Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs just always seem to find a way — and they did it again in their 19-17 win over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 14.

The Chiefs were sluggish on Sunday night. The offense generated 0.018 EPA per play, which ranks 14th among the 24 offenses that have played in Week 14. The defense allowed 0.103 EPA per play, a mark good for 13th.

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was under near-constant duress, too, facing pressure on 17 of his 47 dropbacks, according to PFF’s live grading. The Chiefs star finished 5-of-14 for 66 yards and an interception on those plays — but it ultimately didn’t matter.

With 4:35 remaining and trailing by a point, Mahomes led his team down the field and then delivered one of the plays of the game when he scrambled out of the pocket and sidestepped a would-be tackler to give him a chance to find Travis Kelce for a first down, giving the Chiefs a chance to wind the clock down to one second and set up a field goal.

It was then up to Matthew Wright to seal the win, which he did — with the help of the upright. 

And that’s just the Chiefs’ season in a nutshell.

PFF’s dedicated team of graders was hard at work, analyzing every player on every play in real time. The grades and data will be available after a thorough review tomorrow at 12 p.m. EST.

In the meantime, we’ve gathered some high-level data and snap counts from the game to give you an early look. Our expert graders have also nominated the standout player of the game, highlighting exceptional performance on the field.

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HIGHEST-GRADED PLAYERS

• TE Stone Smartt, Los Angeles Chargers (92.0)
• LB Leo Chenal, Kansas City Chiefs (87.3)
• QB Justin Herbert, Los Angeles Chargers (86.5)

Note: Follow along with PFF’s in-game grading as our analysts evaluate every player on every play in real time! Grades will then be relocked 90 minutes after the final whistle as our first-run analysis is reviewed.

Click here to see PFF’s initial grades from this game!

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert continued his fantastic first season under Jim Harbaugh, even though his team fell just short of victory. The veteran signal-caller finished 21-of-30 for 213 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions, recording two big-time throws and no turnover-worthy plays. Two of his incompletions were due to drops by receivers, and another pass was batted down at the line of scrimmage.

Herbert was particularly effective from a clean pocket, completing 19-of-25 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown when not under pressure, good for a 108.9 passer rating.

ADVANCED BOX SCORE