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By Patrick Herb

It looked so promising. The Chiefs were clicking on all cylinders early, opening up a 17-0 lead in the first half, but the second half belonged to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles ran off 31 straight points to erase a 24-6 deficit and escape Arrowhead Stadium with a 37-31 victory.

Early on it looked like the Chiefs were poised to bounce back from last week’s loss at Denver. Six days after watching the Broncos jump out to a quick 17-0 lead at Denver, Kansas City was the team grabbing a 17-point lead before the visiting Eagles knew what hit them. The Chiefs would push their lead to 24-6 on a WR Dante Hall 96-yard kickoff return TD, but the rest was all Philadelphia.

QB Donovan McNabb found his rhythm, throwing for 369 yards and three TDs and the Eagles defense stifled the Chiefs offense. Philadelphia converted four KC turnovers into 24 points and outgained the Chiefs 258 to 147 yards in the second half.

“We could play with them for a long time, but not long enough to beat them,” a disappointed Chiefs head coach Dick Vermeil said Sunday. “We had a chance for a while but they just kept making more plays than we could make.” RB Priest Holmes got the Kansas City offense started with a workhorse-like effort on the Chiefs first drive. The franchise’s all-time leading rusher touched the ball on seven of the team’s nine plays and capped the march with a three-yard touchdown dive. With a 10–yard screen pass midway through the drive, Holmes set a new Chiefs record for career touches, passing RB Ed Podolak’s mark of 1,445 attempts from scrimmage.

Three minutes later Kansas City was driving again. Holmes carried the ball on six of the club’s seven plays, pounding out 29 tough yards, then QB Trent Green hit WR Eddie Kennison on a 49-yard strike up the sideline. That set up a 38-yard field goal from Lawrence Tynes and a 10-0 lead with 2:00 minutes left in the first quarter.

On the ensuing kickoff, CB Dewayne Washington stripped Eagles return man CB Roderick Hood and rookie LB Kris Griffin jumped on the fumble at the Philadelphia 27-yard line. Six plays later and Green was hooking up with Kennison again, this time for an eight-yard TD pass on a slant to the middle of the field. About one minute into the second quarter and the Chiefs were spotted a 17-0 lead.

Philadelphia finally cracked the scoreboard when CB Sheldon Brown jumped a route and intercepted Green, returning it 40 yards for the touchdown. The score remained at 17-6 when the Eagles extra point attempt failed.

Just when it looked like the Chiefs might be losing momentum, WR Dante Hall took the stage and did what he does best. Taking the ensuing kickoff, Hall burst through a seam up the left side then cut it back across the field for a 96-yard touchdown. Hall’s score gave KC a 24-6 lead and tied an NFL record with his sixth career kickoff return score.

That however, was the last time the Chiefs would hold the momentum.

Kansas City was looking to kill the clock and maybe add an insurance score just before halftime, but a costly turnover shifted the flow of the game. A fumble near midfield gave the Eagles the ball with 2:40 left before halftime. A McNabb-to-Owens seven-yard TD pass cashed in the turnover and gave Philadelphia life in a ball game in which it was dangerously close to being buried.

Philadelphia all but abandoned the run in the second half as RB Brian Westbrook was held to just 15 yards on nine carries. However, the McNabb to Owens combo was enough to get the job done. Coming out after intermission, K Todd France added a 44-yard field goal to cut the lead to 24-16. Next, passes of 30 and 28 yards to Owens (11 catches for 171 yards) set up a three-yard TD pass to TE Mike Bartrum. The Eagles tied the game at 24-24 after a successful two-point conversion.

Kansas City drove into Eagles territory on the ensuing possession, but the Eagles defense refused to break and forced one of Dustin Colquitt’s four punts. A nine-play, 71-yard drive by Philadelphia resulted in the go-ahead 37-yard field goal from France.

Trailing by three and still fighting, the Chiefs were dealt a devastating blow on the kickoff following France’s field goal. Hall, who set career highs with eight kickoff returns for 234 yards on the day, fumbled the return and handed the ball back to Philadelphia at the KC 25-yard line. McNabb would find TE L.J. Smith open in the end zone just moments later and the Eagles had opened a 34-24 lead midway through the fourth quarter.

“They have a lot of people who can catch the ball downfield and at least three or four times in the second half we hit [McNabb] and had him sacked,” Vermeil said. “He’s just not a normal guy standing back there. You’ve got to get your shoulder pads and hat on him or you don’t get him down. It shows we can play with a Super Bowl team for a long time but not long enough to beat them. They were a better football team today.” Philadelphia would add another field goal before the Chiefs offense showed signs of life again. Working against the soft Eagles coverage, Green sliced up the secondary and managed an eight-play, 75-yard scoring drive. A 38-yard pass to WR Marc Boerigter and a 15-yard catch-and-run touchdown from Hall were the highlights.

Hall’s touchdown catch brought the Chiefs within 37-31 with 1:24 remaining, but they had no remaining timeouts. Forced to attempt an onside kick, Tynes’ effort bounced right into the hands of Eagles RB Reno Mahe sealing the victory for the Eagles.

The Chiefs will regroup with a bye this week before defending the Arrowhead turf against the Washington Redskins on October 16th. Game time is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.