Chiefs clinch AFC West on dramatic, walk-off touchdown by Jerick McKinnon in overtime vs. Texans

The Kansas City Chiefs had a golden opportunity ahead of them on Sunday. With a win over the lowly, one-win Houston Texans, the Chiefs could clinch the AFC West for the seventh straight season. Kansas City eventually got there, but it was a much harder feat than anyone expected.

The Texans took the Chiefs to overtime, where Kansas City needed a walk-off touchdown from Jerick McKinnon to pick up the 30-24 win and clinch the division.

The Chiefs may have ended the contest in exciting fashion, but the team looked sluggish at the start of the game. The Chiefs got off to a slow offensive start, punting on their first two drives. On the Texans' third drive of the game, the team went on a six-minute, 11-play touchdown drive to take the lead. Patrick Mahomes was able to tie things up on the next drive, connecting with McKinnon on a 20-yard touchdown pass.

The Chiefs forced a punt on the Texans' next drive and it appeared things were turning around for Kansas City. But on the next offensive play, Isiah Pacheco fumbled. The Texans recovered and scored two plays later to take a 14-7 lead. Mahomes led the Chiefs to another score before halftime, but Harrison Butker missed the extra point. The Chiefs trailed 14-13 at half.

Chiefs force overtime after rough first half against Texans

Kansas City came out in the third quarter looking like it found the missing piece at halftime. Mahomes led a 10-play drive that stalled out at the 8-yard line. Butker connected on a field goal, putting the team up 16-14. After forcing another Texans' punt, the Chiefs again looked poised to break things open.

Once again, those hopes were dashed by a fumble. This time, JuJu Smith-Schuster was the culprit. Mahomes hit Smith-Schuster on a 6-yard pass at the Texans' 42-yard line. Smith-Schuster fumbled the ball and it was recovered by the Texans. Houston then went on a seven-play scoring drive to go up 21-16.

Mahomes refused to let fumbles put the Chiefs away. He answered back on the next drive, running in a touchdown to cap off a nine-play drive. The Chiefs were successful on the two-point conversion, going up 24-21.

With the game on the line, Houston ate up nearly seven minutes on a 15-play drive. The team managed to get into field-goal range at the end of the drive, and hit a game-tying field goal with five minutes to play.

Mahomes tried to muster a final game-winning drive to end the fourth, but Butker missed a 51-yard field goal, sending the game into overtime.

The Chiefs' offense continued to struggle on the first drive in overtime. The team punted after gaining 36 yards on seven plays. A score by the Texans would end the game.

On Houston's first offensive play in overtime, Davis Mills fumbled while scrambling. The Chiefs recovered the ball on the 26-yard line. Needing only a field goal to win, the Chiefs opted to run the ball to give Butker a chip shot. On the first play, McKinnon broke through the Texans' defense, turning on the jets to score a 26-yard touchdown and give the Chiefs the win.

Chiefs avoid loss, which could have led to big changes in AFC playoff race

The win helps keep the Chiefs in the running for the No. 1 playoff seed in the AFC and moves the team to 11-3, the same record as the Buffalo Bills. Buffalo defeated Kansas City in Week 6 and holds the tiebreaker, so the Chiefs would need the Bills to drop a game in order for Kansas City to secure home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The win also ensures the Chiefs will retain at least a one-game lead over the Cincinnati Bengals for the No. 2 seed in the AFC. Had Kansas City lost, it would have risked losing position for the 2 seed to Cincinnati, which holds the tiebreaker over the Chiefs after a win over Kansas City in Week 13.

Kansas City remains in line for a first-round bye thanks to McKinnon's overtime heroics. While the team struggled to beat the Texans, Mahomes still put up solid numbers, passing for 336 yards and two touchdowns. Mahomes also ran for a score, keeping him in the MVP conversation for another week.

Mahomes' biggest competition for the award, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, threw for 315 yards and two interceptions and ran for 61 yards and three touchdowns in a 25-20 win over the Bears in Week 15.