The Kansas City Chiefs had an 11-point lead in the fourth quarter against the Denver Broncos, but still left the field with another loss. The defeat was especially frustrating for Travis Kelce, who has also been dealing with his own mistakes during Kansas City’s recent slide. Speaking on the latest episode of the New Heights podcast, the veteran tight end admitted the team had plenty to correct after falling 28-24.

“It wasn’t our best performance, but we fought through some adversity there throughout the game,” Kelce said. “Obviously wish we would’ve finished it better.”

He also tried to take something positive from the performance, pointing to the fight Kansas City put up before Denver made its comeback. But the tight end did not shy away from the problems that cost the Chiefs, including his own mistakes.

“The little things, the mistakes, and it starts with the person that you’re looking at in the mirror,” Kelce said after the game. “I’m one of them. I’ve been frustrated with myself on how long I’ve been in the league and the procedural stuff that’s happened for the past three games really. Really since the bye, and it’s frustrating.”

Kelce’s frustration followed a false-start penalty against him during the first quarter. It was his third consecutive game with a procedural infraction, something he acknowledged had become difficult to accept after spending so many years in the league.

“I gotta be better for my teammates and that sets the tone for a lot of people in this room. Everybody’s just gotta up the ante from that,” he added.

The Chiefs had plenty of reasons to be frustrated beyond Kelce’s penalty. Kansas City was flagged 11 times for 105 yards against Denver, while the Broncos committed only six penalties for 45 yards.

A false start against right tackle Jaylon Moore wiped out Patrick Mahomes‘ apparent go-ahead touchdown pass to Rashee Rice in the final seconds. The Chiefs were pushed back to the six-yard line, and Mahomes was sacked on the final play.

Kelce finished with five catches for 67 yards on seven targets, but Kansas City’s collapse was not down to one player. The defense allowed Denver to score 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. After Harrison Butker missed a 54-yard field goal, rookie Jonah Coleman scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:56 remaining.

The loss dropped Kansas City to 5-2 and moved Denver to 6-2, giving the Broncos the lead in the AFC West. It also marked the Chiefs’ second straight defeat after their 20-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 7. Kelce had already spoken about the need to improve after that game, and the defeat in Denver made the team’s discipline issues harder to ignore.

Kansas City now has a chance to respond at home against the New York Jets on November 8. For Kelce, that starts with cleaning up the procedural mistakes he has made in recent weeks and setting a better example for his teammates.

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