The Kansas City Chiefs came a finger-tip away from suffering their first loss of the season on Sunday against the Denver Broncos. 

Chiefs linebacker Leo Chenal blocked what would have been a game-winning field goal for the Broncos as time expired in the fourth quarter, preserving Kansas City's 16-14 win and moving the franchise's record to 9-0 on the season.

If Denver had made that field goal to beat the Chiefs, the story of the game would've been a missed touchdown throw in the fourth quarter from Patrick Mahomes to Travis Kelce that would've forced the Broncos to play for a touchdown on their final possession instead of a field goal. 

With six minutes remaining in the game, and the Chiefs trailing 14-13, Mahomes overthrew Kelce in the back of the end zone on third down, forcing Kansas City to settle for a field goal. 

A touchdown in that situation would have pushed the Chiefs' lead to 20-14 (or 19-14 or 21-14 depending on a potential two point conversion…either way, the Broncos would've needed a touchdown instead of a field goal at the end of the game). 

The incomplete pass on third down looked like a badly missed throw by Mahomes. But plays in the NFL aren't always what they appear. 

That's a throw that Mahomes will tell you he has to make. But there was a reason why the throw was off. And it was actually because of some poor execution by a Broncos defender. 

After the game, Mahomes explained that Denver linebacker Justin Strnad was supposed to get more depth on the play, which would have put him deeper in the throwing lane. Mahomes saw the coverage and expected Strnad to sink a bit deeper, which is likely how that defensive look was supposed to be executed. Instead, Strnad stayed with Chiefs tight end Noah Gray, who was already covered by safety Brandon Jones.

"It's a little bit missed throws and a little bit me not seeing the coverage exactly the way I should," said Mahomes after the game. "I thought on the one to Trav, the linebacker probably should've got a little more depth. And so I threw it a little higher than I wanted to even though he didn't get depth. If I can just fire it in there and get him a touchdown there…I've made those throws before it's just about going back and executing and making them next week or whenever it is this season." 

You can see in the photos below that Strnad is somewhat in the throwing lane, but instead of dropping deeper into the end zone, he's close to the goal line. From Mahomes' vantage point, and based on what he's seen during his time as an NFL quarterback, he expected Strnad to be closer to Kelce. 

Here's the play in real time, which gives you an idea of how quickly Mahomes has to process where Strnad is on the field in relation to Kelce. 

If Strnad plays that correctly, he would've been able to pick off a lower throw from Mahomes. And if Mahomes makes that same throw but Strnad plays it correctly, the incompletion doesn't look nearly as bad, because it would have been clear that Mahomes threw it high due to the positioning of the defender.

Missed throws aren't always as bad as they look. Mahomes needs to make that play, but it wasn't simply an awful throw, as it appeared while watching the game live. Instead, it was a case of poor execution by the Broncos somehow working out in their favor.

That's the human element of the game that we often forget exists. 

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