Your Kansas City Chiefs finally got back in the win column after taking care of the New York Jets 35-12 at Arrowhead on Sunday. The beginning was as ugly as it gets, and there were some ball security issues and short-yardage challenges. But the home team eventually remembered how to put together a complete game. They ran the ball, played great defense, limited penalties, and Mahomes got the ball into the hands of playmakers to rack up the YAC. That’s been the formula for each of the team’s six wins.
Here are a few who stood out on Sunday, for better or worse.
7 Winners
Running back Kenneth Walker III: Ken had three touchdowns and 143 yards from scrimmage; the Chiefs scored 35 points. It’s that simple: get Walker going, win football games.
Running back Emmett Johnson: Number 10 continues his hot streak, breaking tackles on every play and scoring his second career touchdown. The Chiefs appear to have a complementary back who can help carry the load without sacrificing explosiveness.
Left guard Kingsley Suamataia: Correlation may not be causation, but the fact is that Kingsley was back as a starter on the same day both running backs made the winners list. He put some highlights on film against the Jets in the run game and on screens— especially the Kenneth Walker touchdown. Maybe having the starting left guard in the game is a good idea.
Defensive end George Karlaftis: George stayed Furious on Sunday— he was everywhere, with two sacks, six tackles and a pass defended. Three of those tackles were for a loss, forcing the Jets offense to (literally) go backward in the third quarter. Honorable mention to Ashton Gillotte, who also had a solid game and a quarterback sack.
Defensive lineman Chris Jones: The CEO is back in the office— it wasn’t just the two sacks, but there was a different level of pocket-crushing and explosion this week than we’ve seen. Chris Jones got to the quarterback from the inside and the outside, had a tackle for loss, and a batted pass. This defense works so much better when he’s using offensive guards for sleds.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes: It was a solid day for Mahomes — 23-of-31 for 242 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions. But it’s the toughness that people will remember from this game. Somehow, after getting his throwing arm mangled on a strip sack, he didn’t miss a play. He went on to lead multiple touchdown drives and take multiple big hits without concern for his body.
Tight end Travis Kelce: With question marks all over the wide receiver room and a disastrous start to this game, Mahomes went back to old reliable. Kelce delivered on four catches for 72 yards and a touchdown, including a 38-yard catch-and-run.
8 Losers
The QB sneak: One attempt, one fumble, zero first downs, one snarky Head Coach in the postgame— it’s a 90% or better chance of converting for most teams. Why is this so difficult for the Chiefs?
Quarterback Justin Fields, Center Creed Humphrey, Kick returner Cyrus Allen: Each of these guys was responsible for a fumble this week. Along with the two strip sacks of Mahomes, that makes five times the Chiefs put the ball on the ground. Luckily, they recovered four — but the sloppy play started on the opening kickoff and could have cost them the game.
Wide receiver Xavier Worthy: Another injury on an otherwise decent day. Worthy finished with six catches for 48 yards before leaving with a hamstring injury. It wasn’t a great sign that the Chiefs were reportedly desperate for a wide receiver before— they may want to add more than one now.
Kicker Harrison Butker: The Chiefs didn’t need field goals to win this one, but Butker missed his only attempt — twice. He was predictably wide right from 56, then from 51 after a Jets penalty. The team would actually lose some available cap space if they were to cut their highly compensated kicker, but perhaps it would be worth the investment.
Note: Applying the labels “losers” is not meant to be a judgment on the talent or character of any of these individuals. It’s just a simple way to grade their job performance in a single game. No disrespect is intended.
