Trent McDuffie, Chiefs thwart Texans, move step closer to AFC’s No. 1 seed

Trent McDuffie played his first 47 NFL games without an interception. The third-year cornerback now has interceptions in consecutive games, including a key drive-stopper in the Chiefs’ 27-19 win over the Texans on Saturday.

“The play before, we kind of knew what they were going to do,” said McDuffie, who picked off C.J. Stroud in Kansas City territory late in the first half. “We knew they were going to try some inside-breaking routes. Shout out to the D-line; they made C.J. throw a bad ball and I was able to come up with the catch.”

That catch thwarted a promising drive for the Texans (9-6) that could’ve cost Kansas City the lead. Instead, Patrick Mahomes weaved the Chiefs into field-goal position for Harrison Butker, who drilled a 44-yarder to give Kansas City (14-1) an important 17-10 advantage at halftime.

“You talk about breaking the seal last week,” said McDuffie, who said he didn’t need the jumbotron like last week’s interception. “You get around defensive backs and they always talk about, ‘It comes in bunches.’ I’m just seeing that play out, being in the right place at the right time and making sure that I play on the ball when it comes to me. Just hoping we can continue this moving forward.”

The Chiefs move forward with eyes on Christmas Day. They have only three days of rest before visiting the Steelers on Wednesday. Unless the Patriots upset the Bills on Sunday, the Chiefs can lock up homefield advantage throughout the AFC postseason and, more importantly, the conference’s only first-round bye. That rest would be critical to the team’s two best players, Mahomes (ankle) and defensive tackle Chris Jones (calf). Head coach Andy Reid said after the game he didn’t know whether Jones would be available against Pittsburgh.

Houston had its share of injuries, too. The Texans understandably lost their emotional edge after wide receiver Tank Dell sustained a serious knee injury on a 30-yard touchdown reception early in the second half. Dell, who finished with six catches for 98 yards and a touchdown, was a spark for the Texans. The team was devastated after the injury, which will keep Dell in a Kansas City hospital.

The Texans, who also play on Christmas, also lost defensive back Jimmie Ward and guard Shaq Mason to injuries. Houston needs to regroup before hosting the Ravens at NRG Stadium. While the Texans already have locked up a second straight AFC South title, wins in the final two games could keep the Texans from having to travel to Buffalo in the first round.

Kansas City, meanwhile, has eight takeaways and seven sacks over its last two games. More importantly, the Chiefs’ offensive line has allowed just one sack in that stretch as Mahomes plays through a high-ankle sprain. On another positive note, wide receiver Hollywood Brown made his 2024 debut to bolster Mahomes’ receiving corps. Brown had five catches for 45 yards.

The Chiefs, who finished their regular-season schedule 8-0 at home, are 19-1 since losing a year ago this week on Christmas Day. They haven’t scored more than 30 points in any of those 20 games.

For more information on the Chiefs and Texans, visit the Kansas City and Houston team pages at ProFootballPost.com.