Chiefs pull away from Saints to remain unbeaten
By DAVE SKRETTA AP Sports Writer
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes threw for 331 yards, Kareem Hunt ran for 102 yards and a touchdown, and the Kansas City Chiefs overcame more red-zone woes Monday to beat the New Orleans Saints, 26-13, on a big night for KC’s professional sports teams.
Just as the Chiefs were moving to 5-0 behind another defensive gem, the Royals were beating the Yankees in Game 2 of their American League Division Series in New York. There were frequent chants of “Let’s go Royals!” throughout the game, and when the Royals finished off a 4-2 victory to send the series back to Kansas City tied a game apiece, a roar ripped through Arrowhead Stadium.
There were plenty of roars for the Chiefs, too. Rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy scored another touchdown, and their defense shut down old Raiders rival Derek Carr while dealing the Saints (2-3) their third consecutive defeat.
Carr threw for 185 yards with two touchdowns and an interception before leaving with an oblique injury. It occurred with about 9½ minutes left, when Carr was hit on a fourth-down incompletion as he tried to rally New Orleans from a 23-13 deficit.
The Saints’ Alvin Kamara managed 26 yards rushing on 11 carries, becoming the latest high-profile running back to struggle against the Chiefs. They held the Baltimore Ravens’ Derrick Henry to 46 yards rushing, Zack Moss of the Cincinnati Bengals to 34, Atlanta Falcons star Bijan Robinson to 31 and J.K. Dobbins to 32 in last week’s victory over the Chargers.
The first half Monday night featured a bit of everything: Hunt’s first touchdown since returning to Kansas City, where his once-promising career was derailed by an off-the-field incident; a 43-yard touchdown pass from Carr to Rashid Shaheed, the shortest of the three Shaheed has caught this season; and yet another lateral by Travis Kelce, which came on the most bizarre of drives.
The Chiefs were leading 10-7 when a fumbled pitch and a holding penalty left them facing second-and-34. They got some of it back on a pass to JuJu Smith-Schuster, and then Mahomes hit Kelce over the middle. Kelce lateraled to Samaje Perine, who got within a yard of a first down, and Kansas City converted the fourth-and-short play to set up an eventual field goal.
It was exactly that – field goals – that kept New Orleans in the game, though. The Chiefs have struggled to score TDs in the red zone all season, and they were forced to let Harrison Butker kick a trio of chip shots to lead 16-7 at the break.
Their red-zone woes continued in the third quarter. On second-and-goal, Smith-Schuster had a pass bounce off his hands at the goal line and into the arms of 324-pound former Chiefs defensive tackle Khalen Saunders, who made his first career interception.
The Saints promptly marched 65 yards with Foster Moreau’s touchdown catch getting them within 16-13 with 14:16 to play.
But unlike every other game for the Chiefs, which had been decided in the final minutes – if not the final play – they answered the blow by delivering one of their own. Smith-Schuster hauled in a 50-yard pass moments later, and Worthy took a handoff on first-and-goal at the 3-yard line for a touchdown that extended their cushion early in the fourth quarter.
After the Chiefs stopped the Saints on fourth down, they tacked on another field goal with 3:03 left.
SWIFT RETURNS
Musician Taylor Swift was back at Arrowhead Stadium to see Kelce and the Chiefs after missing her boyfriend’s previous two road games. She resumes her record-setting Eras Tour on Friday night with the first of three shows in Miami. Kelce had nine catches for 70 yards.
INJURIES
Saints: Cornerback Will Harris hurt his hamstring in the first half. Center Lucas Patrick left briefly in the third quarter with a collarbone injury,
Chiefs: Left tackle Wanya Morris left in the first half with a lower leg injury but returned to the game.
UP NEXT
New Orleans hosts Tampa Bay on Sunday.
Kansas City has a week off before visiting San Francisco on Oct. 20.
More to come on this story.