Steelers vs. Chiefs 2017 live updates: Scores, highlights, and news from NFL playoffs
The Steelers will head to New England next weekend to play the Patriots in the AFC Championship.
Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Final score: Steelers 18, Chiefs 16
The Steelers started with bad field position, but Ben Roethlisberger found Antonio Brown for a huge third down and they were able to run out the clock for the win.
The Steelers will go to Foxborough next week to play the Patriots in the AFC Championship.
Fourth quarter (2:43): Steelers 18, Chiefs 16
The Chiefs put together a seven-minute drive and got in the red zone after the Steelers were flagged for a vicious helmet-to-helmet hit on Chris Conley (who re-entered the game one play later).
Alex Smith hooked up with fullback Anthony Sherman on fourth down and one play later, Spencer Ware punched it in for the touchdown. It looked like the Chiefs had tied up the game with a two-point conversion — but oh wait, we’ve got a flag.
Chiefs tackle Eric Fisher was called for a hold, and the second two-point conversion try, backed up 10 yards, was no good.
Fourth quarter (9:49): Steelers 18, Chiefs 10
Chris Boswell did it! He set an NFL record with six field goals in a playoff game.
At this rate, the Steelers will become the first team since the 2006 Colts to win a playoff game with all field goals.
Third quarter: Steelers 15, Chiefs 10
The Steelers finally punted for the first time all game, and the Chiefs got decent field position out of it. They got pushed back a little after Travis Kelce got hit with a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty, but Jeremy Maclin hauled in a great catch to get the yards back.
The Chiefs then got in on the field goal action with a 48-yarder by Cairo Santos.
Third quarter (10:11): Steelers 15, Chiefs 7
Le’Veon Bell is now up to 151 yards rushing, but the Steelers still can’t find the end zone.
You know what that means: more Chris Boswell, this time from 43 yards out. He tied an NFL record with his fifth field goal in a postseason game.
Halftime: Steelers 12, Chiefs 7
The Chiefs had a chance to add some points before the half, but Charcandrick West fumbled after a catch. Ben Roethlisberger found an open Antonio Brown, who came up 11 yards short of the end zone as time expired.
To recap Pittsburgh’s offense in the first half:
Second quarter (1:00): Steelers 12, Chiefs 7
Guess who? No, not Ben Roethlisberger. Not Antonio Brown. Not Le’Veon Bell. It’s the little-known fourth B: Chris Boswell!
Yeah, the Steelers kicked another field goal.
Second quarter (6:12): Steelers 9, Chiefs 7
Bud Dupree tipped an Alex Smith pass, which was then picked off by Ryan Shazier.
The KC defense thought, “hey we can do that too,” so they tipped a Ben Roethlisberger pass, which Eric Berry snagged in the end zone.
Second quarter (9:23): Steelers 9, Chiefs 7
The Steelers are all about those field goals so far. They almost had their first touchdown of the night, but Marcus Peters made a phenomenal play in the end zone on a pass to Antonio Brown.
Enter Chris Boswell, good from 36 yards.
First quarter: Chiefs 7, Steelers 6
The Steelers’ biggest play of the night so far happened when Ben Roethlisberger went deep to Antonio Brown, who was covered by Justin Houston for some unknown reason. Pittsburgh gained 52 yards on the play, but later stalled and settled for another field goal.
The Steelers have the ball back at the end of the quarter after forcing the Chiefs to punt.
First quarter (6:09): Chiefs 7, Steelers 3
For the first time all season, the Steelers’ defense gave up a touchdown on the first drive of the game. Alex Smith dinked and dunked his way down the field and connected with Albert Wilson for a 5-yard touchdown.
First quarter (9:42): Steelers 3, Chiefs 0
The Steelers got the ball first. Le’Veon Bell ran the ball three times for 25 yards and Jesse James caught two passes from Ben Roethlisberger. Chris Boswell got them on the scoreboard with a 22-yard field goal.
Before the game:
Kansas City hasn’t hosted a playoff game since 2011. That streak will end this Sunday.
The Pittsburgh Steelers come to town fresh off an easy 30-12 victory against the Dolphins in the Wild Card round, while the Chiefs enjoyed their bye.
Due to an incoming ice storm in the Kansas City area, the NFL had to reschedule the game from 1:05 p.m. ET to 8:20 p.m. ET.
That doesn’t exactly mean KC is healthy and rested. The Chiefs and Steelers both have some of their top players on the injury report this week.
Ben Roethlisberger was in a walking boot, Justin Houston remains questionable with a knee injury, Spencer Ware has sore ribs, Eric Berry injured his heel in Week 17, and Ladarius Green is still in concussion protocol. Aside from Green, all are expected to play but their effectiveness remains to be seen.
It’s a lot for Kansas City to worry about as it seek its first AFC Championship appearance since 1994, but it has more than enough playmakers on both sides of the ball to cover it. Tyreek Hill has emerged as an all-around star, but his return abilities on special teams have certainly set him apart. Travis Kelce is living up to his billing as “Baby Gronk,” tallying 85 catches this season for more than 1,100 yards with four touchdowns, but most importantly converting a team-high 55 first downs. And that’s to say nothing of Alex Smith, whose season rating of 91.2 is six points higher than his career average, or a KC defense that led the league with 33 takeaways.
Pittsburgh was one of the most sacked teams this season (38), meaning the Chiefs will look to exploit the Steelers offensive line and pressure Roethlisberger into passes the defense can jump on.
That’ll create plenty for the Steelers to plan for even with the uber-talented duo of Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell playing their best football all season.
When these two teams met back in Week 4 in Pittsburgh, Roethlisberger torched Kansas City’s defense for five touchdowns en route to a 43-14 victory. That shouldn’t be the case again, though the Steelers are riding an eight-game winning streak.
With so many explosive players, Kansas City and Pittsburgh should give NFL fans an entertaining Divisional round game this Sunday.
The game will kick off Sunday’s slate, starting at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC. Online streaming is available at NBC Sports.
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