the 30th-ranked rush defense in the NFL, Dalvin Cook had an average day on the ground, picking up 71 yards on 21 carries.

The Vikings fall to 6-3 on the season, and next week will once again be on the road to take on the Dallas Cowboys. The Chiefs move to 6-3 on the season as well, and will be on the road against the Tennessee Titans next week.

The Vikings’ four-game winning streak is over, as they fall to the Kansas City Chiefs on a last-second field goal by a final score of 26-23. Thank you to everyone that got their coverage of this week’s game right here at The Daily Norseman!