Getty Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Richie James.
The golden rule for punt returners of all ages is to never field a punt inside your own end zone. Yet Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Richie James tried to defend his decision to break that golden rule during Kansas City’s 25-17 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on New Year’s Eve.
“I told myself if we called that return i was gone field it regardless,” James wrote on X, formerly Twitter, on January 1. “He didnt give me the kick i wanted and i was still trying to be aggressive. At the end of it you make a decision and live with it.”
Late in the third quarter of the Chiefs-Bengals game, Cincinnati punted the ball from half field. James had to backtrack to field the punt and had his feet in the end zone once the ball reached his hands. From there he maneuvered upfield and went out of bounds at Kansas City’s 9 yard line.
I don’t remember the last time I saw a player field a punt out of his end zone.
Richie James just said, “screw it,” and did.
Instead of allowing the ball to hit the ground in the end zone, which would have resulted in a touchback, James’ aggressive approach lost the Chiefs 16 yards.
In the end, James’s risky decision didn’t change the outcome of the game. But aggressive decisions such as that one can be costly, which is why James should never do it again.
Twitter/X Reacts to Richie James’ Post
Users on Twitter/X reacted to James’s explanation for fielding the punt inside his own end zone.
“No, at the end of it you learn from your mistake and never again return a punt from your end zone,” one user wrote. “It’s not about You making a play, it’s about putting the Team in the best possible position to be successful. Hopefully your coaches told you this and did not simply say nice try.”
“Too much pride to admit when you’re wrong. You fielded a punt in the end zone and made the offense start from the 9 instead of the 25 lol,” another user wrote.
“I admire your ambition. Statistically, touchbacks are the better option than running out of the end zone, but it’s fun to gamble every so often,” another user wrote. “Great playing yesterday and GO CHIEFS!”
“We all learn from what we do. The great things and the not so great. It’s life. We are the fans,” another user wrote. “At the end of the day, keep grinding and be great!”
Chiefs Clinch 8th Straight AFC West Title
The win over the Bengals in Week 17 clinches Kansas City’s 8th straight AFC West title while also knocking Cincinnati out of playoff contention.
In a game in which the Bengals dominated the time of possession in the first half, Kansas City’s defense shut out Cincy in the second half. In the end, the Chiefs’ defense allowed 263 yards of total offense, sacked Bengals QB Jake Browning 6 times — 3 of which were on Cincy’s final offensive drive of the game — and allowed 3.7 yards per play, per ESPN.
Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton was the team’s leading tackler (13), and defensive end George Karlaftis led the team in sacks (1.5) and also had 5 tackles and 3 QB hits.
As for Kansas City’s offense, they did just enough to win. QB Patrick Mahomes completed 21-of-29 pass attempts for 245 yards, 1 touchdown, and also lost a fumble. The Chiefs’ leading receiver was rookie Rashee Rice, who caught 5-of-6 targets for a career-high 127 yards. Running back Isiah Pacheco was also dominant on the ground, carrying the ball 18 times for a career-high 130 yards.
Despite strong performances by Pacheco and Rice, the player of the game was kicker Harrison Butker. He made all 6 of his field goal attempts and was the only player on either team to score points in the second half.
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