A week after a close loss in Denver, the Redskins once again went on the road against an AFC West foe, once again played tough football, once again put themselves in position to grab the victory. But once again, their best efforts weren’t enough to beat the home team – in this case, the Kansas City Chiefs – losing by a 28-21 margin. Last week, it was Bronco defender Ian Gold who got his hand on a two-point conversion pass attempt that would have tied the game. This week, the game came down to timing and mere inches again, as Kansas City defensive back Sammy Knight got his hand on a perfectly thrown pass to Santana Moss at the last possible moment, preventing what looked like a certain touchdown and tarnishing Moss’ electrifying performance.

Last week’s action prompted a little back and forth here on DCist. In discussing the idea of “killer instinct”, commenter “Peter”, astutely pointed out that regardless of the Redskins troubles during the early stages of the game, the team was demonstrating real character in the way they competed in the fourth quarter. Ironically, against Kansas City, Washington got on the board early and traded scores with the Chiefs, only to fall short in the last period. Still, you have to give observant fans like Peter some credit – after years of watching the Redskins quietly fold in game after game, their sheer resolve to win is one of the big reasons fans are coming back to the team and why the crowd at home – perhaps for the first time in the history of FedEx Field – showing a decibel level that calls to mind the glory years of RFK.