San Diego Chargers safety Jahleel Addae burned Alex Smith and the Kansas City Chiefs, going 90 yards to the house on a pick-six.
The Kansas City Chiefs seemed in firm control of the San Diego Chargers in Week 17. With playoff implications in the matchup for the Chiefs, they were handling their business. Up 10 points in the third quarter, Alex Smith and the offense were driving again into San Diego territory. With just one play, though, Chargers safety Jahleel Addae changed everything.
As San Diego often does with the likes of Melvin Ingram and Joey Bosa off the edge, they got solid pressure on Smith. In doing so, they forced the game-managing quarterback into a bad throw. In doing so, he rushed the throw and allowed it to be tipped at the line by Ingram.
Off of the deflection, Addae came up from his safety position and made a savvy play to haul in the interception. However, the pick was just the beginning. Addae looked like a seasoned kick-returner as he allowed blocks to develop, cut around defenders, and changed fields to make his way down the field. Finally he got what he was looking for: nothing but daylight. Addae owned the Chiefs would-be tacklers to make his way through them all and go 90 yards on the pick-six:
Wowowowowowowowow.@Do_OrAddae37 picks Alex Smith.
— NFL (@NFL) January 1, 2017
And goes NINETY yards to the house. Amazing. #Chargers https://t.co/KkwbKKPtAK
You aren’t going to find many interception returns better than that. Addae took that back with near perfection in every regard of what you want out of any return.
Next: NFL Playoff Picture: Clinching Scenarios in Week 17
That score and the subsequent extra point pulled the Chargers within three points in the second half. Considering that the Chiefs are jockeying for the No. 2 seed and the AFC West title, San Diego would love to play spoiler. Plays like Addae’s go a long way in helping them do just that.
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