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Denver
When the Kansas City Chiefs took over the ball with three minutes remaining in regulation Sunday night, former University of Utah quarterback Alex Smith looked beaten and defeated.
And then things got worse, with Smith being sacked for a sixth time — and having passed for only 100 yards, while his offense produced only seven points of its own.
None of those numbers suggested what was to come for Smith and the Chiefs, especially not the final score at Sports Authority Field: Kansas City 30, Denver 27.
Smith passed for 120 yards on the Chiefs' last three possessions, as his offense delivered a touchdown and two-point conversion in regulation and two field goals in overtime. Cairo Santos banked in the game-winner off the left upright from 34 yards as time expired in OT. The kick gave Smith a victory in his first NFL meeting with former Ute running back Devontae Booker, who arrived on campus 10 years after Smith departed.
Smith finished 26 of 44 for 220 yards; Booker ran for 79 yards on a season-high 24 carries.
Booker made a big play of his own in overtime, a 22-yard reception that led to a Denver field goal. But the Chiefs (8-3) responded with two drives for field goals, while Denver's Brandon McManus missed a 62-yard attempt in between.
So this became a breakthrough win for Smith over the NFL's defending champions and a memorable moment in his 12-year career, considering everything he had to do just to extend the game beyond 60 minutes.
The Chiefs had forced overtime when Smith hit Tyreek Hill for a 3-yard touchdown, followed by his two-point conversion pass to Demetrius Harris with 12 seconds remaining.
Kansas City coach Andy Reid said in the postgame news conference that Smith has not performed as well lately as he did before missing a game with a concussion last month, but "he just keeps battling and battling and battling."
Smith attributed his troubles through three-plus quarters to simply facing another great defense. Beating the Broncos required a 75-minute effort, that's for sure.
NBC moved the scheduled afternoon game to "Sunday Night Football," showcasing two good AFC teams — rather than going with New England and the struggling New York Jets as planned. Wouldn't you know, the Pats and Jets delivered a competitive game in the afternoon, with Tom Brady leading a fourth-quarter comeback for his 200th career win.
And then the Broncos and Chiefs made it look like nobody would ever score in this game — hardly suggesting what was to come in the fourth quarter and overtime.
The first significant play involving a former collegian came midway through the second quarter when ex-BYU defensive back Daniel Sorensen of Kansas City tackled punt returner Jordan Norwood at the Denver 5-yard line.
Indirectly, Sorensen became responsible for nine points. That's because Justin Houston forced Denver quarterback Trevor Siemian to fumble, with a Broncos lineman recovering the ball in the end zone for a safety.
And then Hill returned the free kick 86 yards for a touchdown.
The Broncos responded with a field goal on their next possession, with Booker's 7-yard run on a third-and-1 play launching the drive. Booker had been stopped in two similar situations earlier in the game, but he finally displayed his Utah knack for converting short-yardage plays by taking a pitch around the left side.
In the third quarter, Booker got the Broncos going with a 13-yard run to the right, leading to a go-ahead touchdown.
The Chiefs responded with a touchdown drive to take a 16-10 lead. Smith did his best work of the night during that drive, with a 16-yard pass to Travis Kelce, an 8-yard toss to Kelce on third and 7 and an 18-yard pass to running back Spencer Ware.
Kansas City's lead was temporary. Siemian burned the Chiefs with touchdown passes of 35 yards to Emmanuel Sanders and 76 yards to Bennie Fowler, giving Denver a 24-16 lead with 3:00 remaining.
Smith needed nearly all of that time to lead the Chiefs down the field and tie the game. He extended the drive with an 11-yard pass to Hill on a fourth-and 10 play from the Denver 14. That was one of his eight completions for 67 yards during the drive.
The Chiefs' victory was vital, because Oakland rallied to beat Carolina earlier Sunday as the Raiders (9-2) maintained their lead in the AFC West and Denver (7-4) fell to third place in the division.
Twitter: @tribkurt