Ain’t that a kick for the Chiefs?
KC gets just what it needs as Broncos, Bengals and Titans lose.
Star News Services The Associated Press
Joe Nedney (left) made a field goal that gave the 49ers a win, beat Denver and got the Chiefs in the playoffs.
DENVER | In the 1999 season, Joe Nedney kicked the Chiefs out of the playoffs with a field goal in overtime as the Raiders won at Arrowhead Stadium in the season finale.
On Sunday, he kicked the Chiefs into the playoffs when his 36-yard field goal with 1:56 to play in overtime gave the 49ers a 26-23 victory.
The Chiefs not only needed to win Sunday but also needed Tennessee, Cincinnati and Denver lose. And the Hail Mary playoff scenario actually happened.
“It’s terrible, it really is,” Broncos receiver Rod Smith said. “We’re better than that football team, by far. We didn’t play like it today. It ended our season. We ended our own season. It’s hard to take that.”
Denver blew a 13-0 lead in the second quarter and trailed 23-16 when Jay Cutler threw a 9-yard touchdown to Tony Scheffler that tied it with 90 seconds left in regulation. The Broncos, who would have made the playoffs with a tie, had two possessions in overtime but didn’t get past midfield.
San Francisco got the ball back with 4:38 left in overtime and drove 42 yards to the Denver 18, where Nedney kicked his fourth field goal.
“San Francisco?” Broncos receiver Brandon Marshall said. “Come on, San Francisco? It was a perfect setup for us.”
Actually, 49ers coach Mike Nolan had the perfect setup. He wants to know whether Chiefs coach Herm Edwards will get a bonus for reaching the playoffs.
If so, Nolan said, “I want half of it.”
Steelers 23, Bengals 17
CINCINNATI | Shayne Graham was wide right on a 39-yard field goal try with 8 seconds left in regulation that would have won it for the Bengals.
“I felt really good about it,” said Graham, who missed for the fifth time in 29 attempts this season. “I hit the ball, and there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that it was good. Then I saw the way it veered off to the right.”
On the third play in overtime, Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger threw a pass to Santonio Holmes, who eluded three defenders and dived the final few yards into the end zone, completing a 67-yard touchdown play.
“I never in a million years thought we’d be sitting at home during the playoffs, with the talent we have,” running back Rudi Johnson said.
The Bengals were first in line for a wild-card playoff berth with three weeks to play, but they finished 0-3.
Patriots 40, Titans 23
NASHVILLE, Tenn. | The Titans came up short in an attempt to become the first team to start 0-5 and reach the playoffs.
The youthful Titans had won six straight, covering up mistakes and inexperience with big plays. They got an 81-yard punt return by Adam “Pacman” Jones, and quarterback Vince Young ran 28 yards on third and 3 in the third quarter to pull within 26-23. But that was as close as they could get.
“I’m disappointed that we couldn’t finish up on a winning note, but I’m very, very optimistic about the future of this football team,” coach Jeff Fisher said.
Poster Comment:
Pittsburgh (who barely edged out the Chiefs last season to become the AFC's 6th seed) went on to win it all. Are the Chiefs this year's team of destiny?