Steelers vs. Chiefs: Score, result, highlights for divisional playoff game in Kansas City

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The kickoff time for Sunday's Steelers-Chiefs divisional playoff game was the last thing players and coaches cared about — the change from a 1:05 p.m. ET start time to 8:20 p.m. ET due to weather conditions in Kansas City affected only those who planned to attend the game at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Chiefs, for example, were more concerned about Le'Veon Bell, who ran all over Kansas City back in Week 3, when Pittsburgh dominated a home game. He did it again throughout the Steelers' 18-16 win Sunday.

MORE: AFC title game info, odds

Kansas City opened as a two-point favorite over Pittsburgh, but Vegas clearly was not confident in the Chiefs' odds. Now we know why. The Steelers are off to New England for the AFC championship game against the Patriots.

SN provided live updates during Sunday night's divisional playoff game in Kansas City. Here's how it went down.

STEELERS-CHIEFS SCORE, RESULT

11:18 p.m. ET: Game. Chris Boswell The Steelers took care of business against the Chiefs, and they'll head to New England for the AFC championship game against the Patriots.

As he was through the first half, Le'Veon Bell was the star of the game. He rushed for 170 yards on 30 carries, breaking his own Steelers postseason record for yards in a game, which he set in the wild-card round against the Dolphins.

Pittsburgh was better than Kansas City in every statistical category except red-zone scoring, which is why Boswell set a record with his six field goals.

11:16 p.m. ET: Antonio Brown picked a good time to make his first catch of the second half — just the game-clincher, no big deal. The third-down conversion with less than two minutes to play meant the Steelers would be able to run out the clock and preserve the win.

11:04 p.m. ET — touchdown: Pure Kansas City elation was ruined by Eric Fisher, who was flagged for holding on a successful two-point conversion after Spencer Ware scored a touchdown from one yard out; a conversion that would have tied the game with 2:43 left to play. The Chiefs offensive tackle hooked James Harrison — an easy call — as Alex Smith rolled to his right to throw. The Chiefs' 13-play drive that seemed to save their season might have been for nothing. 18-16, Chiefs.

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10:44 p.m. ET — field goal: We have a new NFL record — not exactly one to be proud of if you're Pittsburgh's offense, but a record nonetheless. Chris Boswell nailed his sixth field goal of the game, the most ever in a postseason contest, after yet another Steelers drive stalled in Chiefs territory. This one was a 10-play drive that took 5:21 off the fourth-quarter clock and extended the lead to eight. 18-10, Steelers.

10:36 p.m. ET: End of third quarter. Pittsburgh still had more than double the amount of total yards more than Kansas City's, 334-150, but the Steelers held only a five-point lead.

10:33 p.m. ET — field goal: It was Kansas City's turn to take a disappointing three points, rather than six. Although ... the Chiefs probably should have been happy about that considering Travis Kelce almost ruined the drive with a bone-head personal foul. He was saved on the next play by Alex Smith's big third-and-20 conversion. Cairo Santos nailed his 48-yarder a few plays later. 15-10, Steelers.

10:08 p.m. ET — field goal: Stop us if you've heard this before: Pittsburgh's drive stalled, and the Steelers settled for a field goal. Chris Boswell's fifth field goal of the game, this one a 43-yarder, tied an NFL record. The highlight of the drive was a 38-yard Le'Veon Bell run. 15-7, Steelers.

9:44 p.m. ET: Halftime. The Chiefs flirted with disaster at the end of the half when Charcandrick West fumbled and gave the Steelers a chance to score, but Pittsburgh was too far away from the end zone to make anything happen.

As some might have expected, the first half belonged to Le'Veon Bell, who rushed for 101 yards on 18 carries. He became the first Steelers player with 100-plus yards in any half of a playoff game since at least 1991. Neither Ben Roethlisberger nor Alex Smith were great at quarterback, but they weren't bad, either.

The Chiefs were lucky not to be down more than five points at halftime. They lost the first-half total yardage battle, 275-106, and hadn't even ran half of the amount of plays as the Steelers, 42-20.

9:35 p.m. ET: The Steelers' fourth field goal in five drives game with 55 seconds to play in the first half, yet another disappointment for Pittsburgh and a good hold for the Kansas City defense. The drive included a couple big third-down conversions, if you're looking for a Steelers silver lining. 12-7, Steelers.

9:17 p.m. ET: Speaking of interceptions that aren't really the quarterback's fault, Ben Roethlisberger threw one just a few plays after Alex Smith's to give Kansas City the ball back. Big Ben's pass, intended for Antonio Brown, was tipped by Frank Zombo and caught by Eric Berry in the end zone for a turnover and a touchback. The play was reviewed and confirmed.

9:14 p.m. ET: Alex Smith threw an interception, but it wasn't necessarily his fault. Bud Dupree beat Jah Reid badly off the edge and hit Smith as he threw. Ryan Shazier picked off the wobbly pass at the Chiefs' 44-yard line — the first turnover of the game.

9:07 p.m. ET — field goal: Another Chris Boswell field goal, another disappointment for Pittsburgh. The Steelers would have capped the drive with a touchdown had Marcus Peters not brilliantly stripped the ball from Antonio Brown's hands in the end zone a few plays before the kick. The Steelers ran their no-huddle offense during the entire 14-play drive and burned 6:30 off the clock. They settled for three but did at least take the lead. 9-7, Steelers.

8:57 p.m. ET: End of first quarter. A relatively eventful first 15 minutes didn't have many points to show for it, but yardage totals of 130 (Steelers) and 81 (Chiefs) were a more accurate representation. Pittsburgh had the edge in time of possession and total plays, and it had the ball at the beginning of the second quarter.

8:45 p.m. ET — field goal: Pittsburgh's second drive, save for a 52-yard bomb to Antonio Brown in which Justin Houston was tasked with the man coverage, was not nearly as easy as its first. But the result was the same, a Chris Boswell field goal, this time 38 yards. 7-6, Chiefs.

8:36 p.m. ET — touchdown: The Chiefs saw the Steelers' impressive opening drive, and they raised them one even more impressive opening drive. Albert Wilson caught Alex Smith's five-yard touchdown pass on a quick rollout to the quarterback's left. It came on the sixth play of a drive that included two runs and four passes — quick, easy and efficient. 7-3, Chiefs.

8:29 p.m. ET — field goal: The way Pittsburgh marched down the field on Kansas City during its first drive of the game, just three points to show for it seemed like a disappointment. The Steelers' 11-play, 66-yard drive stalled on the Chiefs' 4-yard line, where Chris Boswell nailed his 22-yard field goal. Le'Veon Bell gained 25 yards on his three carries during the drive. 3-0, Steelers.

8:20 p.m. ET: Kickoff. Cairo Santos' kickoff was returned 28 yards by Justin Gilbert. Pittsburgh started its first drive from its own 30-yard line.

3:23 p.m. ET: The preparation for icy conditions in and around Arrowhead Stadium began hours before kickoff. Ice literally had to be chiseled off the seats.

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