Arrowheadlines: The fade is finally back in the Chiefs offense

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Rashee Rice had an offseason talk with Patrick Mahomes. It led to a TD on Sunday | The Athletic

“I basically told Pat I was a fade guy in college,” Rice said Sunday. “If you look at my college highlights,

I caught a lot of back-shoulders at SMU. Just having a great quarterback, we just had to put it in the air, talk about it.”

From there, the two went to work.

Over and over, Mahomes and Rice practiced those corner-of-the-end-zone-type throws during training sessions. The route combination not only requires precise timing but also great trust.

The two got it down perfectly in Rice’s season debut Sunday, as Rice pulled down a 3-yard fade in the second quarter for his second touchdown of the game in the Chiefs’ 31-0 win over the Las Vegas Raiders.

B/R Experts Week 8 NFL Power Rankings | Bleacher Report

3. Chiefs

Last Week: 9

Week 7 Result: Won vs. Las Vegas Raiders 31-0

Rashee Rice’s return after a six-game suspension added a different dynamic to the Chiefs offense. He immediately entered the lineup, and Patrick Mahomes targeted him a time-high 10 times, which turned into seven receptions for 42 yards and two scores.

After a slow start, the Chiefs are rolling again. Mahomes can drop to pass, with multiple weapons to exploit. Rice is tremendous after the catch. Xavier Worthy’s field-tilting speed provides instant offense. Tyquan Thornton has shown so much improvement. Hollywood Brown brings a veteran presence among the wide receivers.

Meanwhile, tight end Travis Kelce can still get the job done. – Sobleski

Chiefs HC Andy Reid shares early grade for Patrick Mahomes in 2025 | Chiefs Wire

“You saw him (Patrick Mahomes) execute all the phases in the offense. We have different categories there, whether it’s play pass movements, whether it’s three-step drop, five-step drop concepts, and then all the screen game that goes with that. We do a variety of screens,” said Reid, “I liked the way he handled that. His checks were good at the line of scrimmage when he had to put a little Hollywood (acting) into things, he did good with that and some of the tricky stuff. I thought he handled everything real well.”

Grading every first-round pick through Week 7: Tyler Warren, Emeka Egbuka lead strong rookie class | CBS Sports

32. Chiefs – OT Josh Simmons

Grade: B

Simmons has done a great job moving his feet when engaged and has shown the foot quickness to mirror counters. There is still work to be done in terms of marrying his hands and feet in pass protection, but it looks as though Kansas City found its franchise left tackle late in the first round. Simmons has a great anchor at the point of attack and has a good understanding of sealing run lanes.

10 Quick Facts Following the Chiefs Week 7 Win Over Las Vegas | Upon Further Review | The Mothership

3. The Chiefs outgained Las Vegas by 339 yards.

Kansas City held the Raiders to just 95 offensive yards on Sunday, recording only the fifth defensive performance over the last three seasons in which an opponent amassed fewer than 100 yards from scrimmage. In fact, after briefly entering Kansas City territory on their opening drive, the Raiders never played on the Chiefs’ side of the field over the course of their final nine possessions.

Among games since 2000 that featured a defense holding the opposition to zero points and three or fewer first downs, the Chiefs’ 339-yard advantage was the third-largest disparity in that span. Only the Jacksonville Jaguars (a 396-yard advantage vs. the Browns in 2000) and the Atlanta Falcons (a 376-yard advantage vs. the Raiders in 2008) put together larger margins.

Through Week 7, the Chiefs now own the No. 3 scoring defense in the NFL at 17.7 points allowed-per-game.

Around the NFL

Brandon Graham ends retirement, rejoins Eagles on 1-year deal | ESPN

The Eagles announced Tuesday morning that Graham, who was the longest-tenured player in franchise history, has agreed to a one-year deal to suit up for his 16th season with Philadelphia.

Graham said Tuesday on his podcast that he has “no expectations” for his comeback and is “excited just to get after it.”

3 bad NFL teams are already in deep trouble for 2026 | SB Nation

There is going to be a lot of pain this offseason for Miami. The team is going to have to strip the team back to its foundation, while finding a way to sign 18 players with no cap space to pay with. They have massive commitments to a lot of veterans, and the starting point is to shed some of these bad deals. These include:

Tyreek Hill ($51.8M cap hit, $28.2M in dead cap): Hill is the perfect candidate for a post-June 1 cut considering his cap figure is so overblown compared to his dead cap number. Even still, $28M in a dead cap hit is too much for the Dolphins to sustain — which will necessitate splitting it up. We don’t know how much Hill has left in the tank, but even if he’s at his best, this would be a luxury for a team that will need to pull in the purse strings.

In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride

Chiefs Roster: 8 winners, 1 loser from Week 7 victory over Raiders

Running back Brashard Smith: Will we look back on Week 7 as the breakout game for Smith? Seeing him dance and weave through traffic on a screen just felt right. It was an element that’s been missing since Jerick McKinnon moved on — and one that has been a hallmark of Andy Reid’s offenses since the days of Jamaal Charles. Nobody’s putting that level of expectation on Smith — at least not yet — but 80 total yards on 15 touches is an outstanding contribution from a seventh-round rookie. He’s proving to be not only a reliable pass catcher (five-for-five on Sunday) but also a player who could break free on any given play. As he continues to grow, he could become a true difference-maker in this offense.