SB Nation • 11 min read

Arrowheadlines: Mahomes matching a Cam Newton rushing stat underscores Kansas City’s problems on the ground

The latest

Evaluating surprise trends for 32 NFL teams: Real or not? | ESPN

Kansas City Chiefs

The early surprise: Patrick Mahomes leads the Chiefs in rushing.

The verdict: Mirage-ish. The Chiefs certainly hope it’s a mirage. But Mahomes has had to scramble to give the Chiefs a legit option on the ground. Although Isiah Pacheco is healthy, he has struggled with his limited touches. Kareem Hunt is mostly a short-yardage and third-down back. Still, it’s wild that Mahomes is the second quarterback since 1950 to record

double any other player on his team in rushing yards in each of the first two games of a season, joining Cam Newton (2020). — Nate Taylor

Week 3 QB Power Rankings: Who is No. 1? Where does Patrick Mahomes fall? | CBS Sports

11 – Patrick Mahomes

Kansas City Chiefs QB
He’s not getting a ton of help from an aging, inconsistent and banged-up crop of skill weapons, but the three-time champ might also be succumbing to pressure up front. At least he’s showing persistence as a scrambler out of necessity. (-4)

NFL Week 3 best bets: A Chiefs under and betting against the Eagles? Buckle up | The Athletic

Kansas City Chiefs at New York Giants under 45.5 (-115)

Do not take much stock in Russell Wilson’s performance against the Cowboys last week. Yes, this is the ultimate sandwich spot for the Chiefs in between the Eagles and the Ravens, but this Giants offense should struggle against a quality defense. Just look back at the performance against the Commanders in Week 1. I’d expect something closer to that than last week, obviously. As for the Chiefs offense, I think they’ll be able to move the ball against a disappointing Giants defense so far this season, but even with Xavier Worthy returning to the lineup, I don’t know if he steps back in at 100 percent. I’d expect more dink and dunk from the Chiefs this week.

Worst price to bet: Under 45 (-110)

The Ringer’s 2025 QB Rankings | The RInger

3. Patrick Mahomes

If the Chiefs need him to manage a game with quick, short passes, he can do that. If they need him to attack the intermediate areas with anticipatory throws into tight windows, he can do that, too. If the situation calls for more ad-libbing, well, we know Mahomes can improvise with the best of them. If a defense wants to send the house, the Chiefs can trust him to figure out how to beat it. And if the situation calls for a backbreaking scramble on third down, he’s your man. He’s the NFL’s answer to Mystique from the X-Men. If you ranked the NFL’s best dual threats, or pocket passers, or gunslingers, or field generals—or whatever archetype you could come up with—Mahomes wouldn’t top all of them. But his name would be near the top in every category, which has helped to make him the NFL’s most dominant playoff quarterback.

Fantasy football rankings: Top 100 standard wide receivers for Week 3 | SB Nation

Wide receiver injuries

Xavier Worthy, Chiefs

Worthy got in some limited work in practice, but never really seemed close to playing last week. We’ll see if his chances go up this week as the Chiefs prepare to take upon the Giants.

Around the NFL

Washington D.C. City Council approves Commanders’ return to RFK Stadium site | NFL.com

The Washington Commanders’ plan to return to the site of their former home at RFK Stadium cleared its final hurdle with the local legislature Wednesday when the District of Columbia Council approved the legislation.

The bill passed by an 11-2 vote and can now be sent to Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser, who negotiated the original plan with Commanders owner Josh Harris in April, with the team contributing $2.7 billion and the city investing roughly $1.1 billion for the stadium, housing, green space and a sports complex on land bordering the Anacostia River.

“It is with great pride that I can say we are officially bringing our Commanders home and turning 180 acres of land on the banks of the Anacostia, on the monumental axis, into jobs and opportunity for DC residents,” Bowser said in a statement after Wednesday’s vote. “This will be the largest economic development project in DC history.”

In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride

Chiefs Eagles Week 3: Defense offers reason for hope after 0-2 start

Just how concerned should we be? And how likely is it that the team will get things back on track?

Unfortunately, we won’t know the answer to either of these questions until we get more information on what this team is going to look like at full strength. But we can begin by looking at recent history.

A year ago, the Baltimore Ravens, Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams each started 0-2. All three teams reached the playoffs. The 2022 Cincinnati Bengals also did it, along with the 2023 Houston Texans. In all, 12% of the 42 teams to start 0-2 since 2020’s postseason expansion made the playoffs.

But no team has started 0-2 and reached the Super Bowl since the New York Giants did it in 2007. The New England Patriots pulled it off in 1996 and 2001, as did the Dallas Cowboys in 1993. But that’s it.