Football is a game of fine margins, and sometimes a single statistic can reveal more about a team’s identity than wins and losses alone. This year, one striking similarity links two football teams that could not be more different: the Kansas City Chiefs and the Arkansas Razorbacks. Both are winless in one-score games, a surprising stat considering their vastly different pedigrees.
Kansas City: From Dynasty to Struggling in Close Games
The Chiefs’ dynasty status, built around one of the most dynamic quarterbacks in football, Patrick Mahomes, has long been synonymous with clutch performance. Historically, Kansas City has thrived in close contests. Last season, they were 12-0 in one-score games, including the playoffs, cementing a reputation for finishing strong and dominating crunch-time situations. At one point, the Chiefs were on a 17-game winning streak in games decided by eight or fewer points, stretching back to Christmas 2023. Their ability to pull through in tight contests became a defining part of the team’s identity.
Fast forward to 2025, and everything has flipped. The Chiefs are 0-5 in one-score games, a major reason why they are 5-5 and currently outside the playoff picture. Teams no longer fear Kansas City the way they once did, and the aura of invincibility has faded. The inability to close out tight games has transformed perceptions, turning a dynasty into what some analysts now call “the start of the collapse of a dynasty.”
Arkansas: Competitive but Unlucky
On the other end of the spectrum is Arkansas football, a team that has quietly been competitive this season despite its record. The Razorbacks have played in six one-score games and lost every single one, finishing 0-6 in such contests. While Arkansas is not expected to compete for championships like the Chiefs, the comparison is telling: football often hinges on just a few plays, and Arkansas’ season could look drastically different if a handful of these games had gone the other way.
Flip the script, and Arkansas could be sitting at 8-2 heading into the Texas matchup, with former coach Sam Pittman still at the helm, quarterback Taylen Green in the national spotlight, and the Razorbacks poised to emerge as an SEC contender. Instead, mistakes such as turnovers, penalties, and lapses in coaching, have repeatedly cost them games that were within reach.
The Skill of Winning Close Games
Winning close games is not just luck, it’s a skill. The Chiefs built a dynasty on mastering this art, and until this year, they excelled at it consistently. Arkansas, meanwhile, has shown flashes of competitiveness but has struggled to execute when it matters most. The lesson is clear: the ability to win tight contests can define seasons, influence playoff contention, and even shape program perception.
For Arkansas’ next head coach, this skill becomes even more critical. Competing in the SEC means games are likely to be close on a weekly basis, and small details, play-calling, clock management, discipline, will separate contenders from pretenders. Learning from the Chiefs’ historical success in tight games could give the Razorbacks an edge as they rebuild and try to compete consistently at the highest level.
A Shared Stat That Tells the Whole Story
Kansas City and Arkansas could not be more different in talent, resources, and expectations. Yet, this one shared stat, being winless in one-score games, reveals a universal truth about football: success often comes down to execution when the margin for error is razor-thin. For the Chiefs, the slump in close games has exposed cracks in a once-dominant team. For Arkansas, the inability to close out tight contests has prevented a season that could have been remembered for national relevance.
Football, at its core, is about seizing opportunities in the small moments. Both teams provide a vivid reminder: mastering the one-score game can elevate good teams to greatness or turn potential dynasties and emerging programs into stories of “what could have been.”