Arrowhead Pride
Coming off an ugly loss in Jacksonville, the Kansas City Chiefs needed this one. They recorded a comfortable 30-17 win over the Detroit Lions — one of the best teams in the league — and got back to 0.500 on the season.
The offense looked competent and surgical — and this week, they’ll get one of their best players back. The defense held Detroit to under 100 yards rushing and 200 yards passing. They got big stops to end drives and avoided costly mistakes.
It’s not easy to find fault with the Chiefs’ performance in this game, so I hope you’ll forgive a lopsided recap.
Here are just a few Kansas City players who stood out.
Wide receivers Hollywood Brown and JuJu Smith-Schuster: Combined, these two caught all seven targets for 102 yards and two scores. Neither is likely to be the team’s No. 1 receiver any time soon — in fact, with Rashee Rice returning next week, their opportunities may shrink — but on this night, they made big plays. Brown had a 20-yard catch and Smith-Schuster grabbed a 30-yarder. Both served as efficient, reliable targets for quarterback Patrick Mahomes — especially when he was improvising.
Defensive tackle Chris Jones: His statistics weren’t gaudy, but don’t be fooled: Jones is still changing games. Whether he reaches the quarterback or not, his pressure and chaos were evident on nearly every big defensive stop. Jones has that rare ability to beat an interior lineman cleanly and force a hurried throw that ends a drive.
Left tackle Jaylon Moore: Before examining advanced stats and coaches’ film, it looks like Moore’s debut went very well. He showed strength in run blocking, mobility getting downfield and pushing elite pass rushers wide around the pocket. It might have been one of the best days of his life. Early on Sunday morning, he welcomed his third child before earning his first Kansas City start. It was encouraging to see the Chiefs’ offensive line depth shine when Josh Simmons — its fantastic rookie starter — had to miss the game.
Tight end Travis Kelce: The sharp cuts? The energy? The reliable hands? There was the player we’ve grown accustomed to seeing! He caught six of seven targets for 78 yards and nearly scored before landing awkwardly near the goal line. With wideout Rashee Rice returning this week, it’ll be interesting to see how the targets shake out — but it’s reassuring to know that when the team needs him, Kelce can still be the guy.
Safety Bryan Cook and defensive back Chamarri Conner: These two were tackling machines against the Lions — a huge reason Detroit was held to just 17 points. They combined for 21 tackles — many of them near the line of scrimmage. The Lions went just 5-for-11 on third down and 0-for-2 on fourth down. Cook and Conner’s aggressive tackling and closing speed were key factors in getting the Chiefs’ defense off the field.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes: Nobody has been better...
