When Chiefs kicker Matthew Wright hit a game-winner as time expired on Sunday night against the Chargers, he was continuing what the Chiefs have been doing all season: Pulling out wins by the skin of their teeth. And the Chiefs have been doing it unlike any other team in NFL history.
Wright was the third different Chiefs kicker to make a game-winning field goal as time expired in the fourth quarter this season. Via OptaSTATS, not only has no other team in NFL history had three different kickers do that in one season, no other team has ever even had two different kickers do it in one season.
In Week Two, Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker hit a field goal as time expired to give the Chiefs a 26-25 win over the Bengals. In Week 12, Chiefs kicker Spencer Shrader hit a 31-yard field goal as time expired to give the Chiefs a 30-27 win over the Panthers. And then Wright got his game winner in Week 14 against the Chargers.
The Chiefs would prefer not to have to keep pulling out wins at the last second, but they keep finding ways to win, and at 12-1 they’re closing in on the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs and home-field advantage on the path to their third consecutive Super Bowl. And if a playoff game comes down to a last-second field goal, they may be feeling confident.
