The Chiefs wanted to start fast Saturday. They did just that and never took their foot off the gas.
It took the Chiefs just 11 seconds to get on the board in Saturday's AFC wild-card game at NRG Stadium and they rolled from there in a dominant 30-0 win over the Texans.
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The Chiefs, who have won 11 straight, will play at Denver next weekend if the Bengals beat the Steelers in Saturday's late game. A Steelers victory would send the Chiefs to New England.
Chiefs running back Knile Davis returned the opening kickoff of 106 yards for a touchdown. The Chiefs defense took over from there as Kansas City held a 13-0 halftime lead.
The return by Davis was the longest kickoff return in an AFC wild-card game, besting a 96-yard return by Jacksonville's Maurice Jones-Drew on Jan. 5, 2008. It was also the first kickoff return for a touchdown to begin the NFL playoffs.
Knile Davis starts the playoffs with a BANG!!! pic.twitter.com/oxiIekJXZX
— uSTADIUM (@uSTADIUM) January 9, 2016 "You never expect to start a game like that, but we feel like we can play all three phases of the game," Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith told ESPN after the game. "That really gave us a kick-start."
As expected, both defenses made things difficult for either offense to generate points. The teams traded interceptions in the first quarter with Chiefs safety Eric Berry and Texans linebacker Brian Cushing coming away with diving picks.
The Chiefs capitalized on another Texans turnover after defensive end Allen Bailey pushed Texans tackle Chris Clark back into Brian Hoyer to cause a fumble. Chiefs defensive tackle Dontari Poe fell on the ball at the Chiefs' 42. five plays later, the Chiefs took a 10-0 lead on a 49-yard Cairo Santos field goal. Another 49-yarder off the foot of Santos gave the Chiefs a 13-0 advantage with 7:04 remaining in the first half.
Hoyer had a rough go of it in the first half, completing 7 of 14 passes for only 61 yards and four turnovers in six possessions. The Chiefs had just 46 yards of total offense before Alfred Blue more than matched that total late in the first half with a 49-yard run to the Chiefs' 13-yard line. Blue finished with 99 rushing yards on 17 carries.
Hoyer was booed by the home crowd throughout. He was sacked three times and went 15 of 34 for 136 yards with four interceptions and a lost fumble. As Hoyer struggled, the Texans offense mustered just 226 yards of total offense. Texans receiver DeAndre Hopkins caught six passes for 69 yards.
The Texans tried to get creative inside the red zone in the first half, putting defensive end J.J. Watt at quarterback and defensive tackle Vince Wilfork at fullback, but the Wildcat run lost a yard. Hoyer was intercepted at the goal line by Chiefs linebacker Josh Mauga on the next play.
Both teams lost one of their best players on the same play in the second half.
Watt and Chiefs receiver Jeremy Maclin both went down in the third quarter with leg injuries.
Maclin's injury appeared to be more severe. After catching a 7-yard pass from Smith, Maclin's knee buckled as he was brought down by Cushing and Whitney Mercilus. Maclin, who missed the entire 2013 season with a torn ACL, was in tears on the sideline and the fear is that he suffered another ACL injury. If it is another ACL injury for Maclin, it'd be his third since 2009. Coach Andy Reid said after the game that Maclin had a sprained knee. He will have an MRI Sunday.
"He's a huge player for us," Smith said of Maclin. "Anytime a player like that goes down, it's hard. He's such a good leader for us."
Watt limped off the field after trying to rush Smith, but his right foot slipped on the NRG Stadium turf and he collapsed on all fours. Watt, who had already been nursing a groin injury, was then hit by Chiefs right tackle Eric Fisher. Watt walked off the field under his own power but was visibly upset as he went to the sideline. The Texans initially said Watt was questionable to return with a groin injury, but he did not return. One bright spot for the Chiefs was defensive end Mercilus, who had three sacks.
Without Watt, who led the NFL this season with 17 1/2 sacks, on the field, the Chiefs took a 20-0 lead with a 9-yard pass from Smith to Chris Conley. Kansas City increased its lead on a 5-yard Spencer Ware run early in the fourth quarter.
Smith finished with 190 yards and a touchdown in his fourth playoff start. Fortunately for the Chiefs, he'll get a fifth.