“It’s that time of year.”

Karlaftis got his first sack on such a play, roaring around the edge past tight end Dalton Schultz on a fourth-and-10 before corralling a dancing Stroud in the pocket.

“When you get sacked, it’s a big thing, it’s a big deal, both as a game and as a statistic, but also for morale,” Karlaftis said. “When you have multiple guys that can do that, when you have 8.0 sacks, that usually gives you a good chance to win.”

Two Texan possessions later, with Kansas City’s lead growing again to 23-12, Karlaftis started and ended Houston’s final drive with his other sacks. Chamarri Conner and Felix Anudike-Uzomah also joined the party, giving the team six different players to record a sack with Chris Jones, Tershawn Wharton and Charles Omenihu earlier in the contest.

It was Karlaftis’ last, however, made in consecutive tandem with Anudike-Uzomah’s, that blocked another extended Houston march to the Kansas City 17-yard line. The Texans attempted a field goal just before the two-minute warning to make it a one-possession game, only to see the try blocked by Leo Chenal.

Thus ended all further drama, with the Texans being defeated by just 12 offensive points despite venturing to or beyond the Chiefs’ 40-yard line on six of eight drives (not counting a knee to earth).

The only points Kansas City allowed to Houston after things got tenuous at 13-12 was a safety that punter Matt Araiza ultimately surrendered on a time-wasting effort.

The victory marks the Chiefs’ 16th victory this season without eclipsing 30 points and the 10th with an opponent under 20.

It’s an approach that has generated countless close games and forced individuals such as Karlaftis to take turns, fueling doubt about whether such a risky life could result in a championship.

Now with just two games left to prove it, Mahomes has every confidence in Kansas City’s process.

“Everyone is a winner on this team and I think that’s what makes us special,” he said. “So it doesn’t always have to be an offensive explosion, it doesn’t always have to be the defense blocking it, it’s just about who can find a way to get the win and “How do we do that? I think that’s what makes us a special football team and we’ll try to keep that going next week.”