The scoreboard read 7-7 at halftime of Monday night's Kansas City Chiefs-Washington Commanders game, but the road team already lost. Dan Quinn's squad missed opportunities to take advantage of a wobbly Patrick Mahomes offense early, then got boat-raced in the second half, falling, 28-7.
"I thought heading into the game and early on, the energy, the juice and the speed, I saw and I felt it the minute we stepped onto the field," Quinn said after the game, via Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic. "That is honestly what we are looking for. Man, did we leave a lot of opportunities out there tonight. You cannot leave that many chances out there and expect to win, especially against this team."
Washington moved the ball well on the opening drive, only to see a Marcus Mariota screen pass to Deebo Samuel clang off the receiver's hands for a red zone interception. The defense forced Mahomes' interceptions on the ensuing two drives, but both ended in turnover on downs for the Commanders in Chiefs territory.
"That's the story of the game to me," Quinn said. "We've got to take advantage of our [opportunities] when we get them there."
With no Jayden Daniels (hamstring), the Commanders' offense struggled to move the ball in the second half, generating just four first downs. The seven points scored were the fewest under Quinn.
The Washington defense, which has been a sieve all season, made plays early, however, the lack of consistent pressure on Mahomes eventually broke them, leading to three consecutive Chiefs touchdown drives to open the second half that broke the game open.
Washington was outgained 432-260, allowing the Chiefs to go 2 of 2 on fourth downs, 4 of 4 in the red zone and 2 of 2 in goal-to-go situations. K.C. didn't have a three-and-out all night.
The blowout loss pushes Washington to 3-5, well behind the 6-2 Eagles in the division. The Commanders currently sit in 13th in the NFC.
Tight end Zach Ertz said Washington has to find consistency to stack wins.
"It's just too many highs and lows," he said. "Just haven't executed consistently enough in all three phases in a game. Play a half really well and then don't play the second half well. Play a game well in one phase, don't play well in another. I thought we had a really good week of practice, honestly, and I'm confident that if we can continue to practice like we do, that's going to turn. But the clock is ticking, obviously."
The biggest clock tick is Daniels' hamstring. Mariota wasn't the reason for the loss, but the backup quarterback is unable to overcome the pitfalls of a defense that struggles to get off the field for long stretches.
"We're in control of our destiny," linebacker Bobby Wagner said. "The plays [that] are happening are things that we can change and plays that we can make. Every game is big. You don't want to dig yourself in a deeper hole."
With games against the 5-2 Seahawks and 5-2 Lions on deck, that hole could be even deeper in a fortnight.
