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The Kansas City Chiefs spent the better part of a decade treating the AFC playoff race as a formality. This year, it became a weekly math problem, and the numbers don't lie. Sunday night's 20-10 loss to the Houston Texans dropped Kansas City to 6-7, pushing the franchise into unfamiliar territory: 10th place in the AFC with four games remaining and below .500 in December for the first time since 2012. 

The defeat also ended the Chiefs' run of nine straight AFC West titles. PPatrick Mahomes didn't hide the reality of the moment.

"We know the (playoff) chances are getting lower and lower, but I know the guys on this team are going to give everything they have, every opportunity we get," Mahomes said. 

Kansas City's night unraveled in familiar fashion. Drives stalled, chances slipped away and the Chiefs' offense never found a rhythm. Mahomes finished with just 160 passing yards on 14-of-33 throwing with three picks -- a stat line shaped as much by his own miscues as by the help he never received. The Chiefs dropped six passes, including one from Travis Kelce in the fourth quarter that deflected into the arms of Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, and another from Rashee Rice on a must-have fourth-and-4.

The protection issues were just as damaging. Kansas City entered the game already patching together an offensive line with three starters unavailable, then lost tackle Wanya Morris on the first snap. On the other side of the ball, cornerback Trent McDuffie exited after suffering a knee injury following a 46-yard completion to Nico Collins. With the lineup thinning, Houston consistently collapsed the pocket, pressuring Mahomes on roughly half of his dropbacks and contributing to what became the lowest passer rating of his career.

"They are upset," Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. "They put it all out there and it didn't work out for them. The guys that had some mishaps, they [are] upset. These guys take responsibility for things."

Mahomes has never missed the NFL postseason.

"I know we're not winning games, but that mindset the guys have in this locker room, in the games that we're not winning, you can never question the fight of this team," Mahomes said. "Obviously, we're not executing at the right moments and we're not making those plays, but at the end of the day you can never question that, and I think you'll see that for these last four weeks."

Kansas City's path back to the playoffs is narrow, but not impossible. The Chiefs close the season with home games against AFC West rivals Denver Broncos (11-2) and Los Angeles Chargers (8-4), and road contests against struggling Tennessee Titans (2-11) and Las Vegas Raiders (2-11).

To keep their postseason chances alive, they will need to win out and hope the Wild Card teams ahead of them stumble.