What else could we have expected in the final seconds of the Week 14 game?

When that field goal attempt bounced off the left upright and into the net, the Kansas City Chiefs did exactly what they had done all season for much of the Patrick Mahomes era: find a way to win . This time it was against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Doink for the division might be a memorable name for what happened — but when the season is over, it will be difficult to remember the many victories the Chiefs won those games with. There are currently 15 consecutive wins in one-point games. Already in 2024, five were decided by a last-second field goal.

Which Kansas City players stood out? The way the game ended, some of these players will be familiar.

winner

Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images

Cornerback Trent McDuffie: The All-Pro was all over the field Sunday night. In the first quarter, he picked off a deep pass, followed up with a drive-ending tackle, and finished the following drive with another batted pass. If the Chiefs defense holds up this coming postseason, it will be because McDuffie is out there delete plays.

Linebacker Nick Bolton: The leader of Kansas City’s defense increased his role as the unit’s enforcer. Bolton had some devastating hits – including a sack and a tackle for loss. One play was somewhat controversial: Bolton was warned for hitting Los Angeles wideout Quentin Johnston in the first quarter. Bolton isn’t the guy you want isolated in coverage, but when he attacks like he did on Sunday night, he’s the tone-setter the defense needs.

Wide receiver Xavier Worthy: He’s doing better, folks. The deep throws will come when Mahomes has more time to throw. But in the meantime, Worthy does a good job of attacking the football and helping move the chains. It feels like a very good sign for his development.

Defensive tackle Tershawn Wharton: The announcers didn’t want to give him too much credit for beating Justin Herbert, but we will. Wharton was the best version of himself in 2024. His motor, strength and speed make him a valuable part of the rotation. In that game, he finished with two sacks, two tackles-for-loss and three quarterback hits. It was a monster game for the Missouri S&T UDFA.

Placekicker Matthew Wright: Wright, who has now made eight for nine kicks since returning to the Chiefs, is the third Kansas City kicker to score a game-winning goal this season. Harrison Butker should be back soon, but we should still appreciate Wright. And with Butker back, general manager Brett Veach should keep him on speed dial in case he’s needed again.

loser

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Left tackle DJ Humphries: It wasn’t the glorious debut many of us were hoping for. The last, greatest hope on the left offensive side released a lot of pressure on his debut for the team. He and left guard Joe Thuney obviously still need to work on how they handle stunts and blitzes. Will Humphries’ late-game hamstring injury slow that development? We’ll keep an eye out for updates this week.

Defensive backs Chamarri Conner and Bryan Cook: Simply put, these two are coverage liabilities. Each of them is a good tackler and blitzer (Conner has a hit on Herbert and a tackle-for-loss), but opposing quarterbacks have had far too much success targeting them. Part of this is due to the loss of single reps. Part of this seems to be due to an allocation confusion on the backend. Could adding an old friend (like former Chiefs corner Steven Nelson) help solve these problems?

Tight end Baylor Cupp: Welcome to the NFL, Mr. Cupp. His professional debut included being able to fend off the first pass that came his way. He spent the rest of the evening helping tackles fend off a fierce edge rush. I’m sure he’ll get better from here.

Note: The use of the terms “winner” and “loser” is not intended to constitute an assessment of the talent or character of any of these players. It’s just an easy way to evaluate their performance in a single game. No disrespect intended.