The Kansas City Chiefs put the league back on notice in their Sunday Night Football performance against the Detroit Lions. Thanks to clean play on both sides of the ball, the Chiefs controlled the flow of the game and obtained the victory, 30-17.
The Chiefs now sit at 3-3 with much optimism as they look to once again find the promised land behind Patrick Mahomes.
First Half
The game started with some early controversy after a long drive by the Lions to kick things off. The opening drive saw Detroit drive down to the Kansas City one-yard line on 4th and goal, where, on their 15th play of the drive, Jared Goff suddenly motioned out to the left before David Montgomery quickly snapped and threw it over to Goff, who ran his way into the endzone for a presumed 7-0 lead.
However, the referees avoided a review by staying on the field and discussing for a prolonged period of time about the play. Finally, after the Lions had already begun to wheel out their PAT team, the officials ruled illegal motion on the offense because they had not gotten set before the ball was snapped, resulting in just a field goal for the Lions.
The Chiefs responded quickly as Mahomes maneuvered the team down the field with great precision before finding Xavier Worthy for a first-drive touchdown. Unfortunately, a familiar problem this season reared its ugly head, as Harrison Butker missed his third extra point of the year.
Both teams exchanged a touchdown and a turnover on downs before the end of the half, which resulted in a 13-10 lead for Kansas City after two quarters of play.
Second Half
The second half saw the Chiefs really begin to hit their stride, as they took control of the game off the back of some excellent offense and defense, a cohesion not often seen from Kansas City in the last three or so years. This eight-play, 81-yard drive put the Chiefs on top by 10 over halfway through the third quarter.
After an exchange of punts, Detroit was able to respond with an eight-play, 81-yard touchdown drive of their own to tighten things up to just a 20-17 Kansas City lead.
Putting it away
After last week’s blunder of a finish to the game for the Chiefs, many Kansas Citians may have begun to grow nervous, but the Chiefs put their worries to rest with a smooth touchdown drive that saw the Chiefs steadily move their way down the field and into the endzone to take a 27-17 lead early in the fourth quarter.
This drive, paired with a forced three-and-out by the defense, gave the offense to salt things away, which they did, driving down inside the red zone off of some physical runs from Isaiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt before kicking a field goal. A fourth-and-out resulted in a kneel-out for Mahomes and the offense and a well-earned victory over a very good Detroit Lions team.
Key Statistics
Mahomes continued his somewhat quietly great season with a second straight four-touchdown day, three of which came through the air with one on the ground. Mahomes went 22/30 for 257 yards, along with 10 carries for 32 more yards, with a fumble that he recovered.
A very encouraging sign for Chiefs fans was the performance of Travis Kelce, who has had a rough go of it so far this season. Kelce finished the game leading all receivers on either side with six receptions for a season high 78 yards.
He wasn’t the only receiver to pull his own weight, however, as JuJu Smith-Schuster and Hollywood Brown also had a night for themselves with a combined 102 yards. Smith-Schuster ended the night with three catches for 57 yards for an average of 19 yards per catch, acting as an excellent spark plug for the offense. Brown offered his ability to finish off the drive with four catches for 45 yards and two touchdowns. This production comes as Rashee Rice’s return from his six-week suspension looms.
Pacheco also showcased his ability, helping to support Mahomes and the offense as they gradually moved down the field. He ended the day with 12 carries for 51 yards for an average of 4.3 yards per carry. His physicality helped wear down a depleted Detroit secondary, allowing the offense to get down the field more easily.
The defense statistically did not appear too dominant, but ultimately did hold an explosive Lion offense in check. Only one singular defender ended with over seven tackles and only got Goff on the ground once, but it was the coverage in the secondary that really shone through.
Only five receivers for Detroit even had a catch compared to the Chiefs’ eight, while only one receiver reached the 46-yard mark. Star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown was especially held in check when considering his immense production, catching nine balls but being limited to just 45 yards.
The Outlook
This team is perplexing and is almost the opposite of last season, in which the team continuously looked unimpressive but still found ways to win, now the team continues to look good and find ways not to come out on top.
Mahomes is having an overall good season with 1,257 yards, eight touchdowns to only two interceptions, and a solid 63.4% completion percentage. Players like Xavier Worthy and Thornton have been stepping up in the receiver room while Pacheco and Hunt continue to be solid options in the backfield. The defense, while slightly less dominant than during its 2024 campaign, is still doing better than average, allowing just 21.4 points per game.
If the team can rid themselves of their mistakes and miscues that they can succeed at a very high level, but the point remains that they have to get back to their winning ways no matter what as the playoffs draw nearer.
The Chiefs now appear to be more confident than they have been in a long time, despite a disappointing 3-3 record, as both the offense and defense look to be clicking simultaneously. If the team can stay away from mental mistakes and miscues, they could look to once again reach the mountain top that they did for two straight years in 2023 and 2024.
Mahomes currently leads the league in total yards at 1,736 yards while the offense has turned the ball over just two total times, tied for the least in the league. This statistic could grow even larger with the return of star wide receiver Rashee Rice.
The team appears to be, when executing their assignments properly, very scary for the rest of the league, and this game against a team that many considered to be the best in the league coming into the weekend, showcased the true ability of this team when operating at near full capacity.