KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Detroit Lions couldn’t get out of their own way, and they certainly couldn’t get in the way of the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday night.
It was a recipe for disaster, as the Lions stayed close but couldn’t find the momentum-altering, second-half play that was required to win the football game in a 30-17 loss, ending a four-game winning streak.
Detroit (4-2) was playing with a severely hobbled secondary, and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes took full advantage. He was 22-for-30 passing for 257 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions as the Chiefs gashed Detroit on their scoring drives.
The Lions were hindered by several untimely penalties, from a nullified touchdown on Detroit’s opening drive, to a critical pass interference call on cornerback Rock Ya-Sin that led to a Chiefs touchdown before halftime, to a fourth-quarter roughing-the-passer call on Aidan Hutchinson that aided the Chiefs on a touchdown drive that would put Kansas City up by two scores after Lions tight end Sam LaPorta cut the deficit to 20-17.
The Chiefs (3-3), for their part, were flagged for one penalty the entire game — an offsides penalty on Detroit’s final drive — just one week after being flagged for 13 accepted penalties in a loss.
Entering Sunday’s game, the Lions had the fourth-highest pressure rate (41.6%) in the league while averaging the fourth-longest time to pressure (2.9 seconds), a testament to the coverage that Detroit was getting through the first five weeks. That’s a testament to strong coverage, which the Lions did not get at Arrowhead Stadium.
Without starting cornerbacks D.J. Reed and Terrion Arnold — and with the limited nature of safeties Brian Branch (ankle) and Kerby Joseph (knee), who were visibly fighting through the pain — the rush and coverage were divorced on Sunday night. It seemed like every time a Lions pass rusher got close to Mahomes, he was able to manufacture an explosive play by throwing to a wide-open receiver.
The Lions got to Mahomes twice, a strip-sack that was recovered by the Chiefs before Detroit forced a turnover on downs for its first stop of the game, and a third-down sack by Al-Quadin Muhammad that forced Kansas City to settle for a field goal to go up 30-17 with 2:26 remaining. By the latter, it was too little, too late.
Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs was limited to 65 yards on 17 carries (3.8 average). Jared Goff was 23-for-29 but struggled to move the ball in chunks, tallying just 203 passing yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. The Lions averaged 6.6 yards per passing attempt to the Chiefs’ 7.4.
Football players
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) is upended short of the end zone by Detroit Lions cornerback Rock Ya-Sin (23) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
Detroit was also without starting offensive tackle Taylor Decker for the second straight week, a circumstance that reared its head at the worst possible time. Facing a third-and-10 with 8:07 left in a 27-17 game, a blitzing Chiefs linebacker blew past Lions guard Tate Ratledge, whiffed on getting to Goff, but held him up just enough for Charles Omenihu to clean up the sack after beating Dan Skipper and force a punt, effectively ending the Lions’ comeback hopes.
Detroit marched down the field on a clock-bleeding opening drive, getting to fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line after 14 plays. With Montgomery in a wildcat formation, Goff went in motion, caught a bubble screen in the flat, and plowed his way into the end zone for a touchdown that was nullified by an illegal motion penalty on Detroit, since Goff wasn’t set when the ball was snapped.
Lions kicker Jake Bates gave Detroit the lead, capping the 15-play, nine-minute, 39-second drive with a 28-yard field goal to go up 3-0 with 5:21 left in the first quarter.
The Chiefs moved the ball quickly on their first possession, turning their eight-play opening series into six points. After picking up a number of big chunks to reach Detroit’s red zone, Kansas City gambled on fourth-and-goal from the 6-yard line, hitting paydirt with a touchdown pass to Xavier Worthy in the flat. Chiefs kicker Harrison Bucker missed the extra point, making it 6-3 Chiefs, with 1:11 to go in the first.
Photo gallery from Lions vs. Chiefs on Sunday Night Football
Jameson Williams regained Detroit’s lead with 12:49 remaining in the second quarter. Detroit put together a quick drive of its own, going 71 yards in six plays — thanks in part to a 26-yard reception by LaPorta and a 13-yard run by Montgomery — before Goff zipped a 22-yard touchdown pass to Williams for a 10-6 advantage.
With Kerby Joseph out of the game because of a knee injury, reserve safety Thomas Harper stepped up to make one of the biggest plays of the first half. With several defenders closing in on Mahomes, he threw a pass to Worthy downfield, where Harper made a great play to knock the pass away for a turnover on downs.
Key takeaways from Lions’ 30-17 loss to Chiefs
The Chiefs reciprocated the effort on the ensuing Lions possession, as St. Brown dropped a rare pass on fourth down to give Kansas City an opportunity to take the lead before half.
Kansas City benefitted from a critical pass-interference penalty on Ya-Sin on third-and-10, giving the Chiefs new life on their drive. After a 17-yard completion to Travis Kelce on the next play, Mahomes ran it in for a 1-yard score to go up, 13-10, with 37 seconds left in the first half.
The Chiefs added a touchdown out of the half, gashing the Lions with an eight-play, 81-yard drive on which all but one play went for 9-plus yards — the Chiefs only got to second down twice on the series — to take a 20-10 lead with 11:16 to go in the third quarter.
LaPorta cut the deficit to 20-17 with 14:14 left, but the Lions’ defense couldn’t get the critical stop it needed. Kansas City answered with a touchdown drive on its ensuing possession, taking a commanding 27-17 lead and getting a three-and-out on the next Lions possession.
Kansas City added a field goal with 2:29 remaining to build a 30-17 lead.