For Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs, now the grind begins

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Buffalo Bills, Denver Broncos, Indianapolis Colts.

That’s the gauntlet the Kansas City Chiefs face in their next three games – a key stretch that figures to both provide a clearer picture of the remainder of the Chiefs’ season and the developing AFC playoff race. With such formidable opponents upcoming, the Chiefs needed a “break” this week.

Hello, Washington Commanders.

After frustrating their hosts in the first half, the reeling Commanders reverted to form after halftime in the surging Chiefs’ 28-7 blowout victory Monday night at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Chiefs overwhelmed their visitors after the teams went into halftime tied at 7-all, outscoring the Commanders 21-0 in extending their winning streak to three games. After dropping their first two games of the season, the Chiefs (5-3) have also won five of six and are rolling on offense.

In the second half, quarterback Patrick Mahomes toyed with the Commanders’ defense. That’s when Mahomes amassed most of his 285 passing yards and connected with running back Kareem Hunt, tight end Travis Kelce and wide receiver Rashee Rice for touchdown passes of 2, 10 and 18 yards, respectively.

Following the break, the Chiefs’ defense also got it together.

After the Commanders produced only seven points in the first two quarters despite driving into the Chiefs’ territory repeatedly, the Chiefs pitched a shutout the rest of the way. The Commanders (3-5) reverted to recent form in their third straight loss and fourth in five games, dropping to 1-4 on the road during a season that’s unraveling. Quickly.

Kansas City moves on to focus on Buffalo, its longtime nemesis that has caused it fits in the regular season during the Mahomes era.

For the Chiefs, making big strides after halftime against the Commanders was a good way to start a big week.

“In the locker room, we talked about executing,” Mahomes said. “Like sometimes, you wanna press and make stuff happen, especially on a big game like Monday Night Football. We weren’t doing that.

“They had more energy than we did. We had to match their energy and execute at a higher level. We were able to do that in the second half … off that first drive. Then we kind of continued that momentum to the rest of the second half.”

Kansas City took the second-half kickoff and drove 80 yards, the final two covered on Mahomes’ connection with Hunt. Washington’s defense appeared powerless to stop, well, whatever Kansas City head coach Andy Reid picked from his play card.

On one play, Washington had no one in the vicinity of Kelce. He received a pass from Mahomes and rambled for a 38-yard catch-and-run down the right sideline.

Something significant was underway – and it wound up being bad for Washington.

“We came out and had to be aggressive,” Hunt said. “Had to go out there and find a way to put points on the board.”

On that front, the Chiefs had no issues.

The Chiefs entered the game ranked fourth in total offense. In fact, Monday’s game marked the first time in five games that the Chiefs failed to score at least 30 points.

Kansas City is the only team whose offense and defense ranks in the top five statistically. Fourth overall in total defense, Kansas City shut out the Las Vegas Raiders in a 31-0 Week 7 victory and dominated the Commanders.

Yes, Commanders starting quarterback Jayden Daniels was sidelined because of a hamstring injury. Still, Kansas City’s defense delivered another strong overall performance.

That’s a good place for it to be headed to western New York for another showdown against the Bills.

“When you look at that first half, really, all them plays was just our mistakes,” Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie said. “Mental errors, missed assignments, miscommunication. When this team is communicating, when this defense is all on the same page, we’re a fierce group.”

The same can be said of the Chiefs in general, which the Commanders were reminded of first-hand in yet another unsettling performance among many this season. But the AFC East-leading Bills (6-2), AFC West-leading Broncos (6-2) and the AFC South-leading Colts (7-1) figure to provide a much bigger challenges for the Chiefs.

The Chiefs got their breather. Now, their grind begins.