The Kansas City Chiefs traded for DeAndre Hopkins last week in hopes of sparking a sometimes stagnant passing game.
The results on Sunday were not overwhelming. But as they have been all season, they were good enough as Kansas City secured a 27-20 win over the Raiders in Las Vegas.
The Chiefs improved to 7-0 with the win and remained the NFL’s only undefeated team. They won again with an offensive performance that often bore little resemblance to that of a two-time Super Bowl champion.
Kansas City opened the game with a 70-yard drive capped by a Kareem Hunt touchdown run. Hopkins made his first catch as a Chief on the drive, a 13-yard grab on third down that kept the drive moving.
After the Raiders responded with 10 straight points, Kansas City answered with another touchdown drive that ended with a Mahomes pass to Travis Kelce in the end zone.
The touchdown was Kelce’s first of the season. It was also the first for Mahomes since a 17-10 win over the Chargers on September 29. Mahomes failed to throw a touchdown in subsequent wins over the Saints and 49ers, a streak of 11 consecutive quarters dating back to the second quarter against the Chargers.
The Chiefs then failed to score on two third-quarter drives that ended with a punt and an interception, allowing a 2-5 Raiders team to keep things close. With Kansas City holding a 17-13 lead, the Raiders backed the Chiefs all the way to their own end zone, only for Mahomes to force a critical foul.
As Raiders pass rushers came down in the end zone, Mahomes threw a pass that was tipped to the line and intercepted by safety Tre’von Moehrig.
The turnover gave the Raiders first and goal at the 3-yard line. But they failed to capitalize.
A Chiefs defense that anchored Kansas City’s perfect start allowed Alexander Mattison to stop three straight runs short of the goal line. Then it came with a fourth-down sack by Gardner Minshew to stop the Raiders’ scoring opportunity.
The Chiefs offense responded with a field goal before Kansas City’s defense took the lead again to ice the game. Mike Pennel picked off Minshew on a sack, and Drue Tranquill recovered the ball for a turnover that put the Chiefs inside the Las Vegas 40-yard line midway through the fourth quarter.
Five plays later, Mahomes threw his second touchdown of the day, this one to Xavier Worthy. The Raiders added a touchdown on their ensuing drive, but it was too little too late. The Chiefs recovered the ensuing onside kick and ran out the clock on another win.
Mahomes finished the day completing 27 of 38 passes for 262 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Hopkins caught two passes for 29 yards in his Chiefs debut. Kelce had one of his best games of the season with 10 catches for 90 yards and a touchdown. The Chiefs had 334 yards of total offense.
Kansas City’s defense, meanwhile, held Las Vegas to 228 yards and sacked Minshew five times. It also set up an important goal-line stand and set up the late turnover that helped ice the game.
