Chiefs went from 17-game win streak to 0-5 in close games. What happened?

The Kansas City Chiefs are scoring more points than at this point last season, allowing fewer, and have improved their turnover margin.

Those are usually ingredients for success but that's not the case for the three-time defending AFC champions, who have four fewer wins compared to this point last season and are currently outside of playoff position.

How has that happened?

It's as simple as looking at how they've fared in close games. Kansas City is 0-5 in games decided by eight points or fewer after coming into the season on an NFL-record 17-game winning streak in those situations.

Nothing illustrates the difference more than comparing the first game against Denver in each of the last two seasons. The Chiefs escaped at home with a 16-14 win in Week 10 last season when Wil Lutz's last-second 35-yard field goal was blocked. Lutz hit a kick from the same distance at home on Sunday for a 22-19 win and a 4 1/2-game advantage in the AFC West over Kansas City.

The Chiefs went 11-0 in one-posseession games on the way to a 15-2 record last season, also winning nail-biters thanks to a botched snap by the Raiders, walk-off field goals to beat Carolina and the Chargers, an overtime win over Tampa Bay, a key pass interference call against Cincinnati and a toe on the end line that prevented a possible tying touchdown by Baltimore.

The Broncos have been on the opposite side of the equation, going 7-2 in games decided by eight points or fewer this season with six of those close wins coming during their current eight-game winning streak that has them at the top of the AFC standings with a 9-2 record. Denver made the playoffs last season despite a 1-6 record in one-possession games.

The Broncos aren't alone in having success in close games with two other surprising first-place teams also doing it. AFC East-leading New England (9-2) is 5-2 in one-possession games, while the NFC North-leading Chicago Bears (7-3) are 5-1.

Chicago has been outscored by six points and is the fifth team in the Super Bowl era to start a season 7-3 or better while being outscored with the others being Minnesota in 2022, Cleveland in 2020, and Denver in 1979 and 1992. Only the Browns won a playoff game, beating Pittsburgh in a wild-card game.

From the record-tying five walk-off field goals, several missed kicks and the most long kick returns in any week in a decade, special teams played a major role in Week 11.

Carolina, Chicago, Denver, Houston, and Miami all won on field goals on the final play on Sunday, marking just the second time in NFL history there were five walk-off field goals on a single day with it also happening on Nov. 12, 2023.

It wasn't all positive, as Jason Myers missed a potential game-winning 61-yard field goal on the final play of Seattle's 21-19 loss to the Rams and there were eight missed extra points for the most in any week since there were nine in Week 10 of the 2022 season.

Both San Francisco's Eddy Pineiro and Green Bay's Lucas Havrisik missed two PATs, although both of those teams ended up winning.

Kickoff returns also played a big part in the results Sunday with the new kickoff rule contributing to seven returns of at least 40 yards, tied for the most in any week since there were nine in Week 13 of the 2015 season.

Some of those returns played big roles with perhaps none as big as Devin Duvernay's 56-yard return for Chicago after Minnesota had taken the lead with 50 seconds left. The Bears ran the ball three times and beat the Vikings 19-17 on Cairo Santos' 48-yard kick on the final play.

Skyy Moore had the longest return of the day with his 98-yarder on the opening kick setting up a 1-yard TD drive that set the tone for San Francisco in a 41-22 win over Arizona.

Buffalo had four returns of at least 40 yards — including three by Ray Davis — setting up two scores in a 44-32 win against Tampa Bay.

Dan Campbell and the Detroit Lions kept trying fourth downs and failing.

The Lions went 0 for 5 on fourth downs in a 16-9 loss to Philadelphia with all of the attempts coming before the start of the fourth quarter. No other team had been stopped on five fourth-down tries before the start of the fourth quarter in any game as far as records at Sportradar go back to 1991.

Detroit didn't attempt a fourth down in the fourth quarter and became the third team since 1991 to go 0 for 5 or worse on fourth-down tries in a game. New England did it on Oct. 8, 1995, against Denver, and Campbell's Lions went 0 for 6 against New England on Oct. 9, 2022.

The aggressiveness cost the Lions a chance at two possible field goals, as well as field position. But Detroit has had great success on fourth downs overall under Campbell with a league-high 97 conversions since he was hired in 2021 with a 55.7% conversion rate even after the 0-fer on Sunday.

The most debated fourth-down decision might have come in Miami's 16-13 win over Washington in Madrid. With the game tied with 1:44 to play, Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel opted to go for it on fourth down from the 1 when a field goal would have given his team the lead.

Only one other team since 2000, had attempted a fourth down from the 1 in the final 2 minutes of a tied game with Cincinnati doing it in Week 17 of the 2021 season against Kansas City. The Chiefs committed a penalty on the play and the Bengals ran out the clock before kicking a winning field goal.

The situation didn't work out as well for Miami as Ollie Gordon was hit for a 2-yard loss, giving Washington the opportunity to drive for a winning field goal.

But part of the strategy behind the decision was knowing that the Commanders would have to start the drive near their own goal line with no timeouts. That proved important as Washington only drove as far as the Miami 38 and Matt Gay missed a 56-yard field goal that might very well have been a shorter attempt if the Dolphins had kicked their own field goal and given the Commanders the ball on a kickoff.

Miami ended up winning in overtime.

Two of the game's biggest stars delivered some signature performances on Sunday.

Buffalo's Josh Allen threw three touchdown passes and ran for three more TDs, duplicating a feat he had done just last season in Week 14 against the Los Angeles Rams.

But it's a truly rare accomplishment with only other player in NFL history pulling it off more than 70 years ago. Hall of Famer Otto Graham has the only other game with three TD passes and three TD runs, doing it in Cleveland's 1954 NFL title game win over Detroit.

Myles Garrett pulled off an impressive feat of his own that was only slightly less rare. Garrett had four sacks in Cleveland's loss to Baltimore, after getting five in a game last month against New England. Garrett also had a 4 1/2-sack game against Chicago in 2021, becoming the fifth player with at least three four-sack games since sacks became official in 1982.

Derrick Thomas and Leslie O'Neal each did it four times, while Reggie White and Chandler Jones did it three apiece.

Garrett's 15 sacks are tied for the second most through 10 games, trailing only Mark Gastineau's 17 1/2 in 1984. He needs eight in the final seven games to break the single-season record of 22 1/2 held by Michael Strahan and T.J. Watt.

Inside the Numbers dives into NFL statistics, streaks and trends each week. For more Inside the Numbers, head here.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett (95) sacks Baltimore Ravens' Lamar Jackson (8) in the first half of an NFL football game in Cleveland, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/David Richard)

Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Orchard Park, N.Y. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Chicago Bears place kicker Cairo Santos (8) celebrates after kicking the game-winning field goal against the Minnesota Vikings in an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)

Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) celebrates making a catch for a first down as Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson (35) and safety Bryan Cook (6) watch during the second half an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) reacts after being sacked during the second half an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump was set to address the nation Wednesday night and offer an update on the war in Iran, his first prime-time speech since launching strikes alongside Israel more than a month ago.

The speech will offer Trump a wide audience to articulate clear objectives for the war that could attempt to reconcile weeks of changing goals and often contradictory messages about whether he’s winding down or ready to escalate military operations — even as Iran kept up its attacks on Israel and Persian Gulf neighbors and airstrikes pounded Tehran.

It comes amid rising oil prices, volatile financial markets and polling showing many Americans feel the U.S. military has gone too far in Iran — even as more American troops move into the region for a possible ground offensive. Trump opted not to deliver such an address closer to when the U.S. and Israel first launched attacks, and questions now remain about whether it is now too late for what he says to break through.

A White House official, who was not authorized to speak publicly ahead of the address and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the president will talk about U.S. progress on achieving his goals in Iran and will reiterate his estimated timeline for concluding operations within two to three weeks.

The president, in comments during a Easter lunch on Wednesday afternoon, said of Iran: “We could just take their oil. But you know, I’m not sure that the people in our country have the patience to do that, which is unfortunate.”

“Yeah, they want to see it end. If we stayed there, I prefer just to take the oil,” Trump said. “We could do it so easily. I would prefer that. But people in the country sort of say: ‘Just win. You’re winning so big. Just win. Come home.’ And I’m OK with that, too, because we have a lot of oil between Venezuela and our oil.”

The media was not permitted to watch the president’s remarks at the lunch, but the White House uploaded video of the speech online before taking it down. The White House did not return requests for comment from The Associated Press on the video and why it was taken down.

In a social media post earlier Wednesday, Trump maintained a belligerent tone, demanding that Iran stop blocking the Strait of Hormuz — the waterway vital to global oil supplies — or the U.S. would bomb the Islamic Republic “back to the Stone Ages.” The president has also said the U.S. “will not have anything to do with” ensuring the security of ships passing through Hormuz, an apparent backtrack from a previous threat to attack Iran’s power grid if it didn’t open the strait by April 6.

In the same Easter lunch, the president reiterated some of his complaints about NATO allies for their reluctance to get involved in securing the Strait of Hormuz while suggesting that China, Japan and South Korea could also step up to reopen the waterway.

“Let South Korea, you know, we only have 45,000 soldiers in harm’s way over there, right next to a nuclear force -- let South Korea do it,” Trump said of efforts to reopen the strait. “Let Japan do it. They get 90% of their oil from the strait. Let China do it.”

In another morning social media post, Trump wrote that “Iran’s New Regime President” wanted a ceasefire. It wasn’t clear to whom the U.S. president was referring since Iran still has the same president. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, called Trump’s claim “false and baseless,” according to a report on Iranian state television.

Speaking earlier to Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi signaled Tehran’s willingness to keep fighting. “You cannot speak to the people of Iran in the language of threats and deadlines,” he said. “We do not set any deadline for defending ourselves.”

Hours before Trump’s address, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian posted a lengthy letter in English on his X account appealing to U.S. citizens and stressing that his country had pursued negotiations before the U.S. withdrew from that path. “Exactly which of the American people’s interests are truly being served by this war?” he wrote.

Since the war began on Feb. 28, Trump has offered shifting objectives and repeatedly has said it could be over soon while also threatening to widen the conflict. Thousands of additional U.S. troops are currently heading to the Middle East, and speculation abounds about why.

Trump has also threatened to attack Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub. And the U.S. could decide to send in military forces to secure Iran’s uranium stockpile — a complex and risky operation, fraught with radiation and chemical dangers, experts and former government officials say.

Adding to the confusion is what role Israel — which has been bombing Iran alongside the U.S. — might play in any of these scenarios.

Trump has been under growing pressure to end the war that has been pushing up the cost of gasoline, food and other goods. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, is up more than 40% since the start of the war.

The U.S. has presented Iran with a 15-point plan aimed at bringing about a ceasefire, including a demand for the strait to be reopened and for its nuclear program to be rolled back.

Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful. And in a report last week by Iranian state TV's English-language broadcaster, an anonymous official was quoted as saying Iran had its own demands to end the fighting, including retaining sovereignty over the strait.

In the interview with Al Jazeera, Araghchi acknowledged receiving direct messages from U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. He insisted, however, that there were no direct negotiations and said Iran has no faith that talks with the U.S. could yield any results, saying “the trust level is at zero.”

He warned against any U.S. attempt to launch a ground offensive, saying “we are waiting for them.”

In a deal ostensibly to give diplomacy a chance, U.S. officials have given “clear assurances” that Araghchi and Iran's Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf won't be targeted, according to three officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they're not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.

Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Rising reported from Bangkok. Associated Press writers Giovanna Dell’Orto in Miami, Farnoush Amiri in New York and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.

A rainbow forms over the White House on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

A young girl is comforted by her father and Israeli soldiers as they take cover in a bomb shelter during air raid sirens warning of incoming Iranian missile strikes in Bnei Brak, Israel, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

People inspect the site of an Israeli strike amid debris and damaged vehicles in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A man feeds stray cats in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

The Indian flagged LPG carrier Jag Vasant transporting liquefied petroleum gas, is seen at the Mumbai Port in Mumbai, India, after it arrived clearing the Strait of Hormuz, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

Firefighters and rescue workers work at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A firefighter extinguishes a car at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Israel's rescue teams and residents take shelter as sirens sounds next to a site struck by an Iranian missile in Bnei Brak, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

A police vehicle is seen through a shattered windshield at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Two men ride scooters past charred debris at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)