Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – The Kansas City Chiefs shrugged off their injury woes to maintain their unbeaten start to the season with a battling 26-13 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Monday. The reigning Super Bowl champions, whose offense has been disrupted by injuries to running backs Isiah Pacheco and receiver Rashee Rice, were nevertheless too strong for the Saints at Arrowhead Stadium.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes marshalled the Kansas City offense superbly, finishing with 331 passing yards from 28-of-39 completions. The Chiefs’ points came from rushing touchdowns from Kareem Hunt and Xavier Worthy, with kicker Harrison Butker slotting four field goals for the home side. Hunt finished with 102 rushing yards while Juju Smith-Schuster had a big night with 130 receiving yards from seven receptions. The Chiefs improved to 5-0 with the win to widen their lead at the top of the AFC West, where the Denver Broncos are a distant second with a 3-2 record.
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The Saints, however, fell to 2-3 for the season and were also given an injury scare with quarterback Derek Carr taking a knock in the fourth quarter that forced him out of the game. Kansas City moved into an early 10-0 lead after Hunt rushed over for a five-yard touchdown before Butker slotted a 26-yard field goal early in the second quarter. New Orleans finally stitched together a scoring drive though soon afterward, with Carr hitting Rashid Shaheed with a 43-yard touchdown pass midway through the second quarter.
The extra point cut the lead to 10-7, but Kansas City kept the scoreboard ticking over on the next drive with another Butker field goal. The 15-play drive included another highlight reel-worthy moment, with tight end Travis Kelce flipping a cheeky lateral pass to Samaje Perine to help turn a 3rd & 21 into a short yardage fourth down, to the delight of Kelce’s pop-star girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from the VIP seats.
With New Orleans punting on their next possession, Kansas City ensured they would reach halftime nine points clear after another Butker field goal made it 16-7. After a scoreless third quarter, the Saints closed to within three points after Carr found Foster Moreau with a six-yard touchdown pass early in the fourth quarter. But the Chiefs re-asserted their control with Worthy rushing over from three yards to put Kansas City 23-13 before another Butker field goal extended the lead to 13 points with just over three minutes remaining.
© 2024 AFP
