Andy Reid Gets Brutally Honest on Costly Fourth-Down Call: 'Slapped Me in the Face'

K.C.'s fourth-and-1 decision gone wrong aided the Texans' victory on Sunday night.

The Chiefs' decision to go for it on fourth down on Sunday night did not age well. / Denny Medley-Imagn Images

The Chiefs saw their playoff hopes take a huge tumble on Sunday night when they lost 20–10 to the Texans at home, a drop-plagued contest that also saw them fail to convert on a crucial and mind-boggling late-game fourth-down attempt.

With the score tied early in the final frame, the Chiefs opted to go for it on a fourth-and-1 at their own 31-yard line. But, they didn't move the chains and thus turned the ball over on downs, setting the Texans up for what would become a touchdown shortly thereafter.

Speaking after the game, Reid took ownership of the decision and blamed it on himself. "I thought we could get it," he said. "In hindsight, it was wrong. We’ve been pretty good on fourth downs. I messed that one up."

The coach then elaborated further on Monday, speaking in a virtual press conference with reporters.

"I felt we were in a good position. I thought we had a good play. ... I would probably do that same thing again. But I also know when you don't get 'em, it can be a problem, and especially when they're in that field-goal range area," he said. "Very aware of that. But again, I thought the risk/reward was right for that time. It slapped me in the face, though, so it didn't go that way."

Andy Reid got candid on the Chiefs’ 4th and 1 call vs the Texans ⬇️

(via @Chiefs) pic.twitter.com/669FVexnAG

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Shortly after the unfortunate turnover on downs in question, the Chiefs did the very same thing on their ensuing possession with an incomplete pass to Rashee Rice. Then, with less than four minutes left in the game, tight end Travis Kelce bobbled what should've been a done-deal, second-down dart from Mahomes right into the arms of Texans' linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair. Houston would then use that turnover to extend their lead with a field goal.

"The obvious is we've had too many drops," Reid added in Monday's presser. "We've gotta take care of that. I'm not sure where these came from. We'd been catching the ball pretty good there until these last couple games. So we've gotta go back to that and make sure. These are great players that have had some drops, and a quarterback I know would like to have a couple of those throws back, but we've gotta start making those kinds of plays offensively."

Reid's read is correct. Now 6–7 on the season, the Chiefs have just a 13% chance of making the playoffs, according to the NFL's prediction model, and simply haven't been playing the brand of football we have come to expect from them. But it feels wrong and perhaps shortsighted to count K.C., fueled by Mahomes Magic and Tayvoodoo, out just yet, so we'll just have to see what Week 15 brings.

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